Born in the town of Armagh, Ireland, on 13 April 1904, Vokes was the son of a British officer, Major Frederick Patrick Vokes, and Elizabeth Vokes. They came to Canada in 1910 and Vokes' father served as the engineering officer at the Royal Military College of Canada. The family lived in the Married Quarters at Ridout Row, RMC. Christopher Vokes' brother, Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Vokes, took a leading part in the assault on Dieppe in August 1942. In early 1944 he was sent to Italy as commanding officer of the 9th Armoured Regiment. On 31August 1944 he was seriously wounded in action and died in a field hospital on 4September.
Early military service
From 1921 to 1925 Vokes attended the Royal Military College of Canada and was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Engineers. He then attended McGill University from 1926 to 1927 where he received a Bachelor of Science degree and was a member of the Kappa Alpha Society. From 1934 to 1935 he attended Staff College, Camberley in England. In Depression-era Canada many military bases were improved by civilians working in relief camps under supervision of professional military officers, including Camp Dundurn. The original engineer drawings for the concrete rifle range butts were signed by Chris Vokes, in that capacity. Barrack blocks in Dundurn resemble similar buildings constructed at Camp Valcartier in the same time frame.
World War II
Starting in 1939, Vokes rapidly rose through the ranks of the Canadian General Staff. With the 1st Canadian Infantry Division, he served as Adjutant General, Assistant Quartermaster General, General Staff Officer, grade 1, and as Officer Commanding Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. He proved to be an outstanding operational officer and on 24June 1942 was promoted to Brigadier, in charge of the 2nd Infantry Brigade, which he commanded during the Allied invasion of Sicily. One historian lauded his performance: In 1943 he became the commander of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division and was promoted to the rank of major-general. He was the commander of the division during the Battle of Ortona, after which he was criticized for unimaginative tactics and frontal assaults. Montgomery ordered the 1st Canadian Infantry Division to attack along the coast towards Ortona early in December. During an attack on a ravine southwest of Ortona, Vokes continued to send battalion after battalion to attack the mine-fortified German defense for nine days. For this he became known as the "Butcher" among his men. An impatient Montgomery sent messages wondering why the attack took so long. At the same time, the Canadians became aware of the fact that they were fighting not only Panzer-Grenadiers, but also the 1st Parachute Division, whom they recognized by their characteristic helmets. On the 21 December the Canadians broke through, and German forces destroyed the old town: the Fallschirmjägers continued to hold the town ruins for over a week, deploying mines and booby-traps. After the battle Vokes broke out in tears due to his division's losses – 2,300 casualties, among them 500 dead, as well as many cases of war neuroses. On 1December 1944, he took over command of the 4th Canadian Armoured Division and fought in the Battle of the Hochwald.
In April 1945, the town of Friesoythe was attacked by the 4th Canadian Division, under General Vokes. Most of the town's 4,000 people moved to the surrounding countryside on about 11–12 April 1945. The town was defended by some 200 paratroopers of Battalion Raabe of the 7th German Parachute Division. These paratroopers repelled the first attack by the Lake Superior Regiment on 13 April. The Lake Superior Regiment suffered two dead and nineteen wounded. German casualties are not known. Vokes ordered the resumption of the attack the next day by The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Frederick E. Wigle. The attack went well, with the Argylls securing the town by 10:30 hours. However, at 08:30 a small number of German soldiers caught Wigle's tactical headquarters by surprise; resulting in the death of Wigle and several other soldiers. Vokes determined on an immediate reprisal. "A first-rate officer of mine, for whom I had a special regard and affection, and in whom I had a particular professional interest because of his talent for command, was killed. Not merely killed, it was reported to me, but sniped in the back". Vokes then announced his draconian decision. "I summoned my GSO1.. 'Mac,' I roared at him, 'I'm going to raze that goddam town. Tell 'em we're going to level the fucking place. Get the people the hell out of their houses first. Units and soldiers of the Argylls had spontaneously begun the arson of Friesoythe to revenge the death of their colonel, but after Vokes issued his direct order, the town was systematically set on fire with flamethrowers mounted on Wasp Carriers. The rubble was used to reinforce district roads for the division's tanks. According to German estimates, 85% to 90% of the town was destroyed, making it one of the most devastated towns in Germany at the time. Vokes said that he had "no feeling of remorse over the elimination of Friesoythe."
Later career
From June 1945 to May 1946 Vokes was the General Officer Commanding the Canadian Army Occupation Force in Europe. Returning to Canada, he commanded the Canadian Army's Central Command and then Western Command. He retired to Oakville, Ontario in 1959 and in 1985 published his memoirs, My Story. He died of cancer on 27 March 1985, aged 80.
