Reserve, Morocco, and collier duties extended Forbin's career

Forbin spent most of the 1890s in the Mediterranean reserve squadron, normally returning to active duty for annual exercises. A Poudre B ammunition fire damaged her in 1901, yet she was reactivated for Northern Squadron service around 1906. By 1911 she had transferred to the Moroccan Naval Division, where an ageing small cruiser could still perform an overseas presence role. Her 1913 conversion into a collier ended the combat role but kept the ship useful to naval logistics until she was struck in 1919. Reserve mobilization, colonial deployment, and auxiliary conversion each extracted further value from an obsolescent warship.