She was named in honour of the Battle of Sluys which occurred in 1340 during the Hundred Years' War, and which resulted in a decisive English victory over a French fleet.

Upon commission, Sluys joined the 5th Destroyer Flotilla, part of the Home Fleet, which was based in the UK.

In 1947, Sluys, along with her sister ship Cadiz, escorted the aircraft carrier Vengeance, which was flying the flag of the First Sea Lord, to Norway, where the small group made a variety of fly-the-flag visits to ports, as well as performing other duties.

[3][1] This resulted in the ship having a fully enclosed bridge and a revised anti-aircraft fit of four single 40mm Bofors guns and a quadruple Sea Cat missile system.

[4] In 1975-76, Artemiz underwent another refit, this time taking place at Cape Town, South Africa.