Carlo Orelli (23 December 1894 – 22 January 2005) was, at age 110, the last surviving Italian World War I veteran who joined the army at the onset of the war. Born in Perugia, although he lived in Rome for most of his life, Orelli came from a military family whose members had served in various Italian conflicts since 1849. A mechanic by trade, Orelli joined the Italian Army in May 1915 and engaged in combat operations in Italy. His recollections were marked by particularly brutal experiences of trench warfare, including the violent deaths of many of his friends. After receiving injuries to his leg, he was pulled from active duty and returned home. After recovering from a related infection, Orelli married and had a family of six children. During World War II, despite his aversion to Nazi Germany and fascism, he was forced to work as an artillery director in Italy. At war's end, he returned to work as a mechanic, retiring in 1960. In his later years, he was active in urging others not to forget the lessons learned after the first World War, and in 2003 he was made a Grand Officer in the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. He died in January 2005, a month after having turned 110 and achieving supercentenarian status. At the time of his death, he was Italy's oldest survivor of the First World War, the last remaining trench infantryman and the last survivor from Italy's entry into the war. Early life Orelli was born in Perugia on 23 December 1894, although his family soon moved to Rome to be nearer to an aunt that operated a local tavern. Carlo came from a long history of military activity. His maternal grandfather, Thomas, helped defend Perugia against Austrian mercenaries in 1849, while Carlo's father served in the Italian Abyssinian campaign during the Scramble for Africa in the 1880s. His elder brother, Alfredo, fought in Libya during the Italo-Turkish War in 1911, while his younger brother, William, fought in World War II and was captured by the British in July 1943. He lived in the Garbatella district, one of the most secluded areas of Rome, on the fourth floor of a house without an elevator. Before joining the war, he trained to become a mechanic. Military career Orelli signed up for active duty at the age of 21 and joined the Austro-Hungarian