In 1907 the II Battle Squadron was organized; the five "Braunschweig"-class battleships were assigned to it, along with the five new "Deutschland"-class ships. When war broke out in 1914, four of the "Braunschweig"-class ships were assigned to the IV Squadron alongside the "Wittelsbach"-class ships. "Braunschweig" and "Elsass" took part in the Battle of the Gulf of Riga in 1915. "Hessen" remained in the II Battle Squadron and saw action at the Battle of Jutland in 1916. After the war, "Lothringen" and "Preussen" were converted into depot ships for minesweepers. They were eventually scrapped in 1931. A long section of "Preussen" was retained for use as an explosives target; it was eventually bombed and sunk in April 1945. The hulk was raised and broken up in 1954. The other three ships were used as coastal defense ships, though between 1931 and 1935, they too were withdrawn from service and broken up, with the exception of "Hessen". "Hessen" was converted into a radio-controlled target ship in 1935 and served in that capacity until the end of World War II in 1945. She was then ceded to the Soviet Navy and renamed "Tsel".