NRP Afonso de Albuquerque launched in 1885 was a sloop or small unprotected cruiser of the Portuguese Navy

Portuguese Navy

The Portuguese Navy is the naval branch of the Portuguese Armed Forces which, in cooperation and integrated with the other branches of the Portuguese military, is charged with the military defence of Portugal....

. Her name has also been spelled Afonso D’ Albuquerque. She was named after the 16th century Portugues navigator Afonso de Albuquerque

Afonso de Albuquerque

Afonso de Albuquerque[p][n] was a Portuguese fidalgo, or nobleman, an admiral whose military and administrative activities as second governor of Portuguese India conquered and established the Portuguese colonial empire in the Indian Ocean...

.

She was a small colonial warship, larger than most gunboat

Gunboat

A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...

s but weaker than a protected cruiser

Protected cruiser

The protected cruiser is a type of naval cruiser of the late 19th century, so known because its armoured deck offered protection for vital machine spaces from shrapnel caused by exploding shells above...

. The term sloop

Sloop-of-war

In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...

 in the steamship era was used by some navies including the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 for what were essentially large gunboats. The Afonso de Albuquerque resembled in size and performance the Spanish unprotected cruisers of the Velasco class

Velasco class cruiser

The Velasco class of unprotected cruisers was a series of eight cruisers built during the 1880s for service with the Spanish Navy. They were named for famous Spaniards of the past.- Description :...

, which were used for colonial duties (and the unsuccessful defense of Manila Bay in 1898).