The oldest surviving first world war veteran Henry Allingham, now the world's oldest man, celebrates his 113th birthday with his great-great grandson Erik Carlson. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA
Posted on 06/19/2009 3:23:16 PM PDT by Daffynition
At the age of 113 Henry Allingham, the oldest surviving veteran of the first world war, has officially been proclaimed the oldest man alive by Guinness World Records, after the death today of Tomoji Tanabe in Japan.
His friend Denis Goodwin, a founder of the First World War Veterans Association, who has escorted Allingham to innumerable parades, memorial services and presentations, said: "It's .......[snip]
At St Dunstan's home for blind ex-service personnel, near Brighton, where Allingham has lived since he finally gave up his Eastbourne flat at the age of 110, chief executive Robert Leader sent sympathy to the family of Tanabe, who died in his sleep, also aged 113. He added: "We are proud to be caring for such a remarkable man. He has just celebrated his 113th birthday, and knowing Henry as I do, he will take the news in his stride."
[snip]....... He never spoke of his wartime experiences for most of the 20th century until he was asked to give some talks to school children.
Allingham is the last survivor of the Battle of Jutland, the last surviving founding member of the Royal Air Force, the last survivor of the Royal Naval Air Service, and the oldest ever surviving member of any of the British armed forces.
As an engineer on a Sopwith Schneider seaplane, he recalls shells bouncing across the waves in the Battle of Jutland, and he was behind the lines in training and support units at the Western Front in 1917.
Despite an apparently blameless life, he attributes his longevity to "cigarettes, whisky and wild, wild women – and a sense of humour". On his 110th birthday, when he was already the oldest man in Britain, his presents included enough whisky to swim in, including a bottle personally presented by Gordon Brown.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
The oldest surviving first world war veteran Henry Allingham, now the world's oldest man, celebrates his 113th birthday with his great-great grandson Erik Carlson. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA
That’s some celebratin’
Has anyone else noticed that all these "oldest man" and "oldest woman" types keep mysteriously dying shortly after earning their title? Very suspicious if you ask me.
I can handle that life-style.
/johnny
My Grandfather, Canadian Army, booted after being gassed in 1915, spent his last day with my kids. It was an Honor to know him and my Great Uncle, wounded at Blois.
My Grandfather was also Canadian Army- was at some of the real hell-spots on the Western Front. I asked him about it a lot when I was a youngster. He gave me a compelling and unvarnished account of what he saw. I was spellbound- because I felt like I was seeing history through his eyes.
His narrative was never full of heroics- it was all about doing your best in a world of gritty, terrifying misery. Adding to that was the fact that he was an astute observer, and had remarkable recall of detail at his then-advanced age.
I miss him terribly.
May God bless you, FWR.
I’m charmed ... I would love to meet him and shake his hand.
I’ll bet his longevity had a lot to do with a strong work ethic ............seldom seen today.
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Bravo. It's amazing to think that the longevity record (oldest ever, documented) is 122, with some claims as high as 128 (along with some balderdash claims of 150 or more, up to at least 250).Henry Allingham, the oldest surviving veteran of the first world war, has officially been proclaimed the oldest man alive by Guinness World Records, after the death today of Tomoji Tanabe in Japan.Just adding to the catalog, not sending a general distribution. |
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HEHEHE ......perfect!
[Bless the olde soldier’s heart]
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