Aged 111, Britain's oldest birthday boy just 'pleased to see another tomorrow'

12 April 2012

Henry Allingham is celebrating a very special birthday today. The oldest man in Britain has just turned 111. Asked how it felt Mr Allingham said: "I'm pleased to be seeing another tomorrow.

"It's just the same as it was as at any age, it's no different. I'm happy to be alive and I'm looking forward to the celebrations. I never imagined I'd get to 111."

More follows...

Henry Allingham with family members at the HMS Victory

The World War One veteran will watch a special RAF flypast on board HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship moored at Portsmouth

The Second Sea Lord, Vice Admiral Adrian Johns, and Veterans' Minister Derek Twigg will be among dignitaries to share a celebratory lunch with Mr Allingham in the ship's Great Cabin.

Ten of his relatives, including eight grandchildren and great grandchildren, have flown to the UK from their homes across the United States to join the party.

Mr Allingham as a baby in 1896 and as a toddler 1899

A Royal Marines band will serenade Mr Allingham on board Victory before he returns with friends and relatives to the Queen's Hotel on Portsmouth seafront for afternoon tea.

Mr Allingham lives at St Dunstan's care home for blind ex-service personnel in Ovingdean, near Brighton, East Sussex.

Accompanying him was his close friend Dennis Goodwin, also founder of the First World War Veterans' Association, who paid tribute to his strength.

A picture taken in 1878 of Mr Allingham's parents. His father died when he was a baby.

Mr Goodwin said: "It's remarkable that a man of his age can lead the life he lives. He takes part in many engagements throughout the year yet he remains strong. He's getting a bit slower now but people remark how his memory and vocal cords improve as a day's engagement goes on.

"He's very much looking forward to his birthday. I asked him whether he was looking forward to it the other day and he replied, 'You bet I am'.

Mr Allingham had a well-paid job with Ford by 1930 so his family could afford the rare luxury of a car.

"He's conscious of what's going on about him, he can contribute to the event himself and sit back and enjoy it. The senses are deteriorating, like smell and taste, but he still has humour and acumen.

"He believes in doing things properly. He's a black and white man, straight talking."

Mr Allingham and his wife Dorothy pose with their daughters

Mr Allingham joined the Royal Naval Air Service in September 1915 before transferring to the RAF in April 1918.

As well as being the last founder member of the RAF, he is also the sole survivor of the Battle of Jutland.

On the lessons he learnt from the First World War, Mr Allingham said: "Hear all, see all and say nowt.

Mr Allingham and his wife Dorothy

"We had a job to do, and did it, and it was concentrating on that that got us through the war."

Mr Allingham has been awarded a string of accolades including the British War Medal, Victory Medal and the Legion d'honneur, France's highest military honour.

In April last year he was given the freedom of Eastbourne, the East Sussex town where he retired to live in the 1960s.

Mr Allingham with his wife Dorothy and daughter Jean in his old Eastbourne flat. His two daughters lived in America who he "missed terribly" but he said "I loved England too much to leave."

Up until last year, he lived a relatively independent life alone in the seaside town. But with his eyesight fast deteriorating, he moved to St Dunstan's where he can receive round-the-clock care.

Mr Allingham met Prince Charles and Camilla recently

Mr Allingham is just one of three known UK survivors from the First World War.

The other two are ex-Royal Navy stoker Bill Stone, 106, who was born in Devon but now living in Oxfordshire, and 108-year-old Harry Patch, who lives in a nursing home in Wells, Somerset, and who is the last surviving Tommy to have served on the Western Front.

The Government announced in June last year that the death of the last known First World War veteran would be marked by a national memorial service at Westminster Abbey.

The decision was warmly welcomed by veterans and by MPs who have campaigned for a service to mark the final passing of the generation who fought in the 1914-18 conflict.

Life and times of Britain's oldest man

• June 6 1896: Henry William Allingham is born in Clapton, east London.

• 1897: Queen Victoria celebrates diamond jubilee. Thomson discovers electrons.

• 1898: Henry's father dies from tuberculosis. Henry is 18 months old.

• 1903: First aeroplane flight by the Wright brothers.

• 1912: Titanic sinks.

• 1915: Following the death of his mother at the age of 42, Mr Allingham enlists with the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) as a skilled mechanic and bodybuilder.

• 1916: Mr Allingham is posted to RNAS at Great Yarmouth and joined HMT Kingfisher which was involved in the greatest naval battle of the Great War, the Battle of Jutland.

• 1917: Henry is posted to France to support the Royal Flying Corps, and joined No 12 Squadron of the RNAS to service and rescue aircraft that crashed behind the trenches.

• 1918: Women get the vote.

• 1919: After leaving the RNAS, Mr Allingham marries 22-year-old Dorothy Cater in Chingford, Essex. He goes on to secure various engineering jobs and works his way up to a senior position with car manufacturer Ford.

• 1921: Ireland partitioned into Ireland and Northern Ireland.

• 1924: First Labour Government comes to power.

• 1926: First television invented.

• 1936: Abdication of Edward VIII. George VI becomes king.

• 1939-1945: World War Two.

• 1946: NHS established.

• 1947: India independence. Partitian of India and Pakistan.

• 1952: George VI dies. Elizabeth II becomes queen.

• 1960: Henry retires to Eastbourne, East Sussex, with his wife who dies 10 years later.

• 1961: Yuri Gargarian becomes first man in space.

• 1973: Britain joins European Community.

• 1975: First personal computer created.

• 2003: Henry receives France's highest military honour, the Legion D'Honneur, at a ceremony at Eastbourne Town Hall.

It has been awarded to more than 440 British soldiers who served in France during the 1914-18 war since 1998.

• 2004: At the age of 108, Mr Allingham lays a wreath and leads the service in the Lord's Prayer at the 90th anniversary of the First World War at the Cenotaph.

• 2005: To mark Armistice Day, Mr Allingham travels to St Omer, near Calais, France, to lay two wreaths, including one at the first permanent memorial to the 4,700 British air personnel who died while fighting on the Western Front in the Great War.

• 2006: Gordon Brown presents Mr Allingham with a letter of good wishes from the Queen at the five-star Grand Hotel in Eastbourne to mark his 110th birthday.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT