Claude Stanley Choules, last World War I combat veteran, dies at 110
Participants in uniform stand near the cenotaph following the Remembrance Day service in Sydney, Australia, on November 11, 2010. Remembrance Day is held each year to commemorate the signing of the Armistice which formally ended World War I at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918.
The world's last known World War I combat veteran, Claude Stanley Choules, died Thursday at the age of 110.
Choules, known as Chuckles, was born in Pershore, Worcestershire. He tried to enlist in the British Army when the war broke out so he could fight alongside his brothers, but he was too young to enlist, BBC reports. Instead, he later became a Royal Navy rating and finally saw action in the North Sea at age 17.
He moved to Australia in the 1920s and transferred to the Royal Australian Navy. He served in the Australian military until 1956.
He was also the last living combat veteran to have served in both world wars.
Choules was beloved for his wry sense of humor and humble nature, AP reports. He often told people the secret to living a long life was to "keep breathing."
Florence Green, who is 110 and served the Women's Royal Air Force, is the world's last known surviving service member of WWI.
Choules is survived by three children and 11 grandchildren. His wife of eight decades died three years ago.
Here is a photograph of him celebrating his birthday two years ago.
Choules died at a Perth nursing home.
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