Infernet was the second and final member of the D'Estrées class of protected cruisers built for the French Navy in the 1890s. The D'Estrées-class cruisers were ordered as part of a construction program directed at strengthening the fleet's cruiser force at a time the country was concerned with the growing naval threat of the Italian and German fleets. The new cruisers were intended to serve overseas in the French colonial empire. D'Estrées was armed with a main battery of two 138 mm (5.4 in) guns, was protected by an armor deck that was 38 to 43 mm (1.5 to 1.7 in) thick, and was capable of steaming at a top speed of up to 20 to 20.5 knots (37.0 to 38.0 km/h; 23.0 to 23.6 mph).