The keel for "Leopard" was laid down in January 1885 at the Armstrong shipyard in Elswick in Britain. Her completed hull was launched on 10 September that year, and fitting-out work was completed on 31 March 1886. On 1 April, the Austro-Hungarian crew took possession of the ship and left for home, arriving in Pola on 2 May. Upon arrival, she was taken into the shipyard to have her armament installed, including her torpedo tubes in 1887. She participated in the annual fleet maneuvers in 1888, along with the ironclads , , , , and the cruisers and . That year, "Leopard" and "Panther" joined a squadron that included the ironclads "Tegetthoff", "Custoza", "Kaiser Max", "Don Juan d'Austria", and to represent Austria-Hungary in the opening ceremonies for the Barcelona Universal Exposition. This was the largest squadron of the Austro-Hungarian Navy that had operated outside the Adriatic. While on the way back home, "Leopard", "Custoza", "Kaiser Max", and "Prinz Eugen" stopped in Malta.