Léon Roger Weil (16 July 1896 – 6 June 2006) was one of the last two surviving veterans of the battle of

Val-de-Marne Val-de-Marne (, "Vale of the Marne") is a department of France located in the Île-de-France region. Named after the river Marne, it is situated in the Grand Paris metropolis to the southeast of the City of Paris. In 2019, Val-de-Marne had a ...

in the First World War. He was almost 110 when he died at the

Val-de-Grâce The Val-de-Grâce (; Hôpital d'instruction des armées du Val-de-Grâce or HIA Val-de-Grâce) was a military hospital located at 74 boulevard de Port-Royal in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was closed as a hospital in 2016. History ...

military hospital in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Joining the army when he was 20 years old, he was assigned to the fifth battalion of chasseurs à pied (cinquième bataillon de chasseurs à pied) in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

and took part in 1917 in the battle of Chemin des Dames. More than 150,000 people died during this battle. He was also a

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

fighter during the Second World War under the code name of ''Victor''. After the war, he worked as a sales representative in the women's fashion industry. A fan of theatre and boxing (he was quite a good boxer in his younger days), he continued to swim until the age of 102. At the time of his death he was one of the last seven surviving officially recognized French veterans of World War I.

External links

Photo and details

The Star, Malaysia. Death of Leon Weil, 109, leaves France with six surviving veterans of World War I
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weil, Leon 1896 births 2006 deaths French men centenarians French Army soldiers French Resistance members Knights of the Legion of Honour French military personnel of World War I