Berk-i Satvet saw action during the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913 in the Aegean and Black Seas, against Greek and Bulgarian opponents, respectively.

After the Ottoman Empire entered World War I, Berk-i Satvet was employed in patrols in the Black Sea.

In January 1915, Berk-i Satvet struck a naval mine while escorting a convoy to Zonguldak; the explosion severely damaged the ship and kept her out of service until April 1918.

The engines were rated at 5,100 indicated horsepower (3,800 kW) for a top speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph); Berk-i Satvet had a cruising radius of 3,240 nautical miles (6,000 km; 3,730 mi).

[4] During the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–1912, Berk-i Satvet was assigned to the Reserve Division, which was centered on the elderly ironclads Mesudiye and Âsâr-ı Tevfik.

On 20 December, she, the protected cruiser Mecidiye, and a division of torpedo boats left the Dardanelles for Imbros in an attempt to trap a group of Greek destroyers that was operating off the straits.

A short engagement forced the Greeks to withdraw without either side incurring damage, and by 15:30, Berk-i Satvet and the rest of the fleet had returned to Çanakkale.

[7] On 4 February 1913, Berk-i Satvet bombarded Bulgarian positions at Şarköy on the northern coast of the Sea of Marmara in preparation for an amphibious assault.

Turgut Reis and Barbaros Hayreddin, along with two small cruisers provided artillery support to the right flank of the invading force once it went ashore.

The ships were positioned about one kilometer off shore, with Berk-i Satvet leading the line, which also included Mecidiye and the pre-dreadnought battleships Barbaros Hayreddin and Turgut Reis.

[9] On 9 March, Berk-i Satvet joined a sweep toward Imbros, an island in the Aegean Sea at the entrance to the Gulf of Saros; she briefly engaged a pair of Greek destroyers and stopped a steamer flying under the French flag.

[10] Later in March, she again escorted Barbaros Hayreddin and Turgut Reis in the Black Sea, while the two battleships bombarded Bulgarian troops that were attempting to breach the line of defenses at Çatalca.

[11] On 13 April, Berk-i Satvet joined a fleet consisting of Barbaros Hayreddin, Turgut Reis, Âsâr-ı Tevfik, and several smaller warships.

The battlecruiser shelled Sevastopol while Berk-i Satvet observed; she had been sent with Yavuz Sultan Selim primarily to train her crew.

[12] Berk-i Satvet sortied with her sister and Yavuz Sultan Selim on 5 December to provide distant support to a troop convoy headed to Rize.

On 2 January 1915 at 15:00, she, Midilli, and Hamidiye steamed out of the Bosporus to escort a transport to Zonguldak, after which the three cruisers are to conduct a patrol off the port.

[15] The ship was renamed Berk in 1923 following the end of the Turkish War of Independence, which saw the Republic of Turkey replace the old Ottoman Empire.