As time went by, Currie was rising very high in the rankings of the Militia. He was promoted to captain of the Number One Company on November 1st 1901. In May 1906, Currie was promoted to major, and was named second-in-command of the army. Not only did he go up in the Militia rankings, he also earned his badge from the Royal School of Artillery. After commanding the Number One Company for over seven years, he ended up leading them to victory in the Regiments Efficiency Shield. After many years serving in the Militia, Currie was finally put to the test on April 22nd 1915 when he was called to lead the Canadian Army to victory in the Second Battle of Ypres.
The Battle of Ypres officially started on April 22nd 1915, and that day was the day that changed the battle because the Germans released a deadly chemical that nobody had seen before. "It was a warm sunny day in the Ypres salient. Currie was at his report center late in the afternoon, when a violent bombardment broke out in the north, where two divisions of French colonial troops were holding line on the left of the Canadians. 'Soon,' he wrote in his diary, 'I saw a great many French soldiers, a few of whom were wounded, come running past the report center from the North crying that all was lost and the Germans are coming.' Many were choking and gasping for air, shouting 'Gaz,Gaz,'" (Dancocks, 46). Currie had just witnessed the first gas attack ever in history. His determination was clear because soon after he organized a meeting to find a resolution. It was then that he came up with one of his many great plans. Currie told the Canadian troops that next time the gas was released they were to rip their sleeves off, soak them in water then wrap it around their faces. This would prevent the gas from causing further casualties. General Arthur Currie led Canadians and their allies to successfully hold the front lines to force the Germans to retreat.
