sentences:  Following the outbreak of World War I in July 1914, the five "Wittelsbach"-class ships were mobilized into IV Battle Squadron, under the command of Vice Admiral Ehrhard Schmidt.The squadron was based in Kiel, and they conducted several sorties into the Baltic Sea to patrol for Russian warships but they saw no action.These operations included a failed attempt to rescue the light cruiser that had run aground in Russian territory in late August, and screening the joint Army Navy attack on Libau against a possible Russian counterattack in May 1915.