Currie, Arthur William (1875-1933)

Canadian soldier, the first Canadian officer to become a general. His success at commanding a Canadian brigade in the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915 led to his promotion to general and from 1917 he was commander of the Canadian Corps for the rest of World War I. He forced the Quéant Switch line and captured Cambrai in 1918.

Currie was born at Napperton, Ontario. He was knighted in 1917 and in 1920 became principal of McGill University, Montréal.