Robert Moncel Robert William Moncel , ( April 9 , 1917 – December 10 , 2007 ) was a Lieutenant - General of the Canadian Army and former Vice Chief of the Defence Staff . He was the youngest general officer in the Canadian Army when promoted to Brigadier General on August 17 , 1944 , at the age of 27 . Early life . Born in Montreal , Quebec , he was educated at Selwyn House School , Bishop ' s College School and McGill University . He served as an officer with the Victoria Rifles of Canada . World War II . When World War II broke out , Moncel went to Europe with the Royal Canadian Regiment ( RCR ) . In May 1940 , he was ordered along with the RCR to France to reinforce the British Expeditionary Force facing the German " blitzkrieg " . Soon however , Lieutenant Moncel , who commanded a Bren gun carrier platoon , was ordered to retreat to the French coast . When being evacuated , he was ordered to destroy his equipment to save it from German hands , but Moncel , with his cool judgement , managed to evacuate the Bren Gun carriers . This act caught the eyes of his superiors and he was promoted to Captain . In 1941 , he finished first on a staff course under the command of Guy Simonds , and was promoted to major in 1942 , and lieutenant - colonel in January 1943 . Moncel became the commanding officer of 18th Armoured Car Regiment ( 12th Manitoba Dragoons ) . Later , Moncel was posted as the General Staff Officer 1 of the II Canadian Corps , where he reorganized its general staff . Here , he was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire ( OBE ) and a chevalier of the Legion d ' honneur ( receiving the Croix de guerre with Palme in the process ) . In August , 1944 , he was promoted to brigadier general , the youngest ever Canadian to achieve that rank . In the Normandy Campaign , he was the commanding officer of the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade until the end of the war in 1945 . During this , Moncel won the Distinguished Service Order ( DSO ) for his leadership of Tiger Group during the battle of Hochwald Forest , when the II Canadian Corps launched Operation Blockbuster Post - War . After the war , in 1946 , he was appointed Director of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps . From 1947 to 1949 , he served as Director of Military Training , Army Headquarters in Ottawa . From 1949 to 1950 , he attended the National War College in Washington , DC . From 1951 to 1953 , he was the Senior Canadian Army Liaison Officer to the United Kingdom . From 1954 to 1956 , he was the Deputy Chief of General Staff . From 1957 to 1958 , he was the Senior Canadian Military Officer , International Control Commission in Indochina . From 1957 to 1960 , he was appointed Commander , 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade at Camp Gagetown . From 1960 to 1963 , he served as Quartermaster General of the Canadian Army . From 1963 to 1964 , he was the Commander - in - Chief , Eastern Command . He finally served as Vice Chief of the Defence Staff 1965 to 1966 . He retired in 1966 prior to unification of the armed services , which resulted in the formation of the Canadian Forces . In 1967 , he was appointed a civilian co - ordinator for visits of heads of state to Canada during the Canadian Centennial year . In 1967 , Lieutenant - General Moncel was invested as an Officer of the Order of Canada . He died at the Camp Hill Veterans ' Memorial Building in Halifax , Nova Scotia , on December 10 , 2007 , in his 91st year .