She was to be chosen in 1923, along with her sisters Danae, Dauntless, Dragon and Dunedin, for the Empire Cruise of the Special Service Squadron, representing the most modern and most powerful cruisers of the Royal Navy, as escorts to the battlecruisers Hood and Repulse.

During the Carib War, Delhi's guns were called to deter the actions of local insurgents on Dominica and landed a detachment of Royal Marines.

Based at Malta at this time, with the Spanish Civil War raging, Delhi operated off Spain, picking up refugees from Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona and Valencia, under the command of Captain Farquhar Smith RAN.

On the night of the sinking of HMS Royal Oak, Delhi had just departed for a periodic sweep of the North Sea to enforce the blockade of Germany.

Delhi's captain decided that boarding to attempt to salvage the ship was impractical due to the sea state, and instead sank Mecklenburg with gunfire.

However, with Newcastle and Delhi shadowing and the rapid approach of heavy units of the Home Fleet, Admiral Marschall withdrew his battleships into inclement weather, slipping his pursuers and retreating to Wilhelmshaven.

Delhi and her sister ship Dragon participated in Operation Menace, the Battle of Dakar, and then continued in the trade protection role in the South Atlantic.

On 20 November 1942 Delhi was damaged by enemy action in Algiers Bay when her stern was blown open by a bomb dropped by Italian aircraft.

Continuing to serve through the rest of the war, Delhi took part in Operation Dragoon, a follow-up to D-Day in the South of France to utilise Free French troops and to open new supply routes to Allied forces in Europe.