original design had been radically altered with a very large superstructure that greatly reduced her stability. With her main battery guns trained to one side during a turn, she heeled up to twelve degrees. Stability problems were worse for Magenta than either of her sisters. She was assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron, and she got underway on 20 November to join the unit. While she was part of the squadron, she was only active for nine months of the year. The unit at that time also included her two sister ships and the ironclads , , , , Hoche, and . During the 1895 maneuvers, which began on 1 July, Magenta and the rest of the Mediterranean Squadron conducted a training cruise and practice shooting while the Reserve Squadron mobilized its ships. The main period of exercises saw the fleet divided into three units and Magenta was assigned to the third unit, tasked with defending Ajaccio from the other two fleets. The maneuvers concluded on 27 July. The following year, the Mediterranean Squadron consisted of Magenta, her two sisters, the two Amiral Baudin-class ships, Courbet, Dévastation, the ironclad and the new pre-dreadnought battleship . That year, Magenta served as the flagship of Rear Admiral E. T. MacGuckin de Slane, who commanded the 3rd Division of the squadron. She participated in the fleet maneuvers that lasted from 17 to 30 July, during which Magenta served as part of the simulated enemy fleet. By 1897, additional pre-dreadnoughts began to enter service, including and . They joined Magenta and the other Marceaus, Brennus, Amiral Baudin, and Redoutable in the Mediterranean Squadron. Magenta was reduced to reserve in 1898 as additional pre-dreadnoughts joined the fleet. During the fleet maneuvers that year, the submarine "torpedoed" Magenta twice, once while she was at anchor and a second time while underway. The French fleet was reorganized in 1899, and the three Marceau-class ships were organized as a separate division attached to the Mediterranean Squadron for torpedo and gunnery training purposes. The unit was commanded by Rear Admiral Gabriel Godin. In the 1890s, the French Navy began rebuilding older ironclads to prolong their useful lives, and modernizations for the three Marceaus were authorized that year. Magenta and her two sisters were assigned to the 1899 fleet maneuvers, which lasted from 5 to 25 July. Magenta relieved Marceau as a training ship for torpedo boat crews on 1 June