"Ariadne" saw little service during her career; she served with the main fleet, first in I Squadron and then with I Scouting Group between 1902 and 1906. During this period, she took part in routine training exercises and cruises abroad. Decommissioned in late 1906, she lay in reserve until the start of World War I in July 1914. Reactivated on 2 August, she served as a flotilla leader for torpedo boats guarding Germany's North Sea coast. During the Battle of Helgoland Bight on 28 August, she sortied to reinforce the ships on patrol in the Helgoland Bight, where she was surprised and sunk by British battlecruisers. Casualty figures vary, with 59 or around 250 of her crew being rescued by other German cruisers.