The destroyer was launched on 18 March 1944 at William Denny & Brothers shipyard in Dumbarton, Scotland and commissioned on 13 October 1944.

The Z-class were War Emergency Programme destroyers, intended for general duties, including use as anti-submarine escort, and were to be suitable for mass-production.

615 tons of oil were carried, giving a range of 4,675 nautical miles (5,380 mi; 8,658 km) at 20 knots (23 mph; 37 km/h).

[5] The eight destroyers of the Z-class were ordered in February 1942,[a] The ship that was to become Zebra was laid down at William Denny and Brothers's Dumbarton shipyard on 14 May 1942 as Wakeful.

[17] After commissioning, Zebra underwent a period of working up before joining the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Home Fleet based at Scapa Flow.

[19][20] Zebra was meant to form part of the escort for the next outbound Arctic convoy, JW 64, but defects forced her to turn back and put into the Faroe Islands.

[14] As the war reached its end Zebra was deployed with the Home Fleet to support operations to re-occupy countries previously under German occupation, and this included guardship duties.