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The last British survivor of the World War I trenches, Harry Patch, has died at the age of 111.

Mr Patch was conscripted into the Army aged 18 and fought in the Battle of Passchendaele at Ypres in 1917 in which more than 70,000 British soldiers died.

He was raised in Combe Down, near Bath, and had been living at a care home in Wells, Somerset.

The Queen said she was "saddened" to hear of Mr Patch's death. "We will never forget the bravery and enormous sacrifice of his generation, which will continue to serve as an example to us all."

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: "I had the honour of meeting Harry, and I share his family's grief at the passing of a great man. I know that the whole nation will unite today to honour the memory, and to take pride in the generation that fought the Great War. The noblest of all the generations has left us, but they will never be forgotten."

A national memorial service should be held as "a special commemoration" of the efforts of Mr Patch and "a generation of people" who fought in World War I, Mr Brown added.

The Prince of Wales said nothing could give him greater pride than paying tribute to Mr Patch. He told the BBC: "Harry was involved in numerous bouts of heavy fighting on the front line but amazingly remained unscathed for a while. Tragically one night in September 1917 when in the morass in the Ypres Salient a German shrapnel shell burst overhead badly wounding Harry and killing three of his closest friends. In spite of the comparatively short time that he served with the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry, Harry always cherished the extraordinary camaraderie that the appalling conditions engendered in the battalion and remained loyal to the end."

Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Richard Dannatt, said: "He was the last of a generation that in youth was steadfast in its duty in the face of cruel sacrifice and we give thanks for his life - as well as those of his comrades - for upholding the same values and freedom that we continue to cherish and fight for today."

Conservative leader David Cameron said: "The passing of our last surviving WWI soldier marks the end of an era and is a reminder of the huge debt of gratitude we owe Harry and those he served alongside."

Mr Patch was born on 17 June 1898 and left school at the age of 15 to train as a plumber. He was a machine-gunner in the trenches and served as a private from June to September 1917.

Mr Patch was at the time of his death the oldest man in Europe and the third oldest man in the world, according to the Ministry of Defence.

He was married twice, first in 1919 in Hadley, Shropshire, to Ada which lasted 60 years, and then to Jean when he was 81. He had two sons with Ada, Dennis and Roy, both of whom he outlived. From 2003 he had a third partner, Doris, who lived in the same retirement home and died two years ago.

His biographer Richard Van Emden said Mr Patch "had a sparkle about him" and was "one of the most rewarding people to be with". "He was the last of that generation and the poignancy of that is almost overwhelming. He remembered all of those who died and suffered and every time he was honoured he knew it was for all of those who fought," he said.

Mr Patch's friend Lesley Ross said she felt great affection towards him. "Extremely modest, dignified gentleman, with a slightly wicked sense of humour and considerate to everybody he met. Very polite and I would sum him up as a true gentleman," she said.

The Ministry of Defence said there would be a funeral cortege through Wells followed by a service at Wells Cathedral.

The Fletcher House care home said in a statement it extended its deepest sympathies to Mr Patch's family and friends. Andrew Larpent, chief executive of Somerset Care, said Mr Patch died peacefully in his bed having been unwell for some time. "His friends and his family have been here. He just quietly slipped away at 9am this morning," he said. "It was how he would have wanted it, without having to be moved to hospitals but here, peacefully with his friends and carers."

Harry Patch in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

Harry Patch, the last British survivor of the trenches of World War I, is to receive an entry in the latest edition of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.

The veteran died in 2009 in Wells, Somerset, aged 111.

Seems 43056 Royal British Legion was stopped with a wheel flat ...

Peace garden for last war veteran at Devon school

A peace garden is being officially opened in memory of the last surviving British veteran of World War One.

Harry Patch, from Somerset, died in 2009 aged 111.

Exactly 100 years ago he was badly injured, and three of his friends were killed in the Battle of Passchendaele.

As a result, he always called 22 September his personal remembrance day.

Clyst Vale Community College in Devon has created a peace garden that remembers all those who died in the war, from all sides.

Epitaph - uncarried spare name plate for sale  on Ebay (https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Class-43-43172-Nameplate-Harry-Patch-Uncarried-Spare/114648563535) - 4 days left to go (until 31 Jan 2021). Didn't even know they made spares.