[5] The name "frigate" was suggested by Vice-Admiral Percy Nelles of the Royal Canadian Navy and was adopted later that year.

[5] 15 Canadian frigates were initially fitted with a single 4-inch gun forward, but with the exception of HMCS Valleyfield, all were eventually upgraded to the double mount.

[6] For underwater targets, the River-class frigate was equipped with a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar, depth charge rails aft, and four side-mounted throwers.

[5] River-class frigates were the first Royal Canadian Navy warships to carry the 147B Sword horizontal fan echo sonar transmitter in addition to the irregular ASDIC.

[5][6] The design was too big for the shipyards on the Great Lakes, so all the frigates built in Canada were constructed in dockyards along the west coast or along the St. Lawrence River.

[3][4] She returned to Canada in November 1944 for tropicalisation refit, which began in December at Liverpool, Nova Scotia, in preparation for service in the Pacific Ocean.

The refit was completed in July 1945, the first to do so, and Swansea was assessing the results in the Caribbean Sea when news of the surrender of Japan broke.

In August–September 1949, Swansea sailed north to Baffin Island, making several port visits including Godthaab, capital city of Greenland.

[7] On 15 September, while sailing south along the coast of Labrador, Swansea was ordered to the aid of the stricken supply vessel Malahat near Mansel Island in Hudson Bay.

Arriving on 18 September, Swansea took Malahat under tow and brought the supply vessel to Goose Bay, Newfoundland, nearly 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km; 1,400 mi).

[9] In January 1952, the frigate made a three-week training cruise to the Caribbean Sea, visiting Nassau, Bahamas, and Groton, Connecticut.