SMS Preussen [a] was an ironclad turret ship built for the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy).

She cruised the Mediterranean Sea several times during her service, including during a mission in 1877 after unrest in the Ottoman Empire threatened German citizens living there.

[2] Preussen was ordered by the Imperial Navy from the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin; work on the ship was delayed by the start of the Franco-Prussian War.

The ship was commissioned into the German fleet on 4 July 1876 and then moved to Kiel, where her guns were installed at the Kaiserliche Werft (Imperial Shipyard).

The ironclad squadron, led by the flagship Kaiser, departed for the Mediterranean Sea on 30 May in response to unrest in the Ottoman Empire related to the Russo-Turkish War; the violence threatened German citizens living there.

She was badly damaged by severe weather on the way back to Germany, and after arriving 21 October, was dry-docked for repairs.

After departing Germany on 29 May, the squadron proceeded through the English Channel, where the armored frigate König Wilhelm accidentally rammed Grosser Kurfürst; the latter quickly sank with the loss of 276 men.

Preussen then escorted the damaged König Wilhelm to Portsmouth, where the Royal Navy made available a dry dock for emergency repairs.

[9][12] Albrecht von Stosch, the chief of the Kaiserliche Marine, ordered Batsch and his staff to return to Germany immediately aboard Preussen, escorted by Falke.

The annual summer training cruise was primarily conducted just in the Baltic Sea, apart from a short voyage in June to the coast of Norway.

During the cruise, the ships stopped in Russia, where they were met by Tsar Alexander III; after returning to Germany, they were visited by Kaiser Wilhelm I in Danzig Bay.

On 24 March 1880, Preussen was reduced to the reserve fleet temporarily, before being reactivated on 3 May for service with the Ironclad Squadron.

Wilhelm von Wickede, a former Austrian naval officer, replaced Batsch as the squadron commander.

Again, the squadron remained in the Baltic for the summer cruise, with the exception of a short visit to Wilhelmshaven and Cuxhaven in August.

Preussen and the rest of the squadron visited Danzig in September during a meeting between Kaiser Wilhelm I and Alexander III.

The summer cruise included the same four ironclads from the previous year, and was again commanded by Wickede, who had by then been promoted to Konteradmiral.

Preussen was kept in reserve during the annual summer maneuvers starting in 1883, as new ships, including the four Sachsen-class ironclads entered service.

Further modernization work was carried out beginning in 1885, including the addition of two 37 mm (1.5 in) Hotchkiss guns and five submerged torpedo tubes were added in the hull.

Preussen 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 began on 30 August and included state visits to Italy and the Ottoman Empire.

The ship participated in the ceremonial transfer of the island of Helgoland from British to German control in the summer of 1890.