The D'Iberville-class ships were a development of earlier torpedo cruisers, with the chief improvement being a significantly higher speed.

She was present for the Battle of Penang in October 1914, where the German light cruiser SMS Emden raided the port, sank the Russian protected cruiser Zhemchug, and fled before D'Iberville or the other warships in the harbor could effectively engage the German vessel.

The ship's propulsion system consisted of a pair of quadruple-expansion steam engines driving two screw propellers.

[6] She served with the Mediterranean Squadron in 1895, and she took part in the fleet maneuvers that year, which began on 1 July and concluded on the 27th.

[7] As a torpedo vessel, D'Iberville proved to be a disappointment, in part due to severe rolling in heavy seas, and by mid-1896, she had had all of her tubes removed and additional Hotchkiss guns were installed in their places.

At that time, the unit consisted of the armored cruisers Dupleix and Kléber, three destroyers, six torpedo boats, and four submarines, along with a number of smaller vessels.

[15] At the start of World War I in August 1914, D'Iberville was stationed in the Naval Division of the Far East, along with the armored cruisers Montcalm and Dupleix and the destroyers Fronde, Pistolet, and Mousquet.

D'Iberville and the destroyers were initially sent to patrol the Strait of Malacca while the armored cruisers were sent north to join the search for the German East Asia Squadron.

[17] On 12 October, the British light cruiser HMS Yarmouth seized the Greek-flagged merchant vessel SS Pontoporos, which had been captured for use as a collier by the German light cruiser SMS Emden, which had been detached from the East Asia Squadron.

[18][19] D'Iberville and the three destroyers were present in Penang on the night of 27–28 October 1914 along with the Russian protected cruiser Zhemchug, when Emden entered the harbor.

The French destroyers were suffering from boiler problems and none had steam up to get underway when Emden arrived, while D'Iberville had been undergoing repairs to her engines and was similarly immobilized.

[20] D'Iberville's gunners fired wildly with the ship's light guns in the darkness and failed to score any hits during the brief action.