From the 1860s to the 1880s, Prussia and later the German Empire built a series of screw corvettes to expand and modernize its fleet of cruising warships. In total, twenty-three ships of the type were built, mostly between six different ship classes. The first two ships, the , were built in the early 1860s as Prussia began to prepare for an eventual conflict with Denmark over the Schleswig–Holstein question, though only entered service in time for the Second Schleswig War in 1864. During the war, Prussia purchased the two s that had been secretly ordered by the Confederate States Navy from France, after the French Emperor Napoleon III blocked their delivery to the Confederates. The three ships of the were laid down in the late 1860s and early 1870s, and these were followed by two s in the early 1870s. The six-ship was built in the mid-1870s to early 1880s, and was followed by another group of six ships, the . A further two vessels, and , were built in the early 1880s specifically to serve as training ships, a role that many of the older corvettes had begun to fill by that time.
was the only ship of the type to see action against an enemy warship, taking part in the Battle of Jasmund during the Second Schleswig War in 1864 and an attack on a blockading French squadron during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. was activated during the Franco-Prussian War to raid French shipping in the Atlantic Ocean, capturing three ships carrying war materiel, two of which were taken as prizes and the third sunk. s sister was in Japan during the war, where she was blockaded by a French squadron and saw no combat. Throughout the 1860s, 1870s, and 1880s, German corvettes went on numerous deployments abroad, frequently to South America, the Mediterranean Sea, China, and the central Pacific Ocean. These voyages were aimed at protecting Prussian and later German nationals abroad, German economic interests, and later the establishment and patrolling of the German colonial empire.
As the ships were replaced with newer vessels, beginning with several unprotected cruisers, they were frequently converted into training ships. In addition to training in German waters, this role involved overseas training cruises, typically to the Mediterranean and the West Indies. While on these cruises, the ships were frequently called to carry out the same responsibilities as front-line warships, protecting Germans during periods of unrest in foreign countries and showing the flag. Most of the corvettes were sold for scrap between the 1880s and 1920s, but two were lost in accidents; was sunk by a cyclone in the Gulf of Aden in 1885 and the -class ship was wrecked in a storm off Málaga in 1900. , the last surviving ship of the type, was converted into a lighter in the early 1920s and was ultimately broken up in 1930.
+ Key Armament The number and type of the primary armament Displacement Ship displacement at full combat load Propulsion Number of shafts, type of propulsion system, and top speed generated Service The dates work began and finished on the ship and its ultimate fate Laid down The date the keel assembly commenced Commissioned The date the ship was commissioned
Nymphe class
As early as the 1850s, the Prussian Navy began to make preparations for a naval expansion program, starting with the screw frigates in 1854. The navy decided that smaller screw corvettes would also be useful, and so later in the decade began to prepare designs for the new type of ship. The navy envisioned using the ships for traditional cruiser duties, including scouting for the fleet, showing the flag, protecting Prussian merchant vessels, and attacking enemy shipping. Since these activities would require extended periods at sea, the ships' hulls were coppered to protect them from biofouling, and they were fitted with a full ship rig to supplement their steam engines. The two -class corvettes were ordered in 1861 in response to rising tensions with Denmark over the Schleswig–Holstein question; the Prussian Navy sought to strengthen its fleet in preparation for a conflict with the stronger Royal Danish Navy. In addition, the order for the vessels was part of a conflict in the Prussian government over control of the kingdom's military expenditures; the liberals who controlled the (State Diet) objected to the army and navy modernization programs of Albrecht von Roon, and refused to allocate funds. Chancellor Otto von Bismarck used a loophole to secure funding for Roon's reforms, and the class was ordered without parliamentary approval.
was completed in time for the Second Schleswig War with Denmark in 1864, seeing action at the Battle of Jasmund, where she was heavily engaged, but only slightly damaged by a Danish frigate. During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870–1871, was blockaded in Yokohama, Japan, and saw no action. was similarly blockaded in Danzig, Prussia, and she made a surprise nighttime attack on the French squadron, inflicting no damage but nevertheless convincing the French admiral that his ironclad warships were unsuitable for a close blockade of Prussian ports. Both ships went on extended cruises abroad during peacetime, and in the mid-1870s they were converted into training ships. In this guise, both vessels continued to make overseas cruises; was withdrawn from service in 1880 and hulked, but remained in service until 1887, when she too was hulked. The two ships were sold for scrap in 1891 and thereafter broken up.
+ Summary of the class Ship Armament Displacement Propulsion Service Laid down Commissioned Fate 10 × 36-pounder guns6 × 12-pounder guns 1 shaft, 1 marine steam engine, 25 January 1862 25 November 1863 Broken up, 1891 6 February 1862 10 April 1867
Augusta class
In 1862, during the American Civil War, the Confederate States Navy secretly placed an order for a pair of screw corvettes with the Arman Brothers shipyard of Bordeaux, France; these ships were to be named Mississippi and Louisiana. The ships were purportedly being built for Japan under the false names and . Before the vessels could be delivered to the Confederate States, the French Emperor Napoleon III intervened in 1864 to prevent neutral France from selling the warships to an active belligerent. Instead, Arman offered the ships for sale to other countries, and Prussia, which was still trying to expand its fleet during the Second Schleswig War, purchased the vessels. The French government again intervened and tried to block from being transferred to the Prussian fleet, since it was also actively engaged in a conflict, but Bismarck negotiated her transfer before her armament was installed, by way of the Netherlands while under the French flag.
Both ships arrived too late in 1864 to see action against Denmark, and they did not see action against the Austrian Navy during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, since the Austrian fleet was occupied with the Italian fleet in the Adriatic Sea. In the late 1860s, both ships were sent to Central America, where created a minor diplomatic incident over a Prussian attempt to secure a naval base at Puerto Limón, Costa Rica, which the Costa Rican government refused to allow and the United States viewed as an encroachment on its sphere of influence. During the Franco-Prussian War in 1871, was used to attack French shipping in the Atlantic, capturing two vessels and sinking a third before being trapped in Vigo, Spain, by a French squadron. The two ships went on further overseas deployments in the 1870s and 1880s, and while on a voyage to East Asia, was lost in a cyclone in the Gulf of Aden. , meanwhile, was removed from service in 1882 and served intermittently as a fishery protection vessel between 1884 and 1890 before being broken up in 1892.
+ Summary of the class Ship Armament Displacement Propulsion Service Laid down Commissioned Fate 8 × 24-pounder guns6 × 12-pounder guns 1 shaft, 1 marine steam engine, 13.5 knots (25 km/h; 15.5 mph) 1863 1864 Sank in a storm, 1885 14 September 1864 Broken up, 1892
Ariadne class
By 1867, the Prussian Navy had been reorganized as the North German Federal Navy, Prussia having formed the North German Confederation in the wake of the Austro-Prussian War. The navy, under the direction of (Rear Admiral) Eduard von Jachmann, formulated a new construction plan that year that laid out its priorities for ship building over the next several years. The plan called for a total of twenty screw corvettes, of which four had already been acquired—the and classes. By the late 1860s, German overseas economic interests became more important as the German lands exported increasing amounts of manufactured goods; the corvettes of the 1867 fleet plan would be the backbone of the naval force that protected these activities. The first two ships of the class were built to the same design, but the third vessel, , was completed to a modified design with a longer hull, greater coal storage capacity, and heavier armament. A fourth ship of the class, to have been named , was intended to be built to s design, but the navy cancelled this ship and reordered it as the first -class corvette.
All three of the ships served extensively on overseas deployments throughout the 1870s and early 1880s, primarily in South America, the Mediterranean Sea, and East Asia. On these voyages, the ships and their captains performed a number of duties, including protecting German nationals during periods of unrest or open warfare in various countries, negotiating trade agreements with numerous governments, and combating piracy. They were also tasked with conducting scientific experiments and surveys to improve navigational charts. In the early to mid-1880s, all three of the ships were converted into training ships for apprentice seamen, and they went on training cruises over the course of the rest of the decade. These frequently went to the West Indies. While on one such training cruise in 1883, helped to protect civilians in Haiti during a period of unrest on the island. All three ships were decommissioned by 1892, with being immediately scrapped. survived as a hulk and torpedo test ship until 1896 when she too was sold for scrap, and simply saw no further use between her decommissioning in 1884 and her disposal in 1896.
+ Summary of the class Ship Armament Displacement Propulsion Service Laid down Commissioned Fate 6 × guns2 × guns 1 shaft, 1 marine steam engine, 1868 23 November 1872 Broken up, 1891 1871 4 June 1874 Broken up, 1897 4 × guns8 × 15 cm guns 1874 1 October 1876
Leipzig class
The two ships of the class were ordered as part of the 1873 fleet plan of what was now the (Imperial Navy). This program, which was formulated by the first chief of the (Imperial Admiralty), General Albrecht von Stosch, adopted the same figure of twenty corvettes as Jachmann's earlier plan. was initially to have been a sister to , and had been ordered under the name , but by the time work actually began on the ship, she had been completely redesigned. was significantly larger than ; her increased size allowed for a substantially stronger gun battery, a more powerful propulsion system, and more spacious crew quarters, which proved to be very useful on extended voyages overseas. Another major advance was the use of iron to build the ships' hulls instead of traditional timber frames and planking. Although earlier vessels had been intended to serve as fleet scouts, by the time and entered service in the mid-1870s, the widespread adoption of ironclad warships in European navies meant that such use was impractical, since unarmored warships would be useless against armored opponents. This fact was most clearly demonstrated by the Battle of Pacocha between Britain and Peru in 1877. As a result, the class was to be used solely as overseas cruisers.