SMS Niobe was a Diamond-class 28-gun sixth-rate sailing frigate built for the Royal Navy in the 1840s.

Niobe was a three-masted, ship-rigged frigate that had a sail area of 1,650 square metres (17,800 sq ft).

[3] In British service, Niobe was intended to be armed with twenty 32-pounder (45 cwt) smoothbore on the upper deck.

[3] In 1865, Niobe was commanded by the future admiral, Carl Ferdinand Batsch and among its cadets were seven future admirals, Alfred von Tirpitz, Wilhelm Büchsel, Oscar Klausa, Iwan Oldekop, Otto von Diederichs, Richard Geissler, and Oscar Boeters.

Accompanied by the brig SMS Rover, the ship visited Plymouth, Madeira, the Cape Verde Islands, Cadiz, and Lisbon from 30 September 1865 to 15 May 1866.