Kiautschou Bay concession
Most of the German protected cruisers served on overseas stations throughout their careers, primarily in the East Asia Squadron in the 1890s and 1900s. participated in the seizure of the Kiautschou Bay concession in November 1897, which was used as the primary base for the East Asia Squadron. "Kaiserin Augusta", , and assisted in the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900, and saw action during the Venezuela Crisis of 1902–1903, where she bombarded several Venezuelan fortresses. , "Prinzess Wilhelm", and "Kaiserin Augusta" were relegated to secondary duties in the 1910s, while the "Victoria Louise" class was used to train naval cadets in the 1900s. All eight ships were broken up for scrap in the early 1920s.