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 fourteen 15 cm (5.9 in) guns and had a full ship rig to supplement her steam engine on long cruises abroad.

The first, in 1882, was to protect German nationals in Egypt during the 'Urabi revolt, though by the time she arrived, British forces had largely defeated the rebels, allowing Gneisenau to return home.

[4] At the time, Stosch had implemented a plan whereby Germany's colonies would be protected by gunboats, while larger warships would generally be kept in reserve, with a handful assigned to a flying squadron that could respond to crises quickly.

In June 1882, the revolutionaries, angered by foreign influence in the country, murdered fifty Europeans, prompting the British Royal Navy to bombard Alexandria and then land forces to pursue the rebels.

Initially hoping to avoid mobilizing any vessels in Germany to keep the cost of the operation to a minimum, the Admiralität ordered a pair of gunboats, Habicht and Möwe, that had been returning from overseas deployments to proceed to Egypt.

[4] These two small vessels proved to be insufficient for the task, and so on 13 August, Gneisenau, the corvette Nymphe, the aviso Zieten, and the gunboat Cyclop were commissioned to reinforce them.

They departed Kiel on 19 August, under the command of Gneisenau's captain KzS Max von der Goltz, who was made Kommodore of the squadron.

The ships arrived in Port Said on 21 August, and on 13 September the British defeated 'Urabi's forces at the Battle of Tell El Kebir, effectively ending the rebellion.

[4][6] Gneisenau was recommissioned for another tour abroad on 5 October 1884 to join the newly-formed West African Cruiser Squadron, which was commanded by Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) Eduard von Knorr aboard his flagship Bismarck.

While en route from Kiel to Wilhelmshaven to join the rest of the squadron, Gneisenau ran aground off the island of Lolland in heavy fog; she had to be towed free by the ironclad Hansa, though she was undamaged in the accident.

Gneisenau's survey of the area led the German government to instruct Rohlfs to accept the offer of the Witu Sultan, Ahmed ibn Fumo Bakari, to form a protectorate on 27 May.

Paschen had been tasked to take his squadron to East Africa to settle disputes over the German protectorate with the Sultan of Zanzibar, Barghash bin Said, which he accomplished by mid-August.

After anchoring in Lamu on 28 August, Gneisenau sent a contingent ashore, led by the executive officer, Curt von Prittwitz und Gaffron, to hold a parade to celebrate the agreement.

After reaching the south Pacific, the ships toured Australian ports, New Zealand, Tonga, and Samoa before Gneisenau was detached first to the Gazelle Peninsula on the island of New Pomerania to suppress an uprising against German colonial rule.

[10] Gneisenau returned to service on 13 April 1887 under the command of KzS August von Thomsen, now in the role of a training ship for naval cadets and four-year enlisted volunteers.

The ship remained out of service until 1 April 1892, when she was reactivated for a cruise in the Baltic and North Seas under the command of Korvettenkapitän (KK—Corvette Captain) Felix Stubenrauch.

In August and September, she took part in the annual fleet maneuvers, and beginning on 3 October, she participated in the winter cruise, which this time went to the West Indies and Venezuela.

On the way back to Germany, the squadron spent a month in British waters, from 22 May to 21 June, during which time they took part in the Cowes Regatta with Wilhelm II aboard the new aviso Blitz.

[10] Upon returning to Germany, she underwent a short overhaul before joining the ships of III Division during the fleet training exercise in August and September.

The ships thereafter took part in the fleet maneuvers in August and September again as III Division, with Gneisenau's commander now KK Hermann da Fonseca-Wollheim.

On 1 October, Gneisenau began the winter training cruise to the Mediterranean, and while in La Valletta, Malta, she met the unprotected cruisers Condor and Cormoran.

[12] The next set of training exercises began on 6 May, and were conducted in the North Sea and concluded with ceremonies marking the opening of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal.

On 21 June, Gneisenau joined the newly formed IV Division in the Kieler Förde, at the Baltic entrance to the canal, where the ships' bands played the national anthems of each countries' warships as they arrived for the celebration.

This trip went to South America, and included stops in Rio de Janeiro and São Francisco do Sul in Brazil, and Havana, where she rendezvoused with the training cruiser Charlotte.

She began the journey back to Germany on 5 January, departing Port Said and sailing to La Spezia, Italy, where she was visited by Kaiserin Friedrich and her daughter Princess Viktoria.

Wave action quickly smashed Gneisenau's hull against the mole, and part of her crew attempted to find safety by climbing the rigging.

Those killed in the sinking were buried in Málaga's cemetery, and the survivors returned to Germany aboard the HAPAG steamship SS Andalusia on 2 January 1901.