Cyrillus-Camillus Barbary (4 August 1899 – 16 September 2004) was the last known Belgian veteran of the First World War.[1] He was born in Klerken in West Flanders. He served on the Western Front in the 2nd Regiment of the Line (2de Linieregiment) for the last months of the war, between May 1918 and January 1919.[2] Barbary worked as a mason and emigrated to the United States with his wife Emma in 1923. The couple had three children. He visited Belgium for the last time in 1997.[3]
Cyriel Barbary | |
|---|---|
| Born | 4 August 1899 Klerken, West Flanders, Belgium |
| Died | 16 September 2004 (aged 105) Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Service | Belgian Army |
| Years of service | 1918–1919 |
| Battles / wars | World War I |
As a result of his emigration, he was ignored by official commemorations of the last surviving veterans in Belgium.[4] Paul Ooghe was widely reported to have been the last surviving Belgian veteran at the time of his death in 2001. Barbary died in Detroit on 16 September 2004 at the age of 105.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Laatste Belgische veteraan van WO I overleden". Gazet Van Antwerpen. Belga. 18 September 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "Adieu au dernier poilu belge". La Dernière Heure. 18 September 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
- ^ "Cyriel Barbary, 105 ans, était le dernier poilu belge". La Meuse. 20 September 2004. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
- ^ Laporte, Christian (20 September 2004). "Cyriel Barbary était le "der des ders"". La Libre Belgique (in French). Retrieved 15 August 2021.
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