Up-to-date: How many veterans of WW1 are still alive?

[SS-Researcher]

Hello, just wondering. I have seen quite some threads on the older pages of this forum, but these were quite old. At least in one year many things can happen to a man aged 100+

So - are there any recent numbers of how many vets in which nations are still alive? Can anyone supply names?

Best wishes and thanks
Florian

[Peter H]

There is now only three Australian veterans still alive.

From the SMH,27th January 2005:

World War I veteran Gilbert Bennion died today, leaving alive just three Australians who served during the bloody conflict.

The death of 106-year-old Mr Bennion, of Tweed Heads in northern NSW, brought an end to "a chapter of NSW history", said NSW Premier Bob Carr.

"He was NSW's last living link to World War I," Mr Carr said in a statement announcing Mr Bennion's death in Tweed Heads.

"I offer my deepest condolences to the Bennion family and his relatives."

Mr Bennion was born in North Queensland and enlisted on August 1, 1918, at the age of 19 and 10 months.

The Commonwealth Department of Veteran Affairs said Mr Bennion was classified as a veteran, although he did not serve overseas.

There are now just three surviving World War I diggers in Australia. They are Victorians John Ross, 105, William Allan, 105, and Peter Casserly, 106, of Western Australia.

World War I veteran Marcel Caux died last August aged 105.

[Gwynn Compton]

AFAIK all New Zealand Great War soldiers are dead, the last to go being Bright Williams in 2003.

The last Great War soldier living in New Zealand is Bob Rudd, but he was British born and served with the British, and I'm not sure if he's still going.

Gwynn

[Peter H]

This from the 11 November 2004:

As of Armistice Day, 2004 there are still 4 members of the WWI German Army surviving.... at least three additional surviving members of the Kaiser's army have been identified besides Charles Kuentz.....they were identified as: Arno Wagner, Hermann Dörnemann and Rudolf Wiederanders.

However this figure is in dispute as the following German veterans have also been identified:

Robert Meier(b.1897)
Konrad Fuchs(b.1897)
Eduard Eis(b.1899)
Franz Brandmeier(b.1899)


Also the German veteran,Arno Wagner,died just after this,on the 22 December 2004.

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=56220

Rudolf Wiederanders, 106, 'the oldest man of the German capital of Berlin' also died on the 12 December 2004


This leaves around six German WW1 veterans still around,including Charles Kuentz(nearly 108),and Hermann Dörnemann(111).

Charles Kuentz:

http://www.spacewar.com/2004/040730042035.j7uwvbth.html


Hermann Dörnemann:

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,1219106,00.html

Dörnemann's combatant status hasn't been verified though--he may have remained in the Ruhr during the war in 'esssential services'.

[Wm. Harris]

Canada's oldest WW1 veteran, Lionel Gionet, died on April 1, 2005. He enlisted in 1916 at age 20, but according to his obituary in the newspaper, was never very forthcoming with his war experiences.

There are now only five Canadian Great War veterans left living.

Bill H.

[Peter H]

Hermann Dörnemann passed away on the 2nd March 2005.

Jan Rzepa passed away on the 23rd March 2005 at 106.A Pole,Rzepa served in the German Army 1917-18(the RIR 12,Reserve Brandenburg 12th Grenadiers,5. Reserve Division),wounded at Verdun 1917,and was also the last Polish veteran of the Wielkopolskie Uprising 1919.

http://www.tygodniknowy.pl/archiwum/numer/39.pix


Current estimates of living WW1 veterans are as follows:

USA--55

France--12

Britain--15

Australia--3

Germany--4

Canada--5

Italy(homeland)--22

Italy(living overseas)--6

Austria-Hungary--1

Poland--4

Turkey--3

[Peter H]

French veterans,estimate March 2005:

Maurice Flocquet 110,b. 25/12/1894
Claude-Marie Boucaud 109,b. 12/8/1895
Léon Weil 108,b. 16/7/1896
Alexis Tendil 108,b. 12/8/1896
Charles Kuentz 107,b. 18/2/1897
René Marie Martial Moreau 107,b. 8/9/1897
Lazarre Ponticelli 107,b. 7/12/1897
Louis Pannetier 107,b. 2/2/1898
Andre Debry 106,b. 15/06/1898
Ferdinand Gilson 106,b. 10/10/1898
Jean Grenier 106, b. 11/11/1898
Léon Navarre 105,b. 2/08/1899

Note Kunentz served in the German Army,but is classified as a French citizen(from Alsace).

Ponticelli,Italian born,living in Paris,had the distinction of serving in both the French and italian armies in WW1.

[CMF]

Last British Cavalryman of WWI; the last man to draw a sword during a British cavalry charge. Albert "Smiler" Marshall, age 108.

See:

http://www.epsomguardian.co.uk/news/new ... rthday.php

http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0%2C385 ... %2C00.html

http://news.mod.uk/news/press/news_head ... em_id=1852

[Frontkampfer]

There must be a few Russians, considering the many millions who were involved.

[EM]

Hi all of you,
Charles Kuentz, born in Alsace, and who served in the German Army (then with the French Army in WW2) died a few days ago.
Best regards
Eric

[dragos03]

I met an old man last year in a remote village who fought in the Romanian army in both World Wars.

[Major Major]

The state of Kentucky has one WWI veteran left alive: my wife and I met him last month. (We are family; his mother's second husband was a relative of mine and his aunt was the grandmother of her aunt's husband.)

[Andrej]

Hi guys!

Anyone knows who are these Italian Veterans?


Reguards

Andrea

[Peter H]

Thanks to Giovanni Alunni,see here:

http://www.victoriacross.net/forum_topi ... 30&tid=677

Updated list of surviving WW1 veterans in Italy:

1 ORELLI Carlo 23-dec-1894 (died 22 Jan 2005)
2 ALFANO Carmine 14-sep-1896(died 4 Feb 2005)
3 RAVA Luigi 09-sep-1897
4 ROFFINELLA Secondo 03-may-1898
5 SARROCCO Italo 11-may-1898
6 BONOMINI Paolo 22-may-1898
7 CONSIGLI Avellino 05-jul-1898
8 BORRONI Delfino 23-aug-1898
9 OSSINO Cirino 04-sep-1898
10 CHIARELLO Francesco D. 05-nov-1898
11 DI NARDO Antonio 10-nov-1898
12 AGAZZI Alberto 30-jan-1899
13 BARBERO Luigi 12-apr-1899(died 8 Feb 2005)
14 MONNI Marino 02-may-1899
15 COSTANZO Pasquale 21-may-1899
16 PAOLONI Romolo 30-may-1899
17 BARNI Arnaldo 02-jun-1899
18 CAPONI Florio 28-jul-1899(died 5 Dec 2004)
19 ZEMA Carmelo 17-sep-1899
20 DI SANTO Benedetto 26-sep-1899(died 5 March 2005)
21 SARAVALLE Ido G. 16-nov-1899
22 CAMILLO Angelo M. 18-nov-1899
23 DE CRISTOFARO Domenico 21-nov-1899
24 FURONI Mario 23-nov-1899
25 CARTA Giovanni A. 28-dec-1899
26 AMBULO Santo 25-aug-1900(died 6 Feb 2005)
27 MELE Giovanni 07-sep-1900(died 19 Dec 2004)
28 DENARO Giuseppe 13-oct-1900

There is also one Italian veteran of the KuK:

Teofilo GILLARDUZZI, born in 1899 and now living in Cortina D'Ampezzo. He is in good conditions and has been recently interviewed for a book in preparation which will collect stories and experiences of the last Italian WWI veterans.

And:

I finally obtained from the Ministry of Treasury an official list of WWI veterans.

In comparison with the list I have made public to this group on 29 december and relative updating, there are 2 other veterans, both living in province of Nuoro, Sardinia:

Luca BOEDDU, born 18 march 1898
Francesco SINI, born 29 july 1899

In addition, 5 WWI are reported as living abroad, but in these cases the information are not updated to last days. They are:

Vincenzo TARQUINIO, born 9 january 1899, living in Flushing, New York, USA

Giustino TUVERI, birth date not known, living in Saint Tropez, France

Giuseppe DI ROCCO, born 7 february 1899, living in Philadelphia, USA

Evaristo DAL MASO, born 9 august 1899, living in Sao Paulo, Brazil

and finally

Lazzaro PONTICELLI, born 7 december 1897, living in Kremlin Biatre, Paris, France, who is also in the French list of veterans.

[Andrej]

thanks