This man blows my mind.
His name was Jean Thurel. He was a French soldier who lived from 1698 to 1807. He’s truly remarkable: He served in the French line infantry for 75 years, 4 months!
On September 17, 1716, Thurel enlisted in the French Army and served in the line infantry, and was apparently a good soldier. He first saw action in 1733 at the siege of Kehl against Austria in the War of the Polish Succession. During the battle, he was shot in the chest with a musket…and lived! Not bad.
We don’t know much about Thurel in the years following this battle until 1759, during the Battle of Minden in the Seven Years’ War. In this battle, he was slashed in the head by a sword six times…and lived! Impressive, considering Thurel was 61 years old at this time.
The Battle of Minden, 1759
After this battle, he was never again injured in combat. Thurel had siblings in the army, too, but they weren’t as lucky as he was: three of his brothers were killed in the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745. One of Thurel’s sons was killed in the naval Battle of the Saintes off the coast of Dominica in 1782.
Remarkably, Jean Thurel was scolded only one time in his military career, in 1747, during the Siege of Bergen. Apparently, Thurel’s regiment had occupied the city’s citadel, but Thurel fell behind and found himself alone. So, he climbed the citadel walls somehow and entered the citadel the hard way so he wouldn’t miss muster.
In 1787, when Thurel was 89, his regiment was marching along the French coast. Due to his age, his officers offered him a carriage to sit in for the march, but Thurel refused and marched the entire distance on foot, claiming that he had never marched by carriage before and had no intention of starting to do so.
Also in 1787, Thurel personally met French King Louis XVI (Yes, the same one who was beheaded), who addressed him as “father”, and granted him a nice pension when he retired in 1792.
After Thurel’s retirement in 1792, he eventually met Napoleon, who greatly admired him, in the early 1800s.
You might be wondering how far up the ranks Thurel climbed during his 75 year army stint. Thurel was offered a promotion many times, but each time, he refused. He was a private in the French Army for 75 years. That alone is a very remarkable story!
Source: Alex Turner (Quora)
