TOPIC:

Forum members
The other day I was checking in Will Bennett's excellent book "Absent Minded Beggars" for something else when I ran across "the last survivor of the Boer War"; a reference to one George IVES of the Gloucestershire IY (21198 Tpr, 1st Coy., Ist Bn., IY. - note that my CD of the IY says 1st Coy. while BBM says Gloucestershire IY was 3rd Coy.). George Ives died in 1993 at the age of one hundred and eleven years. Any takers to beat that?
Regards
IL.

Hi Linney.......

I know of a few dozen that at members of this forum in their dreams....... LOL LOL

Mike

LinneyI wrote:
Any takers to beat that?

Regards
IL.

Linney - No, he was the last survivor. I remember when he was 'found' living in Canada (where he'd emigrated before WW1) around 1991, at a time when it was believed there were no surviving veterans of the war,. There was quite a fuss made in the press who noted that he was the only man alive entitled to wear a QSA and he was referred to as 'the last of Queen Victoria's Soldiers' although this wasn't quite true as he hadn't joined the IY until just after Victoria's death. He even came to the UK where he met Margaret Thatcher and Princess Diana.

David

I certainly do remember his famous appearance at the Royal Albert Hall.

George Ives was in the 1st Company (Wiltshire), 1st bn IY. The Gloucestershire reference may come from the fact he enlisted in Cheltenham Glos. His papers are on FmP.

The ever useful Soldiers of The Queen published an article on him.

Came across this today whilst sorting out some old catalogues.

From the Sunday Express, 8 November 1992.



George Ives