Lazare Ponticelli [SEP] country of citizenship
Lazare Ponticelli
Lazare Ponticelli (born Lazzaro Ponticelli, 24 December 1897, later mistranscribed as 7 December – 12 March 2008), Knight of Vittorio Veneto, was at 110, the last surviving officially recognized veteran of the First World War from France and the last "poilu" of its trenches to die.
Born in Italy, he travelled on his own to France at the age of eight. Aged 16, he lied about his age in order to join the French Army at the start of the war in 1914
coping with a widespread mutiny. A minor revolution was averted only with the promise of an end to the costly offensive.
The last surviving poilu from World War I was Pierre Picault. However, French authorities recognised Lazare Ponticelli—who had served in the French Foreign Legion as an Italian citizen—as the last poilu, as he was the last veteran whose service met the strict official criteria. Lazare Ponticelli died in Le Kremlin-Bicêtre on 12 March 2008, aged 110.
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