After the start of World War I, the ships laid several minefields, both to protect the German coast and also to interfere with British naval operations.

Albatross, never repaired from the damage sustained in 1915, was sold for scrap immediately, but Nautilus was retained as a hulk until 1928, when she too was broken up.

The vessels handled well and had a tight turning radius, but they suffered from weather helm and tended to drift while underway.

[1] Their Propulsion system consisted of two 3-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines each driving a single four-bladed screw propeller that was 3.20 m (10 ft 6 in) in diameter.

[1] The primary armament for the Nautilus class was a battery of eight 8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/35 guns in individual mounts.

Once the former's refit was completed in 1911, the latter was transferred to mine warfare training in the North Sea before being decommissioned at the end of the year.

[3] After the outbreak of World War I in July 1914, both ships were mobilized to lay a series of minefields, initially to protect Germany's coastlines in the North and Baltic Seas.

[7] The last of these resulted in the Battle of Åland Islands on 2 July after a group of Russian armored cruisers intercepted Albatross and her escorts.

The cruisers badly damaged Albatross, and to prevent her sinking, her captain beached the ship off the coast of neutral Sweden.

She was assigned to the Sonderverband (Special Unit) tasked with supporting the White Finns during the Finnish Civil War, though she did not see action.

[1][11] Media related to Nautilus class cruiser at Wikimedia Commons See also: List of ships of the Imperial German Navy