After the wrecking of H.M.S. Cobra in September 1901, the Admiralty's Committee on T.B.D. reported that one of the reasons for her loss was insufficient hull strength. This resulted in an entirely new concept of design which sacrificed speed for robustness and saw the birth of the "River" class destroyers including H.M.S.Boyne. Given raised forecastles instead of the turtle-backs of earlier destroyers, they were more seaworthy than their predecessors and had markedly better living conditions. Capable of 26 knots when necessary and reliable even in a seaway, they carried 132 tons of coal which gave them an excellent radius of about 2,000 miles at economical speed.
As usual when ordering numerous essentially identical vessels, the Admiralty placed the orders with various yards and Boyne was one of the batch of six boats built by Hawthorn, Leslie on the Tyne. Launched on 12 September 1904, Boyne was completed soon afterwards and entered service with 1-12pdr., 5-6pdrs. and 2 torpedo tubes although a further 3-12pdrs. were fitted in 1907. Displacing 545 tons, she measured 222 feet in length with a 23½ foot beam, and had her builder's distinctive flush funnel tops making her easy to recognise. Her continuous service throughout the Great War was not marked by any particular distinction although there is no doubt that she and her sisters made an invaluable contribution to the fleet's activities thanks to their suitability for so many different roles. No longer needed when the War ended, she was sold out of the service and broken up at Porthcawl during 1919.