No one who has been touched by war has emerged from the experience unchanged.
He was shot in the face, head, stomach, ankle, leg, hip, and ear.
These injuries left him blind in one eye and he also lost his left hand.
Yet, Wiart had a deep affection for war.
He was also utterly, stubbornly unkillable.
camp, and a broken back.
Portrait of Carton de Wiart by William Orpen.
In male company he was “a delightful character and must hold the world record for bad language.”
Carton de Wiart had been assigned to the Somaliland Camel Corps.
Notwithstanding, Carton de Wiart enjoyed the war, as he would later write in his autobiography.
The doctor could do nothing for his eye, but we had to keep him with us.
He must have been in agony.
Carton de Wiart was sent back to England to recover in a nursing home in Park Lane.
This nursing home would become his second home over the course of the next few years.
Every time he was injured, de Wiart would consistently return to this very facility.
It became such a routine that they had a set of his personal pajamas prepared for his upcoming visits.
With his eye patched up, de Wiart returned back to the scene of actionthis time in Ypres.
Later that year, his hand was surgically removed.
Carton de Wiart described the entire experience as an entertainment which was no worse than having a tooth out.
In 1916, he took command of the 8th Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment.
His energy and courage was an inspiration to us all.
Carton de Wiart was knocked unconscious, but the cold water made him regain consciousness.
Carton de Wiart evaded capture for eight days disguised as an Italian peasant.
Carton de Wiart retired in 1947, with the honorary rank of lieutenant-general.
Despite staying away from action, misfortune had an uncanny knack for making its presence felt in his life.
Carton de Wiart has been called the most battle-scarred soldiers in the history of the British Army.
More recently, Swedish heavy metal band Sabaton released a song on de Wiart titled The Unkillable Soldier.
