William Hiseland

William Hiseland
Portrait of Haseland, from the museum of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea
Born	(1620-08-06)6 August 1620? England
Died	7 February 1732/33 (aged 112?)
Resting place	Royal Hospital, Chelsea, London, England
Nationality	English
Occupation	Soldier
Known for	Last survivor of the English Civil Wars

William Hiseland (6 August 1620? – 7 February 1732/33), sometimes spelt William Hasland or Haseland, was an English and later British soldier and reputed supercentenarian. In 1709, at the age of eighty-nine, he fought at the Battle of Malplaquet and was believed to be the oldest soldier on the field. He lived to become the last survivor of the English Civil Wars, which he had served in from 1642 to 1651.

Hiseland attained the rank of sergeant. In extreme old age he became a Chelsea pensioner, although he had to give up his place as an in-pensioner when he married at the age of 103. He is buried at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea.

A native of Wiltshire, Hiseland first became a soldier at the age of thirteen and served all through the English Civil Wars. A Royalist, he fought for King Charles at the Battle of Edgehill on 23 October 1642. As well as his service in the Civil War, he followed the colours again in the Williamite War in Ireland and in the War of the Spanish Succession. He was the last survivor of Edgehill and retired with the rank of sergeant.

Amid the War of the Spanish Succession, Hiseland was one of the seasoned campaigners the Duke of Marlborough took into Flanders in June 1709. At the Battle of Malplaquet on 11 September 1709 Hiseland served with the Royal Scots, and the regiment claimed the distinction of having both the oldest and the youngest men on the field, as a Private McBain carried his three-week-old baby son throughout the battle in a knapsack.