The Whitehead torpedo exhibit at the Royal Naval Exhibition of 1891 had generated considerable interest. A range of torpedoes were on display including the first pattern used by the Royal Navy, this had a speed of 9 knots, and a charge of 90 pounds of explosive (unspecified), the Woolwich 14 inch Mark VIII with a speed of 27 knots and a charge of over 60 pounds of gun-cotton, and Robert Whitehead's 18 inch torpedo which had eclipsed all previous patterns, with a speed of 28.5 knots and a charge of nearly 200 pounds of gun-cotton.