SMS Sperber ("His Majesty's Ship Sperber—Sparrowhawk") was an unprotected cruiser built for the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy), the second member of the Schwalbe class. She had one sister ship, Schwalbe. Sperber was built at the Kaiserliche Werft (Imperial Dockyard) in Danzig; her keel was laid down in September 1887 and her completed hull was launched in August 1888. She was commissioned for service in April 1889. Designed for colonial service, Sperber was armed with a main battery of eight 10.5-centimeter (4.1 in) guns and had a cruising radius of over 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km; 3,500 mi); she also had an auxiliary sailing rig to supplement her steam engines.