Józef Kowalski
Polish soldier (1900–2013)
Józef Kowalski (2 February 1900? – 7 December 2013)[1] was the last Polish veteran who served just after World War I, and believed to be the oldest living military veteran in the world, following the death of Gertrude Noone.[2][3]
Józef Kowalski | |
---|---|
Born | Smerekivka, Lviv, Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine) | 2 February 1900?
Died | (aged 113 years, 308 days?) | 7 December 2013
Allegiance | Poland |
Service/branch | Polish Army |
Years of service | 1919–1921; 1939 |
Rank | Captain |
Unit | Polish Army 22nd Regiment Ułanów |
Battles/wars | Polish-Soviet War September Campaign |
Awards | Order of Polonia Restituta; "Pro Memoria" Medal |
He fought in the Polish-Soviet War which was linked to World War I and lasted from 1919 to 1921.
He lived in Tursk, near Sulęcin, in a care home.[4] He died on 7 December 2013, just 8 weeks and one day before his claimed 114th birthday, and claimed to be the oldest living man for around a half-year after 116-year-old Japaneseman Jiroemon Kimura's death in early-summer of 2013 (although the GRG and the Guinness World Records never verified him as the oldest living man).
References
change- ↑ "Zmarł najstarszy Europejczyk. Kpt. Józef Kowalski miał 113 lat" [The oldest European died. Captain Józef Kowalski was 113 years old.] (in Polish). TVN. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
- ↑ "Pan Józef ma 107 lat i czuje się znakomicie" (in Polish). Wirtualna Polska 2007-02-02. 2 February 2007. Retrieved 2010-03-30.
- ↑ "200 lat dla pana Józefa! Najstarszy Lubuszanin mieszka w Tursku" (in Polish). Gazeta Lubuska 2009-02-02. 2 February 2009. Retrieved 2010-03-30.
- ↑ "Pan Józef ma 107 lat i czuje się znakomicie" (in Polish). Wirtualna Polska. 2 February 2007. Retrieved 2007-03-16.