Arthur Currie
Distinguished Service Medal (United States) | |
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Other work | Established Khaki University, President & Vice-Chancellor of McGill University |
Currie began his military career in 1897 as a part-time soldier in the Canadian militia while making his living as a teacher and later as an insurance salesman and real estate speculator. Currie rose quickly through the ranks: commissioned as an officer in 1900, promoted to captain in 1901, then major in 1906 and became an artillery regimental commander in 1909. In 1913 Currie accepted the command of the newly created 50th Regiment Gordon Highlanders of Canada. Finding himself in debt following a real estate crash in Victoria, Currie embezzled ten thousand dollars earmarked for regimental uniforms into his personal accounts to pay off his debts. When the
Early life
Arthur Currie was born on 5 December 1875 to William Garner Curry and Jane Patterson on their farm near the hamlet of
Currie was educated in local common schools and at the
Early military career
On 6 May 1897 Currie joined the Canadian Militia as a part-time gunner for the 5th (British Columbia) Field Artillery Regiment. Currie achieved the rank of corporal in 1900 and was soon after offered an officer's commission, which would give him a much higher status in the social circles of Victoria.[2] A military commission was however an expensive proposition. Officers were expected to provide their own set of tailored uniforms and to donate their pay to the officer's mess.[5] Currie was discouraged by his financial prospects as a teacher;[3] and consequently, in February 1900, he left teaching and took a position as an insurance salesman with Matson & Coles, a local insurance firm.[6][3][7] On 14 August 1901 Currie married Lucy Chaworth-Musters, who had been raised by Currie's aunt and uncle in British Columbia after being abandoned by her British military officer father following the death of her mother in childbirth.[8][9]
Currie took on his role as militia officer seriously.
In addition to his military career, Currie continued to be active in business. He was appointed head of the Matson Insurance Firm in 1904 when Sam Matson, who had many business interests beyond his insurance firm, decided to concentrate his energy on publishing the
Following the
Currie was desperate to avoid personal bankruptcy, which would have resulted in a loss in social standing and forced him to resign his commission.[19] On 31 July 1914, Currie received CA$10,833.34 (equivalent to $283,653 in 2023) from the Militia Department with which to purchase new uniforms.[19] Instead of using the funds to pay contractor Moore, Taggart and Co for the regimental uniforms, Currie embezzled the funds to pay off his personal debts.[19] The 50th Regiment's honorary colonel, William Coy, had promised to underwrite the regiment with $35,000, and Currie planned to use the funds to pay the uniform contractor.[20][21] Unfortunately for Currie, Coy did not follow through with his financial commitment to the regiment, leaving Currie's accounting sleight-of-hand potentially exposed.[22]
When
World War I
Brigade commander
The Canadian 1st Division spent the winter of 1914–15 training in England, and were sent to France in February 1915. After a period of indoctrination in the realities of trench warfare, they took control of a section of trench in the
Currie's leadership during the Second Battle of Ypres was a source of dispute by British historian James Edward Edmonds, who argued that Currie and his 2nd Canadian Brigade performed poorly at Ypres. Currie, supported by the Canadian official historian Colonel Archer Fortescue Duguid, waged a vigorous defense, charging that Edmonds was seeking to diminish the Canadian contribution to the Second Battle of Ypres.[27] Edmonds wrongly accused Currie of ordering his men to retreat on 24 April 1915 because of the chaos caused by the chlorine gas and fierce attacks of the German infantry; Currie and Duguid said it was Brigadier-General Richard Turner, commanding the 3rd Canadian Brigade on Currie's left, who had ordered a retreat without orders, leaving Currie with an exposed left flank.[28] Canadian historian Timothy Travers also argued that Edmonds was very unfair to Currie since the 1st Canadian Division occupied a position that would have been difficult to defend even under normal conditions, without considering the effects of the first mass use of poison gas and the complete withdrawal of French forces on their left flank.[29] Although acknowledging that Currie had made mistakes, Travers maintained that unlike the Algerians who fled, Currie's 2nd Brigade held its ground at Ypres, consequently losing 46% of its total strength either killed or wounded over two days of fighting.[29]
Following the battle, Currie was promoted to
Division commander
Although the Canadians did not take part in the infamous Anglo-French offensive on the Somme on 1 July 1916, they did eventually move into the line in the fall to aid the slow crawl forward. Currie proved himself to be the master of the set-piece assault, designed to take limited objectives and then hold on in the face of inevitable German counterattacks. It was at this time that Currie lost favour with former friends Sam and Garnet Hughes. Sam Hughes wanted Garnet promoted to command of a division, but Currie, having seen Garnet in action at the Second Battle of Ypres, believed Garnet to be an incompetent officer, and refused. Currie's reputation was on the rise, and Hughes did not have the necessary leverage to force Currie to comply.
By late 1916, the four Canadian divisions were in France, gathered together as the Canadian Corps under the command of Sir
Currie, in command of the 1st Canadian Division, was responsible for the broad southern sector of the Canadian Corps advance and expected to make the greatest advance in terms of distance. The attack was to begin at 5:30 am on Easter Monday, 9 April 1917. By the end of the first day, the 1st Canadian Division had captured all of its first line objectives and the left half of its second line.[34] The next morning by 9:30 am, fresh troops had leap-frogged existing battalions to advance to the third objective line.[35] To permit the troops time to consolidate the third line, the advance halted and the barrage remained stationary for ninety minutes while machine guns were brought forward.[36] Shortly before 1:00 pm, the advance recommenced and, by 2:00 pm, the 1st Canadian Division secured their final objective.[37]
Canadian Corps commander
When Byng was promoted to
The British
The Canadian Corps was then transferred from Lens to Ypres to take part in the
End of the war
By early 1918 the Canadian Corps was in a state of uncertainty. The Canadian government wanted to expand the Canadian Corps by forming a 5th Division but the BEF wanted the Canadian Corps reorganized to mirror British divisions. British command also intended to integrate American battalions into the depleted corps, which Currie predicted would be a disaster and would destroy the homogeneous structure of the corps.[48] Currie was opposed to all those measures since he did not view them as being in the best interests of the corps.[49] Currie, with the aid of the Minister of Overseas Military Forces, prevailed against the structural changes. The Canadian Corps retained its original Canadian organizational structure and fought as a homogeneous formation for the entire Hundred Days Offensive.[50]
On 21 March 1918 the Germans launched a major
In December 1918, Currie established the Canadian War Narrative Section to maintain a level of control as to how the Canadian contribution to the Hundred Days Offensive would be documented in print and presented to the public.[55] Tim Cook argues that the Canadian War Narrative Section was an important step in not only recording and presenting the achievements of the Canadian Corps but also in restoring Currie's damaged reputation, which had been battered by Sam Hughes and his supporters in Parliament.[55] Hughes frequently referred to Currie as a butcher.
Post-war
Currie and family had moved to England in 1915. They returned to Canada following the war, arriving in Halifax on 17 August 1919.
McGill University
Currie had only a high school diploma, but on the recommendation of McGill's acting principal, Frank Dawson Adams, Currie was selected as principal and vice-chancellor of McGill University on the basis of his "exceptional powers of organization and administration" and his "capacity for inspiration and leadership" rather than academic prowess.[60] Within months of Currie's appointment, he led a fund-raising campaign to revive the university, travelling from coast to coast in a personal appeal for support;[61] the fundraising campaign raised CA$6.5 million, more than the original goal of CA$5 million.[62] Currie made a name for himself as a premier university administrator. From 1925 to 1927 he served as president of the National Conference of Canadian Universities and was elected as a trustee of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in 1927.[63] Currie was also instrumental in saving the School for Graduate Nurses at Royal Victoria College from closure in the early 1930s.[64] During Currie's time as McGill's Principal the university established the Faculty of Music, the School for Graduate Nurses, and the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, and doubled its income despite the difficulties brought on by the Great Depression.[65][66] Currie was also President of the Last Post Fund from 1924 to 1932.[67]
Libel suit
In June 1927, the city of Mons erected a plaque commemorating its liberation by the Canadian Corps nine years earlier. But, when this event was reported in Canadian newspapers, Currie's enemies took the opportunity to again question the necessity of the final day of fighting. A front-page editorial published on 13 June 1927 by the Hughes-friendly Port Hope Evening Guide argued that Currie was either negligent or deliberate in wasting the lives of soldiers under his command in taking Mons on the final day of the war.[68][69][70] The newspaper had only a small local circulation, and Currie's friends advised him against pursuing the matter.[70] However, Currie was unwilling to let the matter go,[70] and sued the newspaper for libel, seeking $50,000 ($863,000 today) in damages.[71] The trial in April 1928 was front-page news across Canada.[72] On the stand, Currie testified that he had been under orders from Allied Supreme Commander Ferdinand Foch to pursue German forces; to do otherwise would have been treason.[73] Many of Currie's senior officers testified that Currie had urged them to advance with caution, avoiding unnecessary casualties.[74] At the end of the trial, the jury returned a verdict after four hours, finding the newspaper guilty of libel but awarding Currie only $500 ($8,600 today) in damages, plus costs.[75][76]
Although Currie was awarded only a small portion of the value sought, newspapers across Canada referred to the result as a victory for him.
Death
Currie suffered another stroke on 5 November 1933 and died on 30 November at the age of 57 at
Currie was survived by his wife, Lucy, and a son and daughter. Lucy was left in some financial difficulty following her husband's death when McGill decided it could not afford to continue paying her a portion of his salary. In 1935 the Canadian government finally recognized his service to Canada by granting $50,000 to his estate.
Honours and tribute
Currie was named a
Many tributes have been made to Currie. In 1919
Legacy
Canadian historians, including
References
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- ^ a b "Obituary of General Sir Arthur Currie, The (London) Times". 1 December 1933. Archived from the original on 26 May 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Sharpe 2009, p. 16.
- ^ a b c Bosher 2012, p. 221.
- ^ a b c d Brown & Morton 1979, p. 48.
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- ^ a b c Brown & Morton 1979, p. 47.
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- ^ a b Bosher 2012, p. 222.
- ^ a b Urquhart 1950, p. 20.
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- ^ Fedunkiw 2005, pp. 93, 104.
- ^ Annual Report – Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1928, p. 5
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- ^ Caya, Marcel (1985), Guide to Archival Resources at McGill University: The archival records of McGill University, McGill University, p. 9
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- ^ "SIR GENERAL ARTHUR CURRIE (1875–1933): Celebrated WWI Figure was LPF's fifth National President" (PDF), THE BUGLER: A Quarterly Newsletter from the Last Post Fund, vol. 5, no. 4, Last Post Fund, October 2014, archived from the original (PDF) on 7 November 2017, retrieved 6 November 2017
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External links
- Arthur Currie at The Canadian Encyclopedia
- First World War.com
- Sir Arthur Currie Collection, McGill University Archives. A selection of digitized records reflecting Sir Arthur Currie's tenure as Principal of McGill University from 1920 to 1933.
- Canada's 25 Most Renowned Military Leaders Archived 11 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine