hundreds of newspaper articles written about him, the book he wrote Three Centuries Spanned, hours and hours of video footage instructing Australians not to get involved in conflicts like Iraq or Afghanistan. His main message always was we should not glorify war. It was a mistake to fight in a far flung battle that had nothing to do with Australia, and he pleaded with the nation never to do it again." He appeared in the series People's Century discussing his recollections of the First World War in the episode "Killing Fields". Because of his eyewitness account of Richthofen's death, he also often appeared in the media. Some of his last known footage was talking in 2002 (aged about 104) for the Discovery Channel detective-documentary film about the Red Baron's death. He was a supporter of Australian becoming a republic and was a member of the Australian Republic Movement. Death He died in 2004, aged 106. At the time, he was the oldest surviving veteran of the war. Honours and awards Medal of the Order of Australia (awarded 6 June 1978) British War Medal Victory Medal 80th Anniversary Armistice Remembrance Medal (awarded 21 April 1999) Centenary Medal (awarded 1 January 2002) Chevalier (Knight) of the Légion d'honneur (awarded 4 July 1998) Ted Smout Memorial Bridge named in his honour (14 July 2009) References External links National Archives of Australia Service Record for Sgt E.D. Smout, Regt Number 12947 1898 births 2004 deaths Australian centenarians Men centenarians Australian republicans Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Centenary Medal Queensland Greats