The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) was assigned responsibility for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and controlling sea space in the western North Atlantic.

The St Laurent class were built to an operational requirement much like that which produced the British Type 12, and were powered by the same machinery plant.

They were built to counter nuclear, biological and chemical attack conditions, which led to a design with a rounded hull, a continuous main deck, and the addition of a pre-wetting system to wash away contaminants.

[6] The St. Laurent class was fitted with twin 3-inch (76 mm)/L50 caliber guns in two mounts for engaging both surface and air targets.

As with the British Type 12 design, the provision for long-range homing torpedoes (in this case BIDDER [Mk 20E] or the US Mark 35 were included.

[6] Following successful trials aboard the frigate Buckingham and sister ship Ottawa, plans to convert the St. Laurent class took shape.

The ship was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 5 October 1957 at Halifax and initially carried the hull identification DDE 230 as a destroyer escort.

[15] In January 1958, the destroyer escort departed Esquimalt, British Columbia for a training cruise around the Pacific, returning in April.

[16] On 25 September 1964 the ship began her conversion to a helicopter carrying destroyer (DDH) at Victoria Machinery Depot.

The vessel was selected by the Canadian Forces for the Destroyer Life Extension (DELEX) program and completed this refit on 28 November 1980.

[14] On 8 February 1991, two divers from Margaree drowned when conducting an inspection of the seawater intake pipes of the American frigate USS Pharris while in port at Funchal, Portugal, after becoming trapped.

[20] In August 1991, the ship took part in the re-enactment at Argentia of the signing of the Atlantic Charter, a pivotal policy of the Second World War.