The ship was a regular participant in the annual fleet training maneuvers conducted with the exception of the mid-1880s, when she was temporarily replaced by newer vessels.

She joined the older ironclads Kronprinz and König Wilhelm and the new Hansa, under the command of Vice Admiral Ludwig von Henk.

The four-ship squadron remained in German waters for the entirety of the cruise, which finished with a review of the flotilla in Rostock by Kaiser Wilhelm I in September.

[7] At around the time Batch's squadron was working up for the summer cruise,[7] Henry Abbott, the German consul in Salonika, then in the Ottoman Empire, was murdered.

[8] Further attacks on German citizens living in the area were feared, and so Batsch was ordered to sail to the Mediterranean Sea to stage a naval demonstration in June 1876.

After the threat of violence subsided in August, Batsch departed with Kaiser and Deutschland; the other two ironclads remained in the Mediterranean for the rest of the summer.

The squadron was again sent to the Mediterranean, in response to unrest in the Ottoman Empire related to the Russo-Turkish War; the violence threatened German citizens living there.

[10] The ship did not see active duty again until August 1887, when she joined König Wihelm and Oldenburg as the I Squadron for three weeks of maneuvers with the rest of the fleet.

Kaiser and the rest of II Division became the training squadron for the fleet in 1889–1890, the first year the Kaiserliche Marine maintained a year-round ironclad force.

The squadron escorted Wilhelm II's imperial yacht to the Mediterranean; the voyage included state visits to Italy and the Ottoman Empire.

[15] In 1895, commanded by Paul Jaeschke, Kaiser reinforced the East Asia Division, which also included the protected cruisers Irene and Prinzess Wilhelm and several smaller vessels.

[17] During the period of diplomatic tension between Britain and Germany caused by the Kruger telegram sent by Wilhelm II, Kaiser and several other overseas cruisers were ordered to return to German waters.

[20] In the wake of two violent incidents against Germans in China, Wilhelm II gave Diederichs permission to seize Jiaozhou by force in November 1897.

[22] At 06:00 on the 14th, Cormoran steamed into the bay to bring the Chinese forts under fire, while Kaiser and Prinzess Wilhelm sent a landing force of some 700 men ashore.

In the span of two hours, Diederichs's forces had captured the central and outlying forts and destroyed the Chinese telegraph, preventing them from notifying their superiors of the German attack.

[24] Diederichs was promoted to vice admiral following the successful seizure of the port, and the division became enlarged to squadron size with the addition of several warships, including Kaiser's sister Deutschland.

Crew transfers during the repair process necessitated Irene and Cormoran to meet in Manila as well; this concentration of five warships in the Philippines caused a serious crisis with the American Navy.

[28] The German naval forces left the Philippines after the fall of Manila in August, though tensions with the United States continued for some time after.

The screw corvette Arcona and Cormoran arrived to tow Kaiser off the rocks, after which Diederichs sent her back to Hong Kong for repairs.