SMS Mücke was an ironclad gunboat of the Wespe class built for the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) in the 1870s.

The ships, which were armed with a single 30.5 cm (12 in) MRK L/22 gun, were intended to serve as part of a coastal defense fleet.

The decision was finalized based on the fleet plan conceived by General Albrecht von Stosch, the new Chief of the Kaiserliche Admiralität (Imperial Admiralty), in the early 1870s.

He envisioned a fleet oriented on defense of Germany's Baltic and North Sea coasts, which would be led by the ironclad corvettes of the Sachsen class.

The Wespes were intended to beach themselves on the sandbars along the German coastline to serve as semi-mobile coastal artillery batteries.

The ship was fitted with a waterline armor belt that was 102 to 203 mm (4 to 8 in) thick, with the thickest section protecting the propulsion machinery spaces and ammunition magazine.

For the fall fleet maneuvers, she served as the flagship of a division of gunboats that included her sisters Viper, Wespe, and Salamander.

Following the end of the maneuvers on 7 September, Mücke was assigned to the Reserve Division of the North Sea, serving as its flagship.

[5] For the 1886 training year, an Armored Gunboat Flotilla was created on 11 May; Mücke again served as the flagship for the unit, which also included Viper, Salamander, and their sister Camaeleon.

The fleet maneuvers, which lasted from 3 to 14 September, consisted of another simulated attack on Jade Bight, along with blockade operations in the area.

The following year, Mücke and Natter joined the Maneuver Fleet for another mock attack, this time on Wilhelmshaven directly.

Following the deployment of the four Brandenburg-class battleships to China in response to the Boxer Uprising in 1900, Mücke was reactivated due to the shortage of warships in home waters.