 The ship, named for the island of Hydra, was launched in 1889, and by 1892, she and her sister-ships "Spetsai" and "Psara" were delivered to the Greek fleet.The ship saw limited action in the Greco–Turkish War in 1897, as the Royal Hellenic Navy was unable to make use of its superiority over the Ottoman Navy.The Ottoman Navy had remained in port during the conflict, but a major naval intervention of the Great Powers prevented the Greeks from capitalizing on their superiority.