List of frigate classes of the Royal Navy

This is a list of frigate classes of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom (and the individual ships composed within those classes) in chronological order from the formal creation of the Royal Navy following the Restoration in 1660. Where the word 'class' or 'group' is not shown, the vessel was a 'one-off' design with just that vessel completed to the design. The list excludes vessels captured from other navies and added to the Royal Navy.

All frigates built for the Royal Navy up to 1877 (when the Admiralty re-categorised all frigates and corvettes as "cruisers") are listed below. The term "frigate" was resuscitated in World War II and subsequent classes are listed at the end of this article, but the individual ships within those classes are not listed in this article.

The frigate before 1660
The initial meaning of frigate in English/British naval service was a fast sailing warship, usually with a relatively low superstructure and a high length:breadth ratio - as distinct from the heavily armed but slow "great ships" with high fore- and after-castles. The name originated at the end of the 16th century, the first "frigats" being generally small, fast-sailing craft, in particular those employed by Flemish privateers based on Dunkirk and Flushing. Subsequently the term was applied to any vessel with these characteristics, even to a third-rate or fourth-rate ship of the line.

In this list, the term is restricted to fifth rates and sixth rates which did not form part of the battlefleet (i.e. were not ships of the line); many of the earliest ships described as English frigates, such as the Constant Warwick of 1645, were third-rate or fourth-rate ships of the line and thus are not listed below. As the Royal Navy was not officially created until 1660, vessels from the preceding (Commonwealth) era are only included where they survived past 1660. Prizes taken from enemy naval forces and added to the Royal Navy are also excluded.

Fifth rate-frigates before 1660
Fifth rates were essentially two-decked vessels, with their main battery on the lower deck and a lesser number of guns of lesser power on the upper deck (as well as even smaller guns on the quarter deck).


 * Vessels of 1653-1656 Programmes:
 * Colchester - launched 23 February 1654
 * Islip - launched 25 March 1654 (wrecked 24 July 1655)
 * Fagons - launched 22 May 1654, renamed HMS Milford in 1660
 * Selby - launched 22 April 1654, renamed HMS Eagle in 1660
 * Basing - launched 26 April 1654, renamed HMS Guernsey in 1660
 * Grantham - launched 1654, renamed HMS Garland in 1660
 * Norwich - launched 11 September 1655
 * Pembroke - launched September 1655
 * Dartmouth - launched 22 September 1655
 * Cheriton - launched 16 April 1656, renamed HMS Speedwell in 1660
 * Wakefield - launched November 1656, renamed HMS Richmond in 1660
 * Oxford - launched November 1656
 * Forrester - launched 3 September 1657
 * Bradford - launched March 1658, renamed HMS Success in 1660

Sixth-rate frigates before 1660
Sixth rates were single-decked vessels, with a battery on the (single) gun deck, and usually some lesser guns on the quarter deck.


 * Vessels of 1651 Programme:
 * Drake - launched 1652.
 * Merlin - launched 1652.
 * Martin - launched 1652.

Fifth-rate frigates 1660 to 1688

 * Vessels of 1665 Programme:
 * Little Victory - launched 1665
 * Sweepstakes - launched 21 March 1666
 * Falcon - launched 1666
 * Vessels of 1668-1669 Programmes:
 * Nonsuch - launched 22 December 1668
 * Phoenix - launched 31 March 1671
 * Vessels of 1670s construction:
 * Rose - launched September 1674
 * Sapphire - launched 29 June 1675

Sixth-rate frigates 1660 to 1688

 * Designed and built by Anthony Deane at Harwich
 * Fanfan - launched July 1666.
 * Roebuck - launched 24 July 1666.
 * Francis - launched 1666.
 * Designed and built by Anthony Deane at Portsmouth
 * Saudadoes - launched 28 October 1669.
 * Greyhound - launched July 1672.
 * Designed and built by Sir Anthony Deane at Blackwall
 * Lark - launched 11 June 1675.

Frigates from 1688 to 1719
For ships before the 1745 Establishment, the term 'class' is inappropriate as individual design was left up to the master shipwright in each Royal dockyard. For other vessels, the Surveyor of the Navy produced a common design for ships which were to be built under a commercial contract rather than in a Royal Dockyard. Consequently, the term 'group' is used as more applicable for ships built to similar specifications (and to the same principal dimensions) but to varying designs.

Fifth-rate frigates 1688 to 1719
The Navy Board ordered sixteen of these vessels between 1705 and 1711 as 42-gun vessels. The remaining pair - Looe and Diamond - were not ordered but rather the Navy Board purchased them on the stocks from the shipbuilder who had commenced building them "on spec". All the vessels were armed under the 1703 Guns Establishment with a main battery of 9-pounder guns. Under the 1716 Guns Establishment, a 40-gun ship with a main battery of 12-pounder guns superseded the 42-gun ship. Hence, the last six of the ships listed below were completed as 40-gun ships.
 * HMS Mermaid 1689 - 32 guns.
 * Experiment group - 32-gun fifth rates 1689-1691
 * HMS Experiment 1689
 * HMS Pembroke 1690
 * HMS Milford 1690
 * HMS Portsmouth 1690
 * HMS Sheerness 1691
 * HMS Adventure 1691 - 40 guns.
 * HMS England purchased 1693 - 40 guns.
 * HMS Charles Galley 1693 - 32 guns.
 * Shoreham group - 32-gun fifth rates 1694
 * HMS Shoreham 1694
 * HMS Scarborough 1694
 * HMS Sorlings 1694
 * HMS Winchelsea 1694
 * Lyme group - 32-gun fifth rates 1695-1698
 * HMS Lyme 1695
 * HMS Hastings (i) 1695
 * HMS Milford 1695
 * HMS Arundel 1695
 * HMS Rye 1696
 * HMS Scarborough 1696
 * HMS Looe (i) 1696
 * HMS Lynn 1696
 * HMS Fowey 1696
 * HMS Southsea Castle (i) 1696
 * HMS Gosport 1696
 * HMS Poole 1696
 * HMS Feversham 1696
 * HMS Hastings (ii) 1698
 * HMS Lowestoffe 1697
 * HMS Looe (ii) 1697
 * HMS Southsea Castle (ii) 1697
 * HMS Bridgewater 1698
 * HMS Ludlow 1698
 * Lark group - 42-gun fifth rates 1703-1706
 * HMS Hector 1703
 * HMS Lark 1703
 * HMS Greyhound 1703
 * HMS Garland 1703
 * HMS Folkestone 1703
 * HMS Roebuck 1704 (40 guns only)
 * HMS Sorlings 1706
 * 1706 Establishment group - 42-gun fifth rates 1707-1715.
 * HMS Ludlow Castle 1707 – broken up 1721
 * HMS Gosport 1707 – broken up 1735
 * HMS Portsmouth 1707 – broken up 1728
 * HMS Hastings 1707 – sold for breaking 1745
 * HMS Looe 1707 – sunk as a breakwater 1737
 * HMS Diamond 1708 – broken up 1721 to rebuild
 * HMS Sapphire 1708 – sold for breaking 1745
 * HMS Enterprise 1709 – sold for breaking 1749
 * HMS Pearl 1708 – broken up 1723 to rebuild
 * HMS Southsea Castle 1708 – broken up 1723 to rebuild
 * HMS Adventure 1709 – broken up 1724 to rebuild
 * HMS Mary Galley 1708 – broken up 1721 to rebuild
 * HMS Fowey 1709 – renamed Queenborough 1744, sold for breaking 1746
 * HMS Royal Anne Galley 1709 – wrecked 1721
 * HMS Charles Galley 1710 – renamed Torrington 1729, broken up 1744
 * HMS Launceston 1711 – broken up 1726 to rebuild
 * HMS Faversham 1712 – broken up 1730 to rebuild
 * HMS Lynn 1715 – broken up 1732

Sixth-rate frigates 1688 to 1719
Before the "true" sail frigate come into being in the 1740s, the equivalent was the single-deck cruising vessel of the sixth rate, armed with either 20, 22 or 24 guns, which established itself in the 1690s and lasted until the arrival of the new "true" frigates. Before 1714, many small sixth rates carried fewer than 20 guns, and these have been excluded from this list. For over half a century from the 1690s, the main armament of this type was the 6-pounder gun, until it was replaced by 9-pounder guns just prior to being superseded by the 28-gun sixth-rate frigate.
 * Maidstone group 24-gun sixth rates 1693-1697
 * HMS Maidstone 1693
 * HMS Jersey 1694
 * HMS Lizard (i) 1694
 * HMS Newport 1694
 * HMS Falcon 1694
 * HMS Queenborough 1694
 * HMS Swan 1694
 * HMS Drake 1694
 * HMS Solebay 1694
 * HMS Seahorse 1694
 * HMS Bideford 1695
 * HMS Penzance 1695
 * HMS Dunwich 1695
 * HMS Orford 1695
 * HMS Lizard (ii) 1697
 * HMS Flamborough 1697
 * HMS Seaford 1697
 * HMS Deal Castle 1697
 * HMS Seaford 24-gun sixth rate purchased 1695
 * HMS Peregrine Galley 20-gun sixth rate 1700
 * Nightingale group 24-gun sixth rates 1702-1704
 * HMS Nightingale 1702
 * HMS Squirrel (i) 1703
 * HMS Squirrel (ii) 1704
 * Aldborough group 24-gun sixth rates purchased 1706
 * HMS Aldborough 1706
 * HMS Nightingale 1707
 * HMS Deal Castle 1706
 * Flamborough group 24-gun sixth rates 1707
 * HMS Flamborough 1707
 * HMS Squirrel 1707
 * Gibraltar group 20-gun sixth rates 1711-1716
 * HMS Solebay 1711
 * HMS Gibraltar 1711
 * HMS Port Mahon 1711
 * HMS Blandford 1711
 * HMS Hind 1712
 * HMS Seahorse 1712
 * HMS Rose 1712
 * HMS Bideford 1712
 * HMS Success 1712
 * HMS Greyhound 1712
 * HMS Lively 1713
 * HMS Speedwell 1716
 * HMS Dursley Galley 20-gun sixth rate 1719

Frigates from 1719 to 1750
For ships before the 1745 Establishment, the term 'class' is inappropriate as individual design was left up to the master shipwright in each Royal dockyard. For other vessels, the Surveyor of the Navy produced a common design for ships which were to be built under a commercial contract rather than in a Royal Dockyard. Consequently, the term 'group' is used as more applicable for ships built to similar specifications laid down in the Establishments but to varying designs. However, from 1739 almost all Fifth and Sixth Rates were built under contract and were thus to a common class.

Fifth-rate frigates 1719 to 1750
All thirteen were rebuilds of earlier 40-gun ships (the Torrington and Princess Louisa were renamed when rebuilt from the former Charles Galley and Launceston respectively), although the Anglesea and Adventure were authorised as 'Great Repairs' rather than as rebuildings.
 * 1719 Establishment 40-gun fifth rates 1721-1733
 * Hector 1721 – broken up 1742
 * Diamond 1723 – broken up 1744
 * Ludlow Castle 1724 – broken up 1749
 * Southsea Castle 1724 – broken up 1744
 * Anglesea 1725 – sunk as a breakwater 1742
 * Kinsale 1725 – broken up 1741
 * Adventure 1726 – broken up 1741
 * Lark 1726 – capsized 1744
 * Pearl 1726 – broken up 1744
 * Mary Galley 1727 – broken up 1744
 * Princess Louisa 1728 – wrecked 1736
 * Torrington 1729 – broken up 1744
 * Roebuck 1733 – sunk as a breakwater 1743


 * 1733 proposals
 * Eltham (1736) – broken up 1763
 * Dover (1741) – sold 1763
 * Folkestone (1741) – sold 1749
 * Faversham (1741) – sold 1749
 * Lynn (1741) – sold 1763
 * Gosport (1741) – broken up 1768
 * Sapphire (1741) – razéed to 32-gun frigate 1756-58, sold 1784
 * Hastings (1741) – broken up 1763
 * Liverpool (1741) – sold 1763
 * Kinsale (1741) – sold 1763
 * Adventure (1741) – Raséed to 32-gun frigate 1756-58, sold 1770
 * Diamond (1741) – sold 1756
 * Launceston (1741) – sold 1784
 * Looe (1741) – wrecked 1744

Sixth-rate frigates 1719 to 1750

 * 1719 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1720-1728:
 * HMS Lyme 1720
 * HMS Greyhound 1720
 * HMS Blandford 1720
 * HMS Shoreham 1720
 * HMS Scarborough 1722
 * HMS Garland 1724
 * HMS Seaford 1724
 * HMS Lowestoffe 1723
 * HMS Rose 1724
 * HMS Deal Castle 1727
 * HMS Fox 1727
 * HMS Gibraltar 1727
 * HMS Bideford 1727
 * HMS Seahorse 1727
 * HMS Squirrel 1727
 * HMS Aldborough 1727
 * HMS Flamborough 1727
 * HMS Experiment 1727
 * HMS Rye 1727
 * HMS Phoenix 1728
 * Modified 1719 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1732:
 * HMS Sheerness 1732
 * HMS Dolphin 1732
 * 1733 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1734-1742:
 * HMS Tartar 1734
 * HMS Kennington 1736
 * HMS Fox 1740
 * HMS Winchelsea 1740
 * HMS Lyme 1740
 * HMS Rye 1740
 * HMS Experiment 1740
 * HMS Lively 1740
 * HMS Port Mahon 1740
 * HMS Scarborough 1740
 * HMS Success 1740
 * HMS Rose 1740
 * HMS Bideford 1740
 * HMS Bridgewater 1740
 * HMS Seaford 1741
 * HMS Solebay 1742
 * HMS Wager 28-gun sixth rate purchased 1739
 * Modified 1733 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1741
 * HMS Greyhound 1741
 * HMS Blandford 1741
 * 1741 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1742-1746:
 * HMS Lowestoffe 1742
 * HMS Aldborough 1743
 * HMS Alderney 1743
 * HMS Phoenix 1743
 * HMS Sheerness 1743
 * HMS Wager 1744
 * HMS Shreham 1744
 * HMS Bridgewater 1744
 * HMS Glasgow 1745
 * HMS Triton 1745
 * HMS Mercury 1745
 * HMS Surprise 1746
 * HMS Siren 1745
 * HMS Fox 1746
 * HMS Rye 1746
 * Modified 1741 Establishment 20-gun sixth rates 1746.
 * HMS Centaur 1746
 * HMS Deal Castle 1746
 * HMS Nightingale 22-gun sixth rate 1746
 * HMS Garland 20-gun sixth rate 1748
 * 1745 Establishment Class 24-gun sixth rates 1746-1751:
 * HMS Arundel 1746
 * HMS Queenborough 1747
 * HMS Fowey 1749
 * HMS Hind 1749
 * HMS Sphinx 1748
 * HMS Dolphin 1751
 * Modified 1745 Establishment 24-gun sixth rate 1748:
 * HMS Boston 1748
 * HMS Seahorse 24-gun sixth rate 1748
 * HMS Mermaid 24-gun sixth rate 1749

Two nominally 24-gun ships - the Lyme and Unicorn - were built in 1747-1749 with twenty-four 9-pounders on the upper deck but also carried four smaller guns on the quarter deck; the pair were designated as 24-gun ships (disregarding the smaller guns) until 1756, when they were re-classed as 28-gun frigates. However other 24-gun and 20-gun ships continued to be built, with twenty-two or twenty 9-pounder guns on the upper deck.
 * Lyme class 28-gun sixth rates 1748
 * HMS Lyme 1748
 * HMS Unicorn 1748

Sail frigates from 1750 – by class
Following the success of the Lyme and Unicorn in 1748, the mid-century period saw the simultaneous introduction in 1756 both of sixth-rate frigates of 28 guns (with a main battery of twenty-four 9-pounder guns, plus four lesser guns mounted on the quarterdeck and/or forecastle) and of fifth-rate frigates of 32 or 36 guns (with a main battery of twenty-six 12-pounder guns, plus six or ten lesser guns mounted on the quarterdeck and/or forecastle).

The American Revolution saw the emergence of new fifth rates of 36 or 38 guns which carried a main battery of 18-pounder guns, and were thus known as "heavy" frigates, while the French Revolutionary War brought about the introduction of a few 24-pounder gun armed frigates. In the 1830s, new types emerged with a main battery of 32-pounder guns.

9-pounder armed post ships
After 1750, the official Admiralty criteria for defining a frigate required a minimum battery of 28 carriage-mounted guns, including such guns which were mounted on the quarterdeck and forecastle. The smaller Sixth Rates, of frigate-type construction, but carrying between 20 and 26 guns, were categorised by the Admiralty as "post ships", but were often described by seagoing officers as "frigates" even though this was not officially recognised. The post ships, generally of 20 or 24 guns, were in practice the continuation of the earlier Sixth Rates. The Napoleonic War era post ships were later re-armed with (many being completed with) 32-pounder carronades instead of 9-pounder guns; after 1817 most of the survivors (except the Conway class) were re-classified as sloops.
 * HMS Gibraltar 20-gun 1754
 * HMS Seaford 20-gun 1754
 * Squirrel class 20-gun 1755-56
 * HMS Squirrel 1755
 * HMS Deal Castle 1756
 * HMS Bideford 20-gun 1756
 * Later Gibraltar class 20-gun 1756
 * HMS Flamborough 1756
 * HMS Aldborough 1756
 * HMS Kennington 1756
 * HMS Lively 1756
 * HMS Mercury 1756
 * HMS Scarborough 1756
 * Later Seaford class 20-gun 1757
 * HMS Rose 1757
 * HMS Glasgow 1757
 * Sphinx class 20-gun 1775-81
 * HMS Sphinx 1775
 * HMS Camilla 1776
 * HMS Daphne 1776
 * HMS Galatea 1776
 * HMS Ariadne 1776
 * HMS Vestal 1777
 * HMS Perseus 1776
 * HMS Unicorn 1776
 * HMS Ariel 1777
 * HMS Narcissus 1781
 * Porcupine class 24-gun 1777-81
 * HMS Porcupine 1777
 * HMS Pelican 1776
 * HMS Eurydice 1781
 * HMS Hyaena 1778
 * HMS Penelope 1778
 * HMS Amphitrite 1778
 * HMS Crocodile 1781
 * HMS Siren 1779
 * HMS Pandora 1779
 * HMS Champion 1779
 * HMS Myrmidon 22-gun 1781
 * HMS Squirrel 24-gun 1785
 * Banterer class 22-gun 1806-07
 * HMS Crocodile 1806
 * HMS Daphne 1806
 * HMS Cossack 1806
 * HMS Cyane 1806
 * HMS Banterer 1807
 * HMS Porcupine 1807
 * Laurel class 22-gun 1806-12
 * HMS Boreas 1806
 * HMS Laurel 1806
 * HMS Comus 1806
 * HMS Garland 1807
 * HMS Perseus 1812
 * HMS Volage 1807
 * Hermes class 20-gun 1811-16
 * HMS Hermes 1811
 * HMS Myrmidon 1813
 * HMS Ariadne 1816
 * HMS Valorous 1816
 * Cyrus class 20-gun 1813-14
 * HMS Medina 1813
 * HMS Cyrus 1813
 * HMS Levant 1813
 * HMS Esk 1813
 * HMS Carron 1813
 * HMS Tay 1813
 * HMS Slaney 1813
 * HMS Erne 1813
 * HMS Leven 1813
 * HMS Falmouth 1814
 * HMS Cyrene 1814
 * HMS Bann 1814
 * HMS Spey 1814
 * HMS Lee 1814
 * HMS Hind 1814
 * HMS Larne 1814
 * Conway class 20-gun 1814-17 (later re-rated 28-gun)
 * HMS Mersey 1814
 * HMS Eden 1814
 * HMS Conway 1814
 * HMS Tamar 1814
 * HMS Dee 1814
 * HMS Towey 1814
 * HMS Menai 1814
 * HMS Tyne 1814
 * HMS Wye 1814
 * HMS Tees 1817

9-pounder armed frigates
Although previously rated as 24-gun ships (when their 4 quarter-deck-mounted 3-pdrs were not included in the count, the Unicorn and Lyme were redefined as 28-gun frigates from 1756. The Lowestoffe and Coventry class frigates which followed were virtual copies of them, with slight improvements in design. Further 28-gun Sixth Rates, similarly armed with a main battery of 24 x 9-pounder guns (and with 4 smaller carriage guns on the quarterdeck) continued to be built to evolving designs until the 1780s.
 * Lowestoffe class 28-gun sixth rates 1756
 * HMS Lowestoffe 1756
 * HMS Tartar 1756
 * Coventry class 28-gun sixth rates 1757-85
 * HMS Lizard 1757
 * HMS Coventry 1757
 * HMS Liverpool 1758
 * HMS Maidstone 1758
 * HMS Boreas 1757 - built of fir instead of oak
 * HMS Hussar 1757 - built of fir instead of oak
 * HMS Shannon 1757 - built of fir instead of oak
 * HMS Trent 1757 - built of fir instead of oak
 * HMS Actaeon 1757 - built of fir instead of oak
 * HMS Active 1758
 * HMS Levant 1758
 * HMS Cerberus 1758
 * HMS Aquilon 1758
 * HMS Griffin 1758
 * HMS Argo 1758
 * HMS Milford 1759
 * HMS Guadeloupe 1763
 * HMS Carysfort 1766
 * HMS Hind 1785
 * HMS Laurel - cancelled 1783.
 * Mermaid class 28-gun sixth rates 1761-63
 * HMS Mermaid 1761
 * HMS Hussar 1763
 * HMS Solebay 1763
 * Modified Mermaid class 28-gun sixth rates 1773-74
 * HMS Greyhound 1773
 * HMS Triton 1773
 * HMS Boreas 1774
 * Enterprise class 28-gun sixth rates 1773-87
 * HMS Siren 1773
 * HMS Fox 1773
 * HMS Surprise 1774
 * HMS Enterprise 1774
 * HMS Actaeon 1775
 * HMS Proserpine 1777
 * HMS Medea 1778
 * HMS Andromeda 1777
 * HMS Aurora 1777
 * HMS Sibyl 1779
 * HMS Brilliant 1779
 * HMS Pomona 1778
 * HMS Crescent 1779
 * HMS Nemesis 1780
 * HMS Resource 1778
 * HMS Mercury 1779
 * HMS Pegasus 1779
 * HMS Cyclops 1779
 * HMS Vestal 1779
 * HMS Laurel 1779
 * HMS Thisbe 1783
 * HMS Circe 1785
 * HMS Rose 1783
 * HMS Hussar 1784
 * HMS Alligator 1787
 * HMS Dido 1784
 * HMS Lapwing 1785

12-pounder armed frigates
Almost all of the following were 32-gun type (armed with 26 x 12-pounder guns on the upper deck and 6 smaller guns on the quarter-deck and forecastle); one class (the Venus class of 1757-58) had 36 guns (with 26 x 12-pounder guns on the upper deck and 10 smaller guns on the quarter-deck and forecastle).
 * Southampton class 32-gun fifth rates 1757
 * HMS Southampton 1757-59
 * HMS Minerva 1759
 * HMS Vestal 1757
 * HMS Diana 1757
 * Richmond class 32-gun fifth rates 1757-58 (batch 1), 1762-63 (batch 2)
 * HMS Richmond 1757
 * HMS Juno 1757
 * HMS Thames 1758
 * HMS Lark 1762
 * HMS Boston 1762
 * HMS Jason 1763
 * Venus class 36-gun fifth rates 1757-58
 * HMS Pallas 1757
 * HMS Venus 1758
 * HMS Brilliant 1757
 * Niger class 32-gun fifth rates 1758-66
 * HMS Stag 1758
 * HMS Alarm 1758
 * HMS Aeolus 1758
 * HMS Niger 1759
 * HMS Montreal 1761
 * HMS Quebec 1760
 * HMS Pearl 1762
 * HMS Emerald 1762
 * HMS Winchelsea 1764
 * HMS Glory 1763
 * HMS Aurora 1766
 * HMS Tweed 32-gun fifth rate 1759
 * HMS Lowestoffe 32-gun fifth rate 1761
 * Modified Lowestoffe class 32-gun fifth rates 1773-74
 * HMS Orpheus 1773
 * HMS Diamond 1774
 * Amazon class 32-gun fifth rates 1773-87
 * HMS Thetis 1773
 * HMS Amazon 1773
 * HMS Ambuscade 1773
 * HMS Cleopatra 1779
 * HMS Amphion 1780
 * HMS Orpheus 1780
 * HMS Juno 1780
 * HMS Success 1781
 * HMS Iphigenia 1780
 * HMS Andromache 1781
 * HMS Syren 1782
 * HMS Iris 1783
 * HMS Greyhound 1783
 * HMS Meleager 1785
 * HMS Castor 1785
 * HMS Solebay 1785
 * HMS Terpsichore 1785
 * HMS Blonde 1787
 * Active class 32-gun fifth rates 1779-84
 * HMS Daedalus 1780
 * HMS Mermaid 1784
 * HMS Cerberus 1779
 * HMS Fox 1780
 * HMS Active 1780
 * HMS Astraea 1781
 * HMS Ceres 1781
 * HMS Quebec 1781
 * Andromeda or Hermione class 32-gun fifth rates 1782
 * HMS Hermione 1782
 * HMS Druid 1783
 * HMS Andromeda 1784
 * HMS Penelope 1783
 * HMS Aquilon 1786
 * HMS Blanche 1786
 * HMS Heroine 32-gun fifth rate 1783
 * Maidstone class 32-gun fifth rates 1795-96
 * HMS Maidstone 1795
 * HMS Shannon 1796
 * HMS Triton 32-gun fifth rate 1796
 * Circe class 32-gun fifth rates 1804
 * HMS Pallas 1804
 * HMS Circe 1804
 * HMS Thames 1805
 * HMS Jason 1804
 * HMS Hebe 1804
 * HMS Minerva 1805
 * HMS Alexandria 1806
 * HMS Medea - cancelled 1804.

18-pounder armed frigates
In general, the following were either 36-gun type (armed with 26 x 18-pounder guns on the upper deck and 10 smaller guns on the quarter-deck and forecastle) or 38-gun type (with 28 x 18-pounder guns on the upper deck and 10 smaller guns on the quarter-deck and forecastle); however, one class of smaller ships had just 32 guns (with 26 x 18-pounder guns on the upper deck and just 6 smaller guns on the quarter-deck and forecastle).
 * Flora class 36-gun fifth rates 1780
 * HMS Flora 1780
 * HMS Thalia 1782
 * HMS Crescent 1784
 * HMS Romulus 1785
 * Minerva class 38-gun fifth rates 1780
 * HMS Minerva 1780
 * HMS Arethusa 1781
 * HMS Phaeton 1782
 * HMS Thetis 1782
 * HMS Latona 38-gun fifth rate 1781
 * Perseverance class 36-gun fifth rates 1781-83
 * HMS Perseverance 1781
 * HMS Phoenix 1783
 * HMS Inconstant 1783
 * HMS Leda 1783
 * HMS Melampus 36-gun fifth rate 1785
 * HMS Beaulieu 40-gun fifth rate 1791
 * Pallas class 32-gun fifth rates 1793-94
 * HMS Stag 1794
 * HMS Unicorn 1794
 * HMS Pallas 1793
 * Artois class 38-gun fifth rates 1794-97
 * HMS Artois 1794
 * HMS Diana 1794
 * HMS Apollo 1794
 * HMS Diamond 1794
 * HMS Jason 1794
 * HMS Seahorse 1794
 * HMS Tamar 1796
 * HMS Clyde 1796
 * HMS Ethalion 1797
 * Alcmene class 32-gun fifth rates 1794
 * HMS Galatea 1794
 * HMS Cerberus 1794
 * HMS Lively 1794
 * HMS Alcmene 1794
 * Phoebe class 36-gun fifth rates 1795-1800
 * HMS Dryad 1795
 * HMS Caroline 1795
 * HMS Doris 1795
 * HMS Phoebe 1795
 * HMS Fortunee 1800
 * Amazon class 36-gun fifth rates 1795-96
 * HMS Amazon 1795
 * HMS Emerald 1795
 * HMS Trent 1796
 * HMS Glenmore 1796
 * HMS Acasta 40-gun fifth rate 1797
 * HMS Boadicea 38-gun fifth rate 1797
 * HMS Sirius 36-gun fifth rate 1797
 * HMS Hydra 38-gun fifth rate 1797
 * Amazon class 38-gun fifth rates 1799
 * HMS Amazon 1799
 * HMS Hussar 1799
 * HMS Active 38-gun fifth rate 1799
 * Leda class 38-gun fifth rates 1800-19
 * HMS Leda 1800
 * HMS Pomone 1805
 * HMS Shannon 1806
 * HMS Leonidas 1807
 * HMS Briton 1812
 * HMS Tenedos 1812
 * HMS Lacedemonian 1812
 * HMS Lively 1813
 * HMS Surprise 1812
 * HMS Diamond 1816
 * HMS Amphitrite 1816
 * HMS Trincomalee 1817
 * HMS Thetis 1817
 * HMS Arethusa 1817
 * HMS Blanche 1819
 * HMS Fisgard 1819
 * Penelope class 36-gun fifth rates 1798-1800
 * HMS Penelope 1798
 * HMS Amethyst 1799
 * HMS Jason 1800
 * HMS Lavinia 40-gun fifth rate 1806
 * Amphion class 32-gun fifth rates 1798-1809
 * HMS Amphion 1798
 * HMS Aeolus 1801
 * HMS Medusa 1801
 * HMS Proserpine 1807
 * HMS Nereus 1809
 * Narcissus class 32-gun fifth rates 1801-1808
 * HMS Narcissus 1801
 * HMS Tartar 1801
 * HMS Cornelia 1808
 * HMS Siren - cancelled 1806
 * HMS Doris - cancelled 1806
 * Apollo class 36-gun fifth rates, 27 ships, 1799–1819
 * HMS Apollo 1799
 * HMS Blanche 1800
 * HMS Euryalus 1803
 * HMS Dartmouth 1813
 * HMS Creole 1813
 * HMS Semiramis 1808
 * HMS Owen Glendower 1808
 * HMS Curacoa 1809
 * HMS Saldanha 1809
 * HMS Hotspur 1810
 * HMS Havannah 1811
 * HMS Malacca 1809
 * HMS Orpheus 1809
 * HMS Leda 1809
 * HMS Theban 1809
 * HMS Manilla 1809
 * HMS Astraea 1810
 * HMS Belvidera 1809
 * HMS Galatea 1810
 * HMS Maidstone 1811
 * HMS Stag 1812
 * HMS Magicienne 1812
 * HMS Pallas 1816
 * HMS Barrosa 1812
 * HMS Tartar 1814
 * HMS Brilliant 1814
 * HMS Blonde 1819 - completed to fresh 46-gun design
 * Aigle class 36-gun fifth rates, 1801
 * HMS Aigle 1801
 * HMS Resistance 1801
 * HMS Ethalion 36-gun fifth rate 1802
 * Lively class 38-gun fifth rates 1804-13
 * HMS Lively 1804
 * HMS Resistance 1805
 * HMS Apollo 1805
 * HMS Hussar 1807
 * HMS Statira 1807
 * HMS Horatio 1807
 * HMS Spartan 1806
 * HMS Undaunted 1807
 * HMS Menelaus 1810
 * HMS Nisus 1810
 * HMS Macedonian 1810
 * HMS Crescent 1810
 * HMS Bacchante 1811
 * HMS Nymphe 1812
 * HMS Sirius 1813
 * HMS Laurel 1813
 * HMS Forte 38-gun fifth rate 1814
 * Perseverance class 36-gun fifth rates 1803-11 (a revival of the class of 1781-83 - see above)
 * HMS Tribune 1803
 * HMS Shannon 1803
 * HMS Meleager 1806
 * HMS Iphigenia 1806
 * HMS Salsette 1805
 * HMS Doris 1807
 * HMS Orlando 1811
 * HMS Lowestoffe - cancelled 1805
 * HMS Hyperion 32-gun fifth rate 1807
 * HMS Bucephalus 32-gun fifth rate 1808
 * HMS Pyramus 36-gun fifth rate 1810
 * Purchased ships of 1804-05 (all teak-built in India)
 * HMS Sir Edward Hughes 1804
 * HMS Duncan 1805
 * HMS Howe 1805
 * Scamander class 36-gun fifth rates, 10 pine-built ships, 1813–14
 * HMS Eridanus 1813
 * HMS Orontes 1813
 * HMS Scamander 1813
 * HMS Tagus 1813
 * HMS Ister 1813
 * HMS Tigris 1813
 * HMS Euphrates 1813
 * HMS Hebrus 1813
 * HMS Granicus 1813
 * HMS Alpheus 1814
 * Cydnus class 38-gun fifth rates, 8 pine-built ships (essentially to Leda class design), 1813
 * HMS Cydnus 1813
 * HMS Eurotas 1813
 * HMS Niger 1813
 * HMS Meander 1813
 * HMS Pactolus 1813
 * HMS Tiber 1813
 * HMS Araxes 1813
 * HMS Tanais 1813
 * Modified Leda class 46-gun fifth rates 1820-30
 * HMS Venus 1820
 * HMS Melampus 1820
 * HMS Minerva 1820
 * HMS Latona 1821
 * HMS Diana 1822
 * HMS Hebe 1826
 * HMS Nereus 1821
 * HMS Hamadryad 1823
 * HMS Amazon 1821
 * HMS Aeolus 1825
 * HMS Thisbe 1824
 * HMS Cerberus 1827
 * HMS Circe 1827
 * HMS Clyde 1827
 * HMS Thames 1823
 * HMS Fox 1829
 * HMS Unicorn 1824
 * HMS Daedalus 1826
 * HMS Proserpine 1830
 * HMS Mermaid 1825
 * HMS Mercury 1826
 * HMS Penelope 1829
 * HMS Thalia 1830
 * HMS Nemesis - altered to Seringapatam class
 * HMS Statira - altered to Seringapatam class
 * HMS Jason - altered to Seringapatam class
 * HMS Druid - altered to Seringapatam class
 * HMS Pegasus - cancelled 1831
 * HMS Medusa - cancelled 1831
 * Seringapatam class 46-gun fifth rates, 1819–40
 * HMS Seringapatam 1819
 * HMS Madagascar 1822
 * HMS Druid 1825
 * HMS Nemesis 1826
 * HMS Africaine 1827
 * HMS Leda 1828
 * HMS Hotspur 1828
 * HMS Eurotas 1829
 * HMS Andromeda 1829
 * HMS Seahorse 1830
 * HMS Stag 1830
 * HMS Forth 1833
 * HMS Maeander 1840
 * HMS Euphrates - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Orpheus - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Severn - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Tiber - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Manilla - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Spartan - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Theban - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Jason - cancelled 1831.
 * HMS Statira - cancelled 1832.
 * HMS Tigris - cancelled 1832.
 * HMS Inconstant - cancelled 1832.
 * HMS Pique - cancelled 1832.

24-pounder armed frigates

 * 1794 razees 44-gun (converted from 64-gun ships of the line in 1794)
 * HMS Indefatigable converted 1794
 * HMS Anson converted 1794
 * HMS Magnanime converted 1794
 * Endymion class 40-gun fifth rate 1797
 * HMS Endymion 1797
 * HMS Severn 1813
 * HMS Liffey 1813
 * HMS Liverpool 1814
 * HMS Glasgow 1814
 * HMS Forth 1814
 * HMS Cambrian 40-gun fifth rate 1797
 * HMS Leander 50-gun (later 60-gun) fourth rate 1813
 * HMS Newcastle 50-gun (later 60-gun) fourth rate 1813
 * HMS Java 52-gun fourth rate 1815
 * HMS Isis 58-gun fourth rate 1819
 * Southampton class 58-gun fourth rates 1820-43
 * HMS Southampton 1820
 * HMS Portland 1822
 * HMS Lancaster 1823
 * HMS Winchester 1822
 * HMS Chichester 1843
 * HMS Worcester 1843
 * HMS Liverpool - cancelled 1829
 * HMS Jamaica - cancelled 1829
 * HMS President 58-gun fourth rate 1829

32-pounder armed frigates
The following three classes were begun as sailing frigates, but all were completed as screw-driven steam frigates.
 * HMS Castor 36-gun fifth rate 1832
 * HMS Vernon 50-gun fourth rate 1832
 * Pique class 36-gun fifth rates 1834-41
 * HMS Pique 1834
 * HMS Cambrian 1841
 * HMS Flora 1844
 * HMS Active 1845
 * HMS Sybille 1847
 * HMS Constance - re-ordered to different design
 * HMS Chesapeake - re-ordered as steam/screw frigate
 * HMS Inconstant 36-gun fifth rate 1836
 * HMS Thetis 36-gun fifth rate 1846
 * Raleigh class 50-gun fourth rates 1845
 * HMS Raleigh 1845
 * HMS Severn - re-ordered as steam/screw frigate
 * Constance class 50-gun fourth rates 1846
 * HMS Constance 1846
 * HMS Arethusa 1849
 * HMS Octavia 1849
 * HMS Sutlej 1855
 * HMS Liffey - re-ordered as steam/screw frigate
 * Leander class 50-gun fourth rates 1848
 * HMS Leander 1848
 * HMS Shannon - re-ordered as steam/screw frigate
 * HMS Phaeton 50-gun fourth rate 1848
 * Indefatigable class 50-gun fourth rates 1848
 * HMS Indefatigable 1848
 * HMS Phoebe 1854
 * HMS Nankin 50-gun fourth rate 1850
 * Emerald class 50-gun fourth rates, ordered 1848.
 * San Fiorenzo class 50-gun fourth rates, ordered 1848.
 * Narcissus class 50-gun fourth rates, ordered 1848.

19th century steam frigates
During the 1840s, the introduction of steam propulsion was to radically change the nature of the frigate. Initial trials were with paddle-driven vessels, but these had numerous disadvantages, not least that the paddle wheels restricted the numbers of guns that could be mounted on the broadside. So the application of the screw propellor meant that a full broadside could still be carried, and a number of sail frigates were adapted, while during the 1850s the first frigates designed from the start to have screw propulsion were ordered. It is important to remember that all these early steam vessels still carried a full rig of masts and sails, and that steam power remained a means of assistance to these vessels.

In 1887 all frigates and corvettes in the British Navy were re-categorised as 'cruisers', and the term 'frigate' was abolished, not to re-emerge until the Second World War, at which time it was resurrected to describe a totally different type of escort vessel.

Paddle-driven frigates
Although iron hulls were used for some warships in the 1840s, almost all the paddle frigates were wooden-hulled. The exception was the ill-fated Birkenhead.
 * Cyclops class 1839-44 - second class, originally classed just as 'steam vessels'.
 * HMS Cyclops 1839
 * HMS Vulture 1843
 * HMS Firebrand 1842
 * HMS Gladiator 1844
 * HMS Sampson 1844 - second class, originally classed just as a 'steam vessel'.
 * Centaur class 1845 - second class, originally classed just as 'steam vessels'.
 * HMS Centaur 1845
 * HMS Dragon 1845
 * HMS Penelope 1843 - first class, originally built as a sailing frigate in 1829.
 * HMS Retribution 1844 - first class, originally classed just as a 'steam vessel'.
 * HMS Terrible 1845 - first class, originally classed just as a 'steam vessel'.
 * HMS Avenger 1845 - first class.
 * HMS Birkenhead (ex-Vulcan) iron-hulled frigate 1845 - second class, launched as a frigate but completed as a troopship in 1847.
 * HMS Odin 1846 - first class.
 * HMS Sidon 1846 - first class.
 * HMS Leopard 1850 - second class.
 * HMS Tiger 1849 - second class.
 * Magicienne class 1851 - second class.
 * HMS Magicienne 1849
 * HMS Valorous 1851
 * Furious class 1850 - second class.
 * HMS Furious 1850
 * HMS Resolute - cancelled 1850

Screw-driven frigates
In the mid-1840s, the Admiralty ordered four iron-hulled, screw-driven frigates from specialist shipbuilders; however, the Admiralty then rapidly lost faith in the ability of iron hulls to stand up to combat conditions, and all four (Greenock, Vulcan, Megaera and Simoom) were converted while under construction into troop transports, although the Greenock was promptly sold for commercial use.

Following this unsuccessful experiment, though iron hulls were used for some warships in the 1840s, almost all the screw frigates below were wooden-hulled. The exceptions were the final three below - Inconstant, Shah and Raleigh - which had iron hulls.
 * HMS Amphion 1846 - the prototype screw frigate
 * HMS Arrogant 1848 - first class
 * Dauntless class 1847 - second class
 * HMS Dauntless 1847
 * HMS Vigilant - cancelled 1849
 * Termagant class 1847 - second class
 * HMS Termagant 1847
 * HMS Euphrates - cancelled 1849
 * Tribune class 1853 - second class
 * HMS Tribune 1853
 * HMS Curacoa 1854
 * Imperieuse class 1852
 * HMS Imperieuse 1852
 * HMS Euryalus 1853
 * HMS Aurora 1861
 * HMS Forte 1858
 * HMS Chesapeake 1855
 * Liffey class 1856
 * HMS Liffey 1856
 * HMS Shannon 1855
 * HMS Topaze 1858
 * HMS Bacchante 1859
 * HMS Liverpool 1860
 * Diadem class 1856-57
 * HMS Diadem 1856
 * HMS Doris 1857
 * Ariadne class 1859
 * HMS Ariadne 1859
 * HMS Galatea 1859
 * Emerald class 1856
 * HMS Emerald 1856
 * HMS Melpomene 1857
 * HMS Immortalite 1859
 * Mersey class 1858
 * HMS Orlando 1858
 * HMS Mersey 1858
 * HMS Narcissus 1859
 * Bristol class 1860
 * HMS Newcastle 1860
 * HMS Glasgow 1861
 * HMS Bristol 1861
 * HMS Undaunted 1861
 * Ten further vessels to this design were cancelled in 1863-64 - Tweed, Dryad, Belvidera, Pomone, Raleigh, Briton, Barham, Boadicea, Bucephalus and Dextrous.
 * Ister class 1865
 * HMS Endymion 1865
 * Four further vessels to this design were cancelled in 1863-64 - Ister, Blonde, Astrea and Dartmouth.
 * HMS Inconstant iron-hulled frigate 1868
 * HMS Shah iron-hulled frigate 1873
 * HMS Raleigh iron-hulled frigate 1873

Modern frigates – by class
Note that, unlike the previous sections, no lists of the individual ships comprising each class are shown below; they are to be found in the articles on the separate classes.
 * River class &mdash; 138 ships, 1941–1944
 * Colony class &mdash; 21 ships
 * Captain class &mdash; 78 ships
 * Loch class &mdash; 26 ships
 * Bay class &mdash; 21 ships (redesigned Loch class for anti-aircraft escort)
 * Type 15 &mdash; 23 ships (full rebuilds of World War II destroyer hulls)
 * Type 16 &mdash; 10 ships (partial rebuilds of wartime destroyer hulls)
 * Type 41 Leopard class &mdash; 4 ships
 * Type 61 Salisbury class &mdash; 4 ships
 * Type 12 Whitby class &mdash; 6 ships
 * Type 12M Rothesay class &mdash; 9 ships
 * Type 12I Leander class &mdash; 26 ships (subclasses: 8 Batch 1, 8 Batch 2, 10 Batch 3)
 * Type 14 Blackwood class &mdash; 12 ships
 * Type 81 Tribal class &mdash; 7 ships
 * Type 21 Amazon class &mdash; 8 ships
 * Type 22 &mdash; 14 ships (subclasses: Broadsword 4, Boxer 6, Cornwall 4)
 * Type 23 Duke class &mdash; 16 ships

Sail frigates - alphabetically
Note that frigate names were routinely re-used, so that there were often many vessels which re-used the same names over the course of nearly two centuries. To distinguish between vessels bearing the same name, the following list affixes the launch year (in parenthesis) of the frigate to the name; however, for vessels captured or purchased by the Royal Navy, the year of acquisition is shown instead of the launch date.


 * Actaeon - sold 1766
 * Africaine 38 - captured by France
 * Aigle (ex-French Aigle, captured 1782)
 * Amphitrite 38 (1816)
 * Andromache (1829)
 * Arethusa (1781)
 * Boadicea (1797) 38
 * Bombay 40 (c.1793) - renamed Ceylon
 * Bon-Acquis (ex-French Bon-Acquis, captured 1757)
 * Boreas - sold 1770
 * Brilliant 36
 * Caroline (ex-French Caroline, captured September 1809)
 * Constant Warwick 26 (c.1646)
 * Cornwallis 54 (1801) - renamed Akbar in 1811
 * Coventry 28 1757
 * Danae (ex-French Danae, captured 1759)
 * Diamond 32 (1774)
 * Diana (1757) - sold 1793
 * Endymion 40 (1797) - (captured USS President in 1815) - broken up 1868.
 * Flora 36 (1780) - wrecked in 1809
 * Freya (ex-Danish Freya, captured 25 July 1800)
 * Hebe 40 (ex-French Hebe, captured 1782) - broken up 1811
 * Hussar - name used by several ships in this period
 * Indefatigable 44 (build 1784 as a 64 gun ship of the line, razeed)
 * Iphigenia - captured by France in 1810
 * Java 38 (launched 1808, captured from French 1811) - captured by USS Constitution in 1813
 * Latona 38 (1779), sold in 1816
 * Laurel 38 (ex-French La Fidèle, captured 16 August 1809 at the surrender of Flushing)
 * Lively 38 (1804), wrecked off Malta in 1810
 * Lutine 38 (launched in 1779, transferred from French Navy in 1793) - wrecked in 1799 off Holland
 * Lyme 18 (1748), wrecked 1760
 * Macedonian 38 (1810), captured by USS United States in 1812, broken up 1828
 * Madagascar 46 (1822)
 * Melampe (ex-French Melampe, captured 1758)
 * Minerva 38 (1780) - broken up in 1803
 * Nereide 38, captured 1797, sold 1816.
 * Newcastle - name used by several ships in this period
 * Orpheus 32 (1773)
 * Pallas - name used by several ships in this period
 * Phaeton 38 (1782)
 * Pitt 36 (1805)
 * Pomone 44 (ex-French Pomone, captured 1794) - broken up in 1802
 * Rainbow 44 (1747) - sold in 1802
 * Resistance 44, sank 24 July 1798
 * Saldanha - shipwrecked in Lough Swilly, Donegal, 4 December 1811
 * Salsette 36 (1807)
 * Santa Leocadia 34 (ex-Spanish Santa Leocadia, captured 1781)
 * Santa Margarita 34 (ex-Spanish Santa Margarita, captured 1779)
 * Shannon 28 (1757) - broken up in 1765
 * Shannon 38 (1806) - broken up 1859
 * Sirius 36 (1797) - scuttled during the Mauritius campaign of 1810
 * Southampton 32 (1757) - wrecked off the Bahamas in 1812
 * Surprise 28 (1796) - ex-French L'Unité captured 1796, sold in 1802
 * Thetis 38 (1782)
 * Trent 28 (1757) - sold in 1764
 * Trent 36 (1796) - broken up in 1823
 * Trincomalee 38 (1817) - preserved afloat in Hartlepool, UK
 * Unicorn 28 (1748) - broken up 1771
 * Unicorn 46 (1824) - preserved in Scotland
 * Venus (ex-French Venus, captured 17 September 1809)
 * Venus 36

Reference sources

 * Robert Gardiner, The First Frigates (Conway Maritime, 1992); The Heavy Frigate (Conway Maritime, 1994); Warships of the Napoleonic Era (Chatham Publishing, 1999); Frigates of the Napoleonic Wars (Chatham Publishing, 2000)
 * Rif Winfield, The Sail and Steam Navy List, 1815-1889 (co-author David Lyon, Chatham Publishing, 2004) ISBN 1-86176-032-9; British Warships in the Age of Sail: 1793-1817 (2nd edition, Seaforth Publishing, 2008) ISBN 978-1-84415-717-4; British Warships in the Age of Sail: 1714-1792 (Seaforth Publishing, 2007) ISBN 978-1-84415-700-6; British Warships in the Age of Sail: 1603-1714 (Seaforth Publishing, 2009) ISBN 978-1-84832-040-6.