Robert Meier (March 10, 1897 – January 29, 2007) was, aged 109,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

's oldest living man, a combat-wounded veteran of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and one of Germany's last surviving veterans of that war. Meier became Germany's oldest living man on March 2, 2005, when he was age 107, following the death of 111-year-old Hermann Dörnemann. Meier lived in Witten,

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

. He was a rarity in being a survivor of the infantry, having seen combat in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on the

western front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

. He was also a

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

veteran, spending some time as a prisoner of war in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

. In October 2006, Robert Meier met then 110-year-old Henry Allingham, the oldest living British World War I veteran, in his hometown. France's oldest veteran ever, 111-year-old

Maurice Floquet Maurice Noël Floquet (25 December 1894 – 10 November 2006) was, aged 111 and 320 days, France's oldest man on record and was one of the last surviving French veterans of World War I. He is also France's longest-lived soldier of all time. ...

, sent his regards, but could not attend, because he was too frail to travel. Floquet subsequently died on the eve of Armistice Day, November 10, 2006. Robert Meier was born to German parents in Sergejewka,

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. He was a member of the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the ...

for 70 years, and worked as a railway worker. His wife Ella died in 1967; they had a son and a daughter. Robert Meier had a fine sense of humour; in 2006, he let the local press take his picture while he was wearing a World War I spiked helmet and a T-shirt with the slogan "109 - na und?" ("109 - so what?") on it. He was in good health keeping his own household until late 2006, and hospitalized only a few weeks before his death: he had a bad fall right before

Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...

and died about five weeks later on, just one day before he was scheduled to have an ulcer operation.

References

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070927003048/http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=4287169769&idx=16 * https://web.archive.org/web/20070211101345/http://www.wdr.de/themen/panorama/personen/aeltester_mann_deutschlands/060310.jhtml(with pictures) * https://web.archive.org/web/20070930194236/http://www.waz.de/waz/waz.blicknach.volltext.php?kennung=on1wazLOKStaWitten39109&zulieferer=waz&kategorie=LOK&rubrik=Stadt®ion=Witten&auftritt=WAZ&dbserver=1(with picture) {{DEFAULTSORT:Meier, Robert 1897 births 2007 deaths People from Witten German centenarians Men centenarians German Army personnel of World War I German military personnel of World War II Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Germany