| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Janus class |
| Builders | Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company, Jarrow |
| Operators |  Royal Navy |
| Preceded by | Hardy class |
| Succeeded by | Salmon class |
| Built | 1895 |
| In commission | 1895–1920 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Lost | 1 |
| Retired | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Torpedo Boat Destroyer |
| Displacement | 275 long tons (279 t) |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 19 feet 9 inches (6.02 m) |
| Draught | 8 feet (2.4 m) |
| Propulsion | Reed boilers, 3,900 hp (2,908 kW) |
| Speed | 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph) |
Three Janus-class torpedo-boat destroyers (TBDs) served with the Royal Navy. Janus, Lightning and Porcupine were ordered under the 1893-94 Programme, all laid down on 28 March 1894 at Palmer's shipyard at Jarrow and launched during 1895. They displaced 275 tons (light), were 204 feet 6 inches (62.33 m) long and produced 3,900 hp (2,900 kW) from their Reed water tube boilers which gave them a top speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph).
Under the 1893–1894 Naval Estimates, the British Admiralty placed orders for 36 torpedo-boat destroyers, all to be capable of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph), the "27-knotters", as a follow-on to the six prototype "26-knotters" ordered in the previous 1892–1893 Estimates. As was typical for torpedo craft at the time, the Admiralty left detailed design to the builders, laying down only broad requirements.[1][2]
In September 1913 the Admiralty re-classed all the remaining 27-knotter destroyers, including all three Janus-class vessels, as A Class destroyers.