She achieved 14.5 knots under steam. As the ship's coal capacity was 853 tons, only essential operations were undertaken this way. When sailing with her 48,400 square feet of canvas aloft, she managed a very respectable 13 knots.

Wooden warships had attained their optimum length, their multiple gun decks making them unstable. Warrior's ingenious design incorporated just one, very stable gun deck, 100 feet longer than any previous warship. Her firepower could blow any other vessel out the water. While wooden ships carried 32-pounder guns, Warrior had 26 68-pounders and ten 110-pounders. She was the ultimate deterrent.

Gun Deck

Portsmouth and Chatham Royal Dockyards were not equipped to build iron hulls, so the contract went out to tender and was won by the Thames Iron Works & Shipbuilding Company, based at Blackwall, London. Her keel was laid down on May 25th 1859. She was supposed to be ready in nine months, but the work took double that, hampered by Britain's coldest winter for over 50 years. The Admiralty had to step in to save the company from bankruptcy.