Ethelbert "Curley" Christian (likely 15 April 1882 – 15 March 1954) was a Canadian

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

veteran and activist. He has been described as "one of Canada's best known black soldiers" from that war.World War 1 Encyclopedia: Christian, Curley
. ''The Star'', 1 August 2014. Details of Christian's early years are contradictory: he was most likely born in

Homestead, Pennsylvania Homestead is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, along the Monongahela River southeast of downtown Pittsburgh. The borough is known for the Homestead strike of 1892, an important event in the history of labor relation ...

, in 1882, but may have been born in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

in 1884. He was raised Baptist and had three siblings.Thomas Smith (4 March 2015).
Curley Christian
. ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. After leaving school at the age of 15 he travelled extensively and worked a number of odd jobs before settling in Canada. He enlisted in the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF; French: ''Corps expéditionnaire canadien'') was the expeditionary warfare, expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed on August 15, 1914, following United Kingdom declarat ...

in 1915 and was eventually assigned to the 78th Battalion, CEF. During the

Battle of Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

, Christian was involved in supply transport. A shell hit a cargo drop point and he was trapped under debris for two days. An initial rescue failed when the stretcher-bearers were killed by artillery. Christian survived and was taken to a French military hospital. Because of the seriousness of his condition, he was evacuated to the Bethnal Green Military Hospital in London for treatment. His limbs were gangrenous and all four required amputation; Christian became the only quadruple amputee to survive from this war. Christian returned to Canada aboard HMHS ''Llandovery Castle'' in September 1917. He received prosthetic limbs in Toronto. During his rehabilitation, he met volunteer aide Cleopatra "Cleo" McPherson, whom he married on 11 December 1920. The couple had one son, Douglas, who served in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as a sailor. Christian's extensive medical needs required full-time caregiving. His wife petitioned for assistance from the federal government, leading to the establishment of the Attendance Allowance. This program offers disabled veterans funding to pay for caregiving needs. Christian designed a prosthesis for writing to allow him to correspond with other veterans; his correspondents included the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

's first quadruple amputee, US Army Private Robert Smith. He "became a sort of public figure, championing initiatives for the care of war amputees and disabled". In July 1936 Christian was one of 6200 veterans invited to the dedication of the

Canadian National Vimy Memorial The Canadian National Vimy Memorial is a war memorial site in France dedicated to the memory of Canadian Expeditionary Force members killed during the Military history of Canada during World War I, First World War. It also serves as the place o ...

. During this visit he introduced King

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January ...

to a group of fellow disabled veterans; this was subject to some media scrutiny as a potential breach of royal etiquette. The same year, he became a

naturalized Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...

citizen of Canada. He also met King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

and

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen B ...

when they visited Toronto in 1939. Christian is buried in Prospect Cemetery in Toronto. He is memorialized on the Mural of Honour at

The Military Museums The Military Museums is a reorganization of the former Museum of the Regiments in Calgary, Alberta, announced by Sophie, Countess of Wessex, on June 3, 2006. The new museum comprises the former Museum of the Regiments as well as the relocated N ...

. He may have been the inspiration for the 1938 novel ''

Johnny Got His Gun ''Johnny Got His Gun'' is an anti-war novel written in 1938 by American novelist Dalton Trumbo and published in September 1939 by J. B. Lippincott. The novel won one of the early National Book Awards: the Most Original Book of 1939. A 1971 f ...

'' and its subsequent adaptations.Shane Emplaincourt (2020).
''Johnny Got His Gun'' and 'One': remembering basket case Joe Bonham
. ''War, Literature & the Arts: an international journal of the humanities'' 32.

References

External links

Canadian Great War Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christian, Curley 1882 births 1954 deaths Canadian military personnel of World War I Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers Quadruple amputees Burials at Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto Black Canadian activists 20th-century Canadian military personnel Canadian amputees Winnipeg Grenadiers Winnipeg Grenadiers soldiers American emigrants to Canada Canadian people of African-American descent Naturalized citizens of Canada