Named for Mount Etna on the island of Sicily, the ship was laid down in January 1883, was launched in September 1885, and was completed in December 1887.

Etna frequently cruised abroad throughout her career, including visits to the United States for the World's Columbian Exposition and the Hudson–Fulton Celebration in 1893 and 1909, respectively.

By the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Etna had been withdrawn from service and was employed as a headquarters ship for the commander of the Italian fleet at Taranto and later for the light forces based at Brindisi.

The four ships of the Etna class were designed in Italy as domestically produced versions of the British-built cruiser Giovanni Bausan.

These cruisers were intended to serve as "battleship destroyers",[1][2] and represented a temporary embrace of the Jeune École doctrine by the Italian naval command.

[4] The main armament of the ships consisted of two Armstrong 254 mm (10 in), 30-caliber breech-loading guns mounted in barbettes fore and aft.

[4] During this period, Etna and the protected cruisers Dogali and Giovanni Bausan represented Italy at the international naval review in New York, held at the start of the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893.

[2] Etna visited the United States in September 1909 for the Hudson–Fulton Celebration in New York City, which also included ships from the German, British, and French fleets, among others, in addition to the hosting US Navy.

In December 1911, she was stationed at Tobruk, where she, the battleship Vittorio Emanuele, the cruiser Etruria, and twelve torpedo boats provided gunfire support to the Italians defending the city.

In April, Etna bombarded Ottoman positions outside Benghazi, and in August, she sent men ashore at Zuwarah to relieve the garrison there.

[2] By May 1917, she had been transferred to Brindisi, where she served as the headquarters ship for Rear Admiral Alfredo Acton during the Battle of the Strait of Otranto.