Laid down in 1915, wartime shortages and design modifications meant the ship was not completed until 1922, earning her the nickname "HMAS Longdelayed".

During the war, Adelaide was involved in successful efforts to secure the colony of New Caledonia for Free France, was present during the Japanese midget submarine attack on Sydney Harbour, and intercepted the German blockade runner Ramses.

[1][4] On 18 April 1924, following a brief refit, she joined the Royal Navy's Special Service Squadron for a flag-showing cruise outside Australian waters.

[1] The cruiser left for home on 10 January 1925, sailing via the Mediterranean, Ceylon, Singapore, and Thursday Island, and reached Sydney on 7 April.

[1][4] Arriving at Tulagi on 14 October, an officer and sixteen sailors were sent ashore to reinforce local law enforcement.

[1] During 1938 and 1939, the ship underwent a 60,000 pound modernisation, which included the conversion from both coal and oil as fuel to oil-only (requiring the removal of two boilers and an exhaust funnel), and alterations to the cruiser's armament.

[8] In September 1940, Adelaide carried the French official Henri Sautot from the New Hebrides (later Vanuatu) to Nouméa, New Caledonia.

[8]) After Sautot landed, on 25 September, Adelaide patrolled off the coast, to counter a perceived threat from the Vichy sloop Dumont d'Urville.

[7] During May to July 1942, Adelaide was docked at Garden Island for a refit, focused primarily on increasing the ship's anti-aircraft weapon outfit.

[5] In November 1942, Adelaide, along with the Dutch cruiser HNLMS Jacob van Heemskerk and the Australian corvettes Cessnock and Toowoomba, escorted a convoy across the southern Indian Ocean.

[5] Adelaide opened fire, hitting with the third salvo onwards, and continued shooting until Ramses sank eight minutes later, then recovered the Germans from the boats.

[5] Adelaide continued to operate from Fremantle until October 1944, apart from a refit at Williamstown Naval Dockyard from June to September 1943, where further armament alterations were made.

[13] The ship's bell came first to the Amazon Hotel in Exeter, England,[13] removed to the Spice Lounge restaurant in Exmouth.

[citation needed] In 2014, a shield removed from HMAS Adelaide during a refit in 1943 and dumped on a tip on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, was transported to Perth for refurbishment.