The people listed below are, or were, the last surviving members of notable groups of World War II veterans, as identified by reliable sources. About 70 million people fought in World War II between 1939 and 1945 and, as of 2022, there are still approximately 167,000 living veterans in the United States alone.
According to the US Department of Veterans Affairs, it is estimated that around 389,000 of the 16 million Americans who served in World War II were still alive in 2020. This means that less than 3% of the total number of World War II veterans from the United States are still living.
The last combat veteran was Claude Choules, who served in the British Royal Navy (and later the Royal Australian Navy) and died 5 May 2011, aged 110. The last veteran who served in the trenches was Harry Patch (British Army), who died on 25 July 2009, aged 111.
As of 2021, there were over 200,000 living United States veterans who served in the Second World War. The Department of Veteran Affairs projects that the number of living veterans will decline rapidly in the fifteen years until 2036, at which point just a few hundred Americans who served in the war will be still alive.
World War II veteran Joseph Eskenazi, center, who at 104 years and 11 months old is the oldest living veteran to survive the attack on Pearl Harbor, sits with fellow Pearl Harbor veterans, at an event celebrating his upcoming 105th birthday at the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, Wednesday, Jan. 11.
Almost one million Australians served during the War. Remarkably, some 12,000 Second World War veterans are still with us today.
Joseph Eskenazi was born on Jan. 30, 1918, in New York City. More than a century and six American wars later, this World War II veteran isn't just surviving but thriving in Redondo Beach, which he's called home for nearly 70 years. "He never, never got stressed over anything," said family friend Linda Candioty.
Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart was a one-eyed, one-handed war hero who fought in three major conflicts across six decades, surviving plane crashes and PoW camps. His story is like something out of a Boy's Own comic. Carton de Wiart served in the Boer War, World War One and World War Two.
The era ended May 7, 1975, by order of President Gerald Ford. During the 11-year campaign, approximately 2.7 million American men and woman served; of those, 58,220 died and 153,000 were wounded. Today, there are fewer than 850,000 living Vietnam War veterans, many of whom who are eligible for VA benefits.
Today's #VeteranOfTheDay is Michael Jarnevic who is believed to be the last Vietnam Veteran still serving on active duty. Michael started his service in the U.S. Marine Corps, enlisting in 1973. He was one of the last platoons to go through boot camp with M14 rifles and was sent to Vietnam soon after.
Navy Veteran Calvin Leon Graham became the youngest World War II soldier at the age of 12, and the youngest recipient of the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. During World War II, it was not unusual for American boys to lie about their age in order to enlist.
Erich Kästner (10 March 1900 – 1 January 2008) was the last documented World War I veteran who fought for the German Empire (including all nationalities and ethnic groups) and the last who was born in Germany. Consequently he was the last Central Powers combatant of the Western Front.
No American Civil War veteran served in combat in WWI (1914–1918). The youngest of them would have been in their late 60's by then, most likely in their 70s. Many WWI veterans served in WWII during America's involvement (1941–45).
Public memory often centres on the scale of death and loss: nearly 20,000 British dead on the first day of the Battle of the Somme; 300,000 French and German dead at Verdun. Yet soldiers who served in the First World War did not all die; they also lived.
"Of the 2,709,918 Americans who served in Vietnam, Less than 850,000 are estimated to be alive today, with the youngest American Vietnam veteran's age approximated to be 60 years old."
D-Day timeline
At the 75th anniversary of the storming of Normandy beaches, over 300,000 veterans are still alive to be honored.
Today, Vietnam Veterans range in age from 61 to 103 years old.
The majority of our veterans live within the Greater Melbourne area but there are also large numbers living in the Geelong, Latrobe – Gippsland and Hume regional areas.
Approximately 1.2 million Korean War veterans are still living, and this law gives them the recognition they deserve — and that is long overdue.
Some people have long military careers without ever being in the line of fire. John Lavra cannot make such a claim. Lavra enlisted in the Navy June 6, 1944 as a combat aircrewman, and called to active duty two days later. He went on to see service in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.
Roy Benavidez: Unkillable Vietnam War Hero.
He was the first African American awarded the Navy Cross, the service's highest award, for his actions during the attack. The Japanese lost 29 aircraft and 5 midget submarines in the attack. One Japanese soldier was taken prisoner and 129 Japanese soldiers were killed.
After the attack, the ship was left resting on the bottom with the deck just awash. In the days and weeks following, efforts were made to recover the bodies of the crew and the ship's records. Eventually, further recovery of bodies became fruitless and the bodies of at least 900 crewmen remained in the ship.
The USS Arizona Memorial, at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii, marks the resting place of 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors and Marines killed on USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and commemorates the events of that day.