 By the outbreak of the First World War, "Giovanni Bausan" had been relegated to secondary duties, first as a distilling ship, and later as a depot ship for seaplanes.The ship was disarmed during the conflict and ultimately was sold to ship-breakers in March 1920.The design of "Giovanni Bausan" was based on that of Elswick's earlier , built for Chile and designed by George Rendel, and was the first modern protected cruiser constructed for the Italian Navy.