Bussard-class cruiser was present in the Caribbean during the Spanish–American War in 1898, though she took no active role in the conflict. Between 1898 and 1900, "Bussard" and "Seeadler" were modernized in Germany. In 1900, "Seeadler" participated in the suppression of the Boxer Rebellion in China, including a blockade of the Chinese coast. In December 1902, "Falke" and the protected cruiser joined British forces in the Venezuela Crisis of 1902–03 after Venezuelan forces seized a British merchant ship. The two cruisers helped British warships bombard Venezuelan coastal fortifications and blockade the coast. "Cormoran" and "Geier" were modernized between 1907 and 1909; only
Chilean cruiser Chacabuco (1898) reserve despite her age: by then there were no other cruisers available to the Chilean Navy. She underwent modernization, with her armament changed to six 6 inch/50 guns and ten 20 mm anti-aircraft guns. Thereafter she served as the flagship of the Chilean Navy on several occasions, before becoming a midshipmen training cruiser from 1949 to 1950. The "Chacabuco" went out of service in December 1950; she was struck on 15 December 1959, and was sold to the Compañía de Acero del Pacífico for scrapping. Chilean cruiser Chacabuco (1898) The Chilean cruiser "Chacabuco" was a protected cruiser of the Chilean