Claude Stanley Choules

Claude Stanley Choules was a British-born military serviceman who served in both the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy. At the time of his death at age 110, he was the oldest combat veteran of the First World War and the last surviving veteran to have served in both world wars. His naval career spanned over forty years, beginning in 1915 with his enlistment in the Royal Navy, where he witnessed the historic scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow in 1919.

In 1926, Choules emigrated to Australia and transferred to the Royal Australian Navy, where he served through the Second World War. He rose to the rank of Chief Petty Officer, completing decades of dedicated service before his retirement in 1956. As a naturalised Australian citizen, he became highly respected as one of the country's most enduring military figures.

Following his passing in 2011, Choules was honored posthumously by the Royal Australian Navy with the naming of the landing ship HMAS Choules. This marked only the second time a Royal Australian Navy vessel was named after a sailor, cementing his legacy in naval history.