The Bismarck-class corvettes were ordered as part of a major naval construction program in the early 1870s, and she was designed to serve as a fleet scout and on extended tours in Germany's colonial empire.

She was armed with a battery of sixteen 15 cm (5.9 in) guns and had sails, a full ship rig to supplement her steam engine on long cruises abroad.

During this cruise, she interfered with Samoan internal affairs and protected German interests in South America during the War of the Pacific.

After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, the newly formed Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) began an expansion program to strengthen the fleet.

The naval command determined that modern steam corvettes were necessary for scouting purposes, as well as overseas cruising duties to protect German interests abroad.

[3][4][5] The keel for Bismarck was laid down at the Norddeutsche Schiffbau AG (North German Shipyard) in Kiel in November 1875 under the contract name "B", which denoted that she was a new addition to the fleet, rather than a replacement for a vessel then in service.

Her completed hull was launched on 25 July 1877; she was christened by Admiral Albrecht von Stosch, the head of the Kaiserliche Admiralität (Imperial Admiralty).

Albatross arrived in the central Pacific on 30 July, allowing Bismarck to sail on 8 August to Sydney, Australia, for an overhaul.

The ship was urgently recalled to Samoa after the repair work was completed, owing to unrest in the islands that threatened German traders.

There, she was joined by the gunboat Nautilus, which was sent to increase the leverage the Germans had to pressure the competing factions to recognize the Malietoa Talavou Tonumaipeʻa as the ruler of all Samoans.

[7] Eight men aboard Bismarck had died due to tropical diseases by early 1880, and the Admiralität decided to recall the vessel.

While she was being repaired, the Admiralität altered her original route and ordered her to proceed to the west coast of South America to support the ironclad Hansa, which was protecting German interests in the area during the War of the Pacific.

As a result of these incidents, Bismarck, despite his long dislike of overseas colonies, decided to send a squadron to the Bight of Biafra to protect German interests.

[5] On 17 September 1884, the Admiralität organized the West African Cruiser Squadron, under the command of Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) Eduard von Knorr, to reinforce the gunboat Möwe.

[8] Knorr decided to intervene immediately, and sent ashore a landing party of some three hundred men from Bismarck and Olga to arrest the leaders of the anti-German tribes and destroy their villages.

While this went on, Bismarck continued to patrol off Cameroon until Knorr received orders to join the rest of his ships in East Africa, though he was delayed until 7 July, as he had to wait on the arrival of Julius von Soden, the first governor of the colony of Kamerun.

In the meantime, Bismarck carried out surveying work in the Wouri delta and assisted in marking the official border between German Togoland and French Dahomey.

[12] The Admiralität had decided that newly acquired territories in German New Guinea needed further reinforcement, and so ordered the creation of a new cruiser squadron, again under the command of Knorr.

Bismarck and the other members of the squadron departed from Zanzibar on 9 January 1886 and passed through the Indian Ocean to Australia, arriving in Sydney on 28 February.

Tupua Tamasese Titimaea, one of the Samoan chiefs vying for power, unsuccessfully sought to convince Knorr and the German consul to support his faction.

[13] While in Nagasaki, Knorr received orders to return to East Africa to effect the final settlement of borders that had been agreed upon in the London Treaty of 29 October 1886.

The Sultan of Zanzibar again made contrary border claims, which needed to be settled, and the German explorer Karl Ludwig Jühlke had been murdered, necessitating a military response.

His squadron left Cape Town on 7 May and arrived in Sydney on 9 June, where they met Albatross, which was on her way back to Germany owing to problems with her engine.

Later in 1887, the squadron cruised in East Asian waters, and on 6 January 1888, the ships stopped in Hong Kong with the gunboats Wolf and Iltis.

According to the naval historians Hans Hildebrand, Albert Röhr, and Hans-Otto Steinmetz, there was no legitimate reason to discard the ship after just twelve years in service, as evidenced by the fact that her hull survived until 1920.