Lieutenant General Arthur William Currie was the first Canadian-appointed commander of the Canadian Corps during WWI. He began the war with no professional military experience but several years of service in the Canadian Militia. Prior to the outbreak of war, Currie served as a militia officer in British Columbia. As a prominent militiaman, Currie would of course play an important role in the war effort. Sam Hughes initially suggested that he should assume the position of commanding officer of Military District No.11 (British Columbia), where he would be responsible for recruitment and for the training of local units until they were send to centralized camp and then to Europe. Currie was going to take the post but his friends thought he was too good of a soldier to languish as an administrator in Canada.
When Currie was 53 years old, he returned to Montreal as a hero. However, shortly after he returned, he had a stroke but survived. He again suffered a stroke on November 5th, 1933, and he died on the 30th in the Royal Victoria Hospital from bronchial complications brought on by pneumonia. His civilian and military funeral was held in Montreal on December 5th, 1933. An estimated 250,000 watched the funeral procession, and tens of thousands more listened to as account of it on a coast-to-coast radio broadcast.
When Currie was 53 years old, he returned to Montreal as a hero. However, shortly after he returned, he had a stroke but survived. He again suffered a stroke on November 5th, 1933, and he died on the 30th in the Royal Victoria Hospital from bronchial complications brought on by pneumonia. His civilian and military funeral was held in Montreal on December 5th, 1933. An estimated 250,000 watched the funeral procession, and tens of thousands more listened to as account of it on a coast-to-coast radio broadcast.