Built by the A. S. Askimov shipyard in Nikolaev, she was laid down on 28 August 1838 and was launched on 19 November 1839. She then sailed to Sevastopol in 1840 and later that year began her participation in a lengthy operation to transport Imperial Russian Army troops to newly conquered fortifications in the Caucasus area that had been seized during the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829. During this period, the former Ottoman subjects revolted against Russian rule, and the soldiers were needed to suppress the restive population. Russia considered intervening directly in the Egyptian–Ottoman War in September 1840, but "Arkhangel Gavriil" and several other ships were in need of repair; combined with troop shortages, the lack of sufficient forces led the Russians to decide against actively entering the conflict. The threat of Russian (and British) intervention nevertheless was used to pressure Muhammad Ali of Egypt.