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{{Short description|French soldier (1698–1807)}}
{{Expand French|Jean Thurel|topic=bio|date=March 2022}}
{{Expand French|Jean Thurel|topic=bio|date=March 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
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| nickname = The oldest soldier of Europe
| nickname = The oldest soldier of Europe
| birth_name =
| birth_name =
| allegiance = {{flag|Kingdom of France}}<br/>{{flag|Kingdom of the French}}<br/>{{flag|French First Republic}}<br/>{{flag|First French Empire}}
| allegiance = {{flag|Kingdom of France}}<br/>{{flag|Kingdom of the French|Kingdom of France (Constitutional)}}<br/>{{flag|French First Republic}}<br/>{{flag|First French Empire}}
| branch = [[Infantry]]
| branch = [[Infantry]]
| serviceyears = 17 September 1716 – 29 January 1792<br>(75 years, 4 months)<ref>Lucien Decombe, Jean Thurel : épisode du séjour à Rennes du régiment de Touraine 1788, vol. XIV, Rennes, Société archéologique du département d'Ille-et-Vilaine, 1880,
| serviceyears = 17 September 1716 – 29 January 1792<br>(75 years, 4 months)<ref>Lucien Decombe, Jean Thurel : épisode du séjour à Rennes du régiment de Touraine 1788, vol. XIV, Rennes, Société archéologique du département d'Ille-et-Vilaine, 1880,
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}}
}}


'''Jean Thurel''', or '''Jean Theurel''' ({{IPA-fr|tyʁɛl}}; 6 September 1698{{spaced ndash}}10 March 1807),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.culture.gouv.fr/public/mistral/leonore_fr?ACTION=CHERCHER&FIELD_1=COTE&VALUE_1=LH%2F2605%2F2|title=Base Léonore|language=French|accessdate=2013-07-23}}</ref> was a [[fusilier]] of the [[French Army]] and a [[centenarian]] with an extraordinarily long career that spanned over 75 years of service in the [[Touraine Regiment]]. Born in the reign of [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]] and dying during that of [[Napoleon|Napoleon I]], Thurel lived in three different centuries.
'''Jean Thurel''', or '''Jean Theurel''' ({{IPA|fr|tyʁɛl}}; 6 September 1698{{spaced ndash}}10 March 1807),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.culture.gouv.fr/public/mistral/leonore_fr?ACTION=CHERCHER&FIELD_1=COTE&VALUE_1=LH%2F2605%2F2|title=Base Léonore|language=French|accessdate=2013-07-23}}</ref> was a ''[[fusilier]]'' of the [[French Army]] and a [[centenarian]] with an extraordinarily long career that spanned over 75 years of service in the [[Touraine Regiment]]. Born in the reign of [[Louis XIV]] and dying during that of [[Napoleon|Napoleon I]], Thurel lived in three different centuries.


==Military career==
==Military career==
Line 35: Line 36:


Thurel was born in [[Orain]], [[Burgundy (region)|Burgundy]] in 1698. He enlisted on 17 September 1716 in the ''[[Touraine Regiment|Régiment de Touraine]]'' at the age of 18<ref name=Sabretache1895>{{cite book|author=La Sabretache (societe d'etudes d'histoire militaire)|title=Carnet de la Sabretache: revue militaire rétrospective|volume=III|chapter=Le médaillon de vétérance|pages=264–73|year=1895|language=French|publisher=Berger-Levrault et Cie|location=Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, France|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x5cPAAAAYAAJ&q=%22Le+m%C3%A9daillon+de+v%C3%A9t%C3%A9rance%22&pg=PA264|accessdate=2011-07-04}}
Thurel was born in [[Orain]], [[Burgundy (region)|Burgundy]] in 1698. He enlisted on 17 September 1716 in the ''[[Touraine Regiment|Régiment de Touraine]]'' at the age of 18<ref name=Sabretache1895>{{cite book|author=La Sabretache (societe d'etudes d'histoire militaire)|title=Carnet de la Sabretache: revue militaire rétrospective|volume=III|chapter=Le médaillon de vétérance|pages=264–73|year=1895|language=French|publisher=Berger-Levrault et Cie|location=Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, France|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x5cPAAAAYAAJ&q=%22Le+m%C3%A9daillon+de+v%C3%A9t%C3%A9rance%22&pg=PA264|accessdate=2011-07-04}}
</ref> and served there for 75 years altogether, under [[Louis XV of France|Louis XV]] and [[Louis XVI of France|Louis XVI]], until 29 January 1792.<ref name=Brown1808>{{cite book|last1=Brown|first1=Charles Brockden|authorlink1=Charles Brockden Brown|last2=Walsh|first2=Robert|authorlink2=Robert Walsh (diplomat)|title=The American register: or general repository of history, politics and science. Part II for 1807|volume=II|chapter=Foreign literary and philosophical intelligence|page=408|year=1808|publisher=C & A. Conrad and Company|location=Philadelphia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SlrQAAAAMAAJ&q=thurel}}</ref>
</ref> and served there for 75 years altogether, under [[Louis XV]] and [[Louis XVI]], until 29 January 1792.<ref name=Brown1808>{{cite book|last1=Brown|first1=Charles Brockden|authorlink1=Charles Brockden Brown|last2=Walsh|first2=Robert|authorlink2=Robert Walsh (diplomat)|title=The American register: or general repository of history, politics and science. Part II for 1807|volume=II|chapter=Foreign literary and philosophical intelligence|page=408|year=1808|publisher=C & A. Conrad and Company|location=Philadelphia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SlrQAAAAMAAJ&q=thurel}}</ref>


Thurel was severely wounded in battle on two occasions. In 1733, during the [[Siege of Kehl (1733)|Siege of Kehl]], he was shot in the chest with a [[musket]], and at the [[Battle of Minden]] in 1759, he received seven sword slashes, including six to the head. Three of his brothers were killed in the [[Battle of Fontenoy]] in 1745. One of Thurel's sons was a [[corporal]] and a [[veteran]] in the same [[Company (military unit)|company]]; he died at the [[Battle of the Saintes]], a [[Naval warfare|naval battle]] that occurred on 12 April 1782 off the coast of [[Dominica]], [[Caribbean|West Indies]] during the [[France in the American Revolutionary War|American Revolutionary War]].<ref name=Sabretache1895/>
Thurel was severely wounded in battle on two occasions. In 1733, during the [[Siege of Kehl (1733)|siege of Kehl]], he was shot in the chest with a [[musket]], and at the [[Battle of Minden]] in 1759, he received seven sword slashes, including six to the head. Three of his brothers were killed in the [[Battle of Fontenoy]] in 1745. One of Thurel's sons was a [[corporal]] and a [[veteran]] in the same [[Company (military unit)|company]]; he died at the [[Battle of the Saintes]], a [[Naval warfare|naval battle]] that occurred on 12 April 1782 off the coast of [[Dominica]], [[Caribbean|West Indies]] during the [[France in the American Revolutionary War|American Revolutionary War]].<ref name=Sabretache1895/>


A well-disciplined soldier of the [[line infantry]], Thurel was [[admonition|admonished]] only once during his entire career, during the 1747 [[Siege of Bergen op Zoom (1747)|Siege of Bergen]] as the French troops occupied the [[citadel]]. He was admonished because, the doors of the [[fortification|fortress]] being shut, he scaled its walls to gain entry so that he would not miss [[Muster (military)|muster]].<ref name=Sabretache1895/> Another example of Thurel's discipline and physical fitness occurred in 1787. When his regiment was ordered to march to the coast to embark on ships of the [[French Navy#18th century|French Navy]], he was given the opportunity to travel in a carriage due to his advanced age. The 88-year-old Thurel refused the offer and marched the entire distance on foot, stating that he had never before traveled by carriage and had no intention of doing so at that time.<ref name=Brown1808/> His humility is evident in his steadfast refusal to accept any promotions; he remained a low-ranking fusilier for his entire military career.<ref name=Sabretache1895/><ref name=Moniteur1801>{{cite news|title=n°329, 29 thermidor an IX|newspaper=[[Le Moniteur Universel|Gazette Nationale ou Le Moniteur Universal]]|publisher=[[Charles-Joseph Panckoucke]]|location=Paris|date=17 August 1801|language=French}}</ref>
A well-disciplined soldier of the [[line infantry]], Thurel was [[Admonition|admonished]] only once during his entire career, during the 1747 [[Siege of Bergen op Zoom (1747)|siege of Bergen op Zoom]] as the French troops occupied the [[citadel]]. He was admonished because, the doors of the [[Fortification|fortress]] being shut, he scaled its walls to gain entry so that he would not miss [[Muster (military)|muster]].<ref name=Sabretache1895/> Another example of Thurel's discipline and physical fitness occurred in 1787. When his regiment was ordered to march to the coast to embark on ships of the [[French Navy#18th century|French Navy]], he was given the opportunity to travel in a carriage due to his advanced age. The 88-year-old Thurel refused the offer and marched the entire distance on foot, stating that he had never before traveled by carriage and had no intention of doing so at that time.<ref name=Brown1808/> His humility is evident in his steadfast refusal to accept any promotions; he remained a low-ranking fusilier for his entire military career.<ref name=Sabretache1895/><ref name=Moniteur1801>{{cite news|title=n°329, 29 thermidor an IX|newspaper=[[Le Moniteur Universel|Gazette Nationale ou Le Moniteur Universal]]|publisher=[[Charles-Joseph Panckoucke]]|location=Paris|date=17 August 1801|language=French}}</ref>


==Honors and awards==
==Honors and awards==
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[[File:Chevalier-legion-dhonneur-empire-1804.jpg|thumb|left|100px|A similar ''[[Legion of Honour|Légion d'Honneur]]'' medal was awarded by [[Napoleon|Napoleon I]] to Thurel.]]
[[File:Chevalier-legion-dhonneur-empire-1804.jpg|thumb|left|100px|A similar ''[[Legion of Honour|Légion d'Honneur]]'' medal was awarded by [[Napoleon|Napoleon I]] to Thurel.]]


In hopes of improving re-enlistment rates, [[Louis XV of France|Louis XV]] established the ''[[Médaillon Des Deux Épées]]'' ('Medal of the Two Swords') by [[decree|royal decree]] in 1771. This was the first [[Military awards and decorations of France|military decoration]] in France for which an enlisted man could be eligible. This medal was initially awarded to soldiers who had served in the French Army, as a reward for their longevity of service. The decree was extended in 1774 so that sailors of the French Navy were also eligible to receive the medal. A soldier or sailor would have to serve for 24 years to be eligible for the ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées''.<ref name=Champenois2011>{{cite web|last=Champenois |first=Marc |title=Médaillon Des Deux Épées |work=Les Décorations |publisher=France Phaleristique: Le site des ordres, décorations et médailles officielles de France |year=2011 |language=French |url=http://www.france-phaleristique.com/deuxepees.htm |accessdate=2011-07-04 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930182213/http://www.france-phaleristique.com/deuxepees.htm |archivedate=30 September 2011 }}</ref> Thurel was awarded two ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' in 1771, the year the medal was established, in recognition of the two 24-year periods of time (1716–1740 and 1740–1764) during which he had served up until then.{{Citation needed|date=July 2011}}
In hopes of improving re-enlistment rates, [[Louis XV]] established the ''[[Médaillon Des Deux Épées]]'' ('Medal of the Two Swords') by [[decree|royal decree]] in 1771. This was the first [[Military awards and decorations of France|military decoration]] in France for which an enlisted man could be eligible. This medal was initially awarded to soldiers who had served in the French Army, as a reward for their longevity of service. The decree was extended in 1774 so that sailors of the French Navy were also eligible to receive the medal. A soldier or sailor would have to serve for 24 years to be eligible for the ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées''.<ref name=Champenois2011>{{cite web|last=Champenois |first=Marc |title=Médaillon Des Deux Épées |work=Les Décorations |publisher=France Phaleristique: Le site des ordres, décorations et médailles officielles de France |year=2011 |language=French |url=http://www.france-phaleristique.com/deuxepees.htm |accessdate=2011-07-04 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110930182213/http://www.france-phaleristique.com/deuxepees.htm |archivedate=30 September 2011 }}</ref> Thurel was awarded two ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' in 1771, the year the medal was established, in recognition of the two 24-year periods of time (1716–1740 and 1740–1764) during which he had served up until then.{{Citation needed|date=July 2011}}


On 8 November 1787, Thurel was presented to the royal court at the [[Palace of Versailles]]. The 33-year-old king of France, [[Louis XVI of France|Louis XVI]], addressed the 88-year-old Army private in a respectful manner as "father", and asked whether Thurel would prefer to be awarded the ''[[Order of Saint Louis|Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis]]'' ('Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis') or a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' medal, in recognition of the period from 1764 to 1788.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> This was a highly unusual request—not only because [[Ranks in the French Army#Militaires du rang - Enlisted|enlisted men]] and [[Ranks in the French Army#Sous-officiers - sub-officers|non-commissioned officers]] were not normally eligible to receive the ''Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis'', which was reserved for [[Officer (armed forces)|commissioned officer]]s of the army or the navy<ref name=Mazas1850>{{cite book|last1=Mazas|first1=A|last2=Anne|first2=T|title=Histoire de l'ordre royal & militaire de Saint Louis, depuis son institution en 1693 jusqu'en 1830|year=1860|language=French|url=http://www.memodoc.com/article_ordre_st_louis.htm}}</ref>—but also because Thurel still had four more months of military service to complete before being eligible for a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' medal. Thurel opted to receive a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'', on the condition that the king himself attach the medal to his uniform. Louis XVI granted Thurel his wish. The [[Charles X of France|Comte d'Artois]] offered Thurel his sword, and the ladies of the court put a carriage at his disposal during his stay in the [[Paris]] area.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> The king also granted Thurel an annual pension of 300 [[French livre#Eighteenth century|livres]].<ref name=Brown1808/> Very few men ever completed the 48 years of military service required to receive a second medal. Thurel was the only one to have received it thrice.<ref name=Sabretache1895/><ref name=Champenois2011/> In 1788 the officers of his regiment jointly paid for a portrait of Thurel to be painted by [[Antoine Vestier]] (see above).
On 8 November 1787, Thurel was presented to the royal court at the [[Palace of Versailles]]. The 33-year-old king of France, [[Louis XVI]], addressed the 88-year-old{{contradictory inline|date=September 2022}}<!-- if the birth date at the top is accurate, he was 89 at the time, but the French Wikipedia gives a birth date of 8 September 1699, which would make him 88; this isn't simple vandalism or a simple typo --> Army private in a respectful manner as "father", and asked whether Thurel would prefer to be awarded the ''[[Order of Saint Louis|Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis]]'' ('Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis') or a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' medal, in recognition of the period from 1764 to 1788.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> This was a highly unusual request—not only because [[Ranks in the French Army#Militaires du rang - Enlisted|enlisted men]] and [[Ranks in the French Army#Sous-officiers - sub-officers|non-commissioned officers]] were not normally eligible to receive the ''Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis'', which was reserved for [[Officer (armed forces)|commissioned officer]]s of the army or the navy<ref name=Mazas1850>{{cite book|last1=Mazas|first1=A|last2=Anne|first2=T|title=Histoire de l'ordre royal & militaire de Saint Louis, depuis son institution en 1693 jusqu'en 1830|year=1860|language=French|url=http://www.memodoc.com/article_ordre_st_louis.htm|access-date=4 July 2011|archive-date=7 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170707074130/http://www.memodoc.com/article_ordre_st_louis.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>—but also because Thurel still had four more months of military service to complete before being eligible for a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'' medal. Thurel opted to receive a third ''Médaillon Des Deux Épées'', on the condition that the king himself attach the medal to his uniform. Louis XVI granted Thurel his wish. The [[Charles X of France|Comte d'Artois]] offered Thurel his sword, and the ladies of the court put a carriage at his disposal during his stay in the [[Paris]] area.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> The king also granted Thurel an annual pension of 300 [[French livre#Eighteenth century|livres]].<ref name=Brown1808/> Very few men ever completed the 48 years of military service required to receive a second medal. Thurel was the only one to have received it thrice.<ref name=Sabretache1895/><ref name=Champenois2011/> In 1788 the officers of his regiment jointly paid for a portrait of Thurel to be painted by [[Antoine Vestier]] (see above).


On 26 October 1804, at the age of 106, Thurel became one of the first recipients of the newly established ''[[Legion of Honour|Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur]]'' ('National Order of the Legion of Honor'), the highest decoration in France.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> Napoleon I also rewarded him with a pension of 1,200 [[franc]]s. He was later appointed as the "oldest soldier of Europe". He remained healthy in body and spirit throughout his remarkably long life. He died in [[Tours]] on 10 March 1807, at the age of 108, after a brief illness.<ref name=Brown1808/>
On 26 October 1804, at the age of 106, Thurel became one of the first recipients of the newly established ''[[Legion of Honour|Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur]]'' ('National Order of the Legion of Honor'), the highest decoration in France.<ref name=Sabretache1895/> Napoleon I also rewarded him with a pension of 1,200 [[franc]]s. He was later appointed as the "oldest soldier of Europe". He remained healthy in body and spirit throughout his remarkably long life. He died in [[Tours]] on 10 March 1807, at the age of 108, after a brief illness.<ref name=Brown1808/>
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* [[Last European veterans by war]]
* [[Last European veterans by war]]
* [[William Hiseland]]: a British supercentenarian soldier
* [[William Hiseland]]: a British supercentenarian soldier
* [[Johann Georg Sauer]]: a centenarian soldier from the army of the Dutch Republic


==References==
==References==
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[[Category:1807 deaths]]
[[Category:1807 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Côte-d'Or]]
[[Category:People from Côte-d'Or]]
[[Category:17th-century French people]]
[[Category:18th-century French people]]
[[Category:18th-century French people]]
[[Category:19th-century French people]]
[[Category:19th-century French people]]
[[Category:French centenarians]]
[[Category:French men centenarians]]
[[Category:Men centenarians]]
[[Category:French soldiers]]
[[Category:French soldiers]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the War of the Polish Succession]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the War of the Polish Succession]]
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[[Category:French military personnel of the Seven Years' War]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the Seven Years' War]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the American Revolutionary War]]
[[Category:French military personnel of the American Revolutionary War]]
[[Category:Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur]]
[[Category:Knights of the Legion of Honour]]
[[Category:Order of Saint Louis recipients]]
[[Category:Order of Saint Louis recipients]]

Latest revision as of 13:51, 20 October 2024

Jean Thurel
Jean Thurel, fusilier of the Touraine Regiment at 89 years of age. His three Médaillon Des Deux Épées medals and his Légion d'Honneur medal are visible in this 1788 portrait by Antoine Vestier, which was modified in 1804 to include the Légion d'Honneur.
Nickname(s)The oldest soldier of Europe
Born(1698-09-06)6 September 1698
Orain, Burgundy, France
Died10 March 1807(1807-03-10) (aged 108)
Tours, Indre-et-Loire, France
Allegiance Kingdom of France
 Kingdom of the French
 French First Republic
 First French Empire
Service / branchInfantry
Years of service17 September 1716 – 29 January 1792
(75 years, 4 months)[1]
RankSoldat
UnitTouraine Regiment
Battles / warsWar of the Polish Succession
War of the Austrian Succession
Seven Years' War
American Revolutionary War
Awards Médaillon Des Deux Épées (3)[2]
Chevalier de l' Ordre National de la Legion d'Honneur

Jean Thurel, or Jean Theurel (French pronunciation: [tyʁɛl]; 6 September 1698 – 10 March 1807),[3] was a fusilier of the French Army and a centenarian with an extraordinarily long career that spanned over 75 years of service in the Touraine Regiment. Born in the reign of Louis XIV and dying during that of Napoleon I, Thurel lived in three different centuries.

Military career

[edit]
The 1747 Siege of Bergen, in which French forces under the command of the Comte de Lowendal defeated Dutch forces under the command of Governor General Cronström

Thurel was born in Orain, Burgundy in 1698. He enlisted on 17 September 1716 in the Régiment de Touraine at the age of 18[4] and served there for 75 years altogether, under Louis XV and Louis XVI, until 29 January 1792.[5]

Thurel was severely wounded in battle on two occasions. In 1733, during the siege of Kehl, he was shot in the chest with a musket, and at the Battle of Minden in 1759, he received seven sword slashes, including six to the head. Three of his brothers were killed in the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745. One of Thurel's sons was a corporal and a veteran in the same company; he died at the Battle of the Saintes, a naval battle that occurred on 12 April 1782 off the coast of Dominica, West Indies during the American Revolutionary War.[4]

A well-disciplined soldier of the line infantry, Thurel was admonished only once during his entire career, during the 1747 siege of Bergen op Zoom as the French troops occupied the citadel. He was admonished because, the doors of the fortress being shut, he scaled its walls to gain entry so that he would not miss muster.[4] Another example of Thurel's discipline and physical fitness occurred in 1787. When his regiment was ordered to march to the coast to embark on ships of the French Navy, he was given the opportunity to travel in a carriage due to his advanced age. The 88-year-old Thurel refused the offer and marched the entire distance on foot, stating that he had never before traveled by carriage and had no intention of doing so at that time.[5] His humility is evident in his steadfast refusal to accept any promotions; he remained a low-ranking fusilier for his entire military career.[4][6]

Honors and awards

[edit]
Thurel received three medals for service like this one.
A similar Légion d'Honneur medal was awarded by Napoleon I to Thurel.

In hopes of improving re-enlistment rates, Louis XV established the Médaillon Des Deux Épées ('Medal of the Two Swords') by royal decree in 1771. This was the first military decoration in France for which an enlisted man could be eligible. This medal was initially awarded to soldiers who had served in the French Army, as a reward for their longevity of service. The decree was extended in 1774 so that sailors of the French Navy were also eligible to receive the medal. A soldier or sailor would have to serve for 24 years to be eligible for the Médaillon Des Deux Épées.[7] Thurel was awarded two Médaillon Des Deux Épées in 1771, the year the medal was established, in recognition of the two 24-year periods of time (1716–1740 and 1740–1764) during which he had served up until then.[citation needed]

On 8 November 1787, Thurel was presented to the royal court at the Palace of Versailles. The 33-year-old king of France, Louis XVI, addressed the 88-year-old[contradictory] Army private in a respectful manner as "father", and asked whether Thurel would prefer to be awarded the Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis ('Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis') or a third Médaillon Des Deux Épées medal, in recognition of the period from 1764 to 1788.[4] This was a highly unusual request—not only because enlisted men and non-commissioned officers were not normally eligible to receive the Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis, which was reserved for commissioned officers of the army or the navy[8]—but also because Thurel still had four more months of military service to complete before being eligible for a third Médaillon Des Deux Épées medal. Thurel opted to receive a third Médaillon Des Deux Épées, on the condition that the king himself attach the medal to his uniform. Louis XVI granted Thurel his wish. The Comte d'Artois offered Thurel his sword, and the ladies of the court put a carriage at his disposal during his stay in the Paris area.[4] The king also granted Thurel an annual pension of 300 livres.[5] Very few men ever completed the 48 years of military service required to receive a second medal. Thurel was the only one to have received it thrice.[4][7] In 1788 the officers of his regiment jointly paid for a portrait of Thurel to be painted by Antoine Vestier (see above).

On 26 October 1804, at the age of 106, Thurel became one of the first recipients of the newly established Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur ('National Order of the Legion of Honor'), the highest decoration in France.[4] Napoleon I also rewarded him with a pension of 1,200 francs. He was later appointed as the "oldest soldier of Europe". He remained healthy in body and spirit throughout his remarkably long life. He died in Tours on 10 March 1807, at the age of 108, after a brief illness.[5]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Lucien Decombe, Jean Thurel : épisode du séjour à Rennes du régiment de Touraine 1788, vol. XIV, Rennes, Société archéologique du département d'Ille-et-Vilaine, 1880, p. 334.
  2. ^ Riera, Lieutenant Colonel (2011). "Le musée est ouvert ou une ouverture en cascade" (PDF). Le Musée du Sous-Officier (in French). 2011 (4): 5–6. Retrieved 4 July 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ "Base Léonore" (in French). Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h La Sabretache (societe d'etudes d'histoire militaire) (1895). "Le médaillon de vétérance". Carnet de la Sabretache: revue militaire rétrospective (in French). Vol. III. Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, France: Berger-Levrault et Cie. pp. 264–73. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d Brown, Charles Brockden; Walsh, Robert (1808). "Foreign literary and philosophical intelligence". The American register: or general repository of history, politics and science. Part II for 1807. Vol. II. Philadelphia: C & A. Conrad and Company. p. 408.
  6. ^ "n°329, 29 thermidor an IX". Gazette Nationale ou Le Moniteur Universal (in French). Paris: Charles-Joseph Panckoucke. 17 August 1801.
  7. ^ a b Champenois, Marc (2011). "Médaillon Des Deux Épées". Les Décorations (in French). France Phaleristique: Le site des ordres, décorations et médailles officielles de France. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
  8. ^ Mazas, A; Anne, T (1860). Histoire de l'ordre royal & militaire de Saint Louis, depuis son institution en 1693 jusqu'en 1830 (in French). Archived from the original on 7 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2011.
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