The two small cruisers Graudenz and Regensburg were quite similar to other German small cruisers build earlier. With those ships, the design returned to three funnels which would be a typical sign for all following ships. They were the last cruisers with 10,5 cm guns, their British counterparts had gone to bigger guns at that time already, but the Germans preferred more smaller guns instead of a smaller number of more powerful ones. When it got obvious that the bigger British guns had an significant advantage, the 10,5 cm guns were replaced by seven 15cm guns during the war.

The Graudenz was used in the reconnaissance forces and took part in the battle at the Doggerbank. It was delivered to Italy in 1920, renamed Ancona and operated until 1937 when it was broken down