London: Jimmy Carter, the United States' longest-lived president, was never afraid of speaking his mind. Forthright and fearless, the Nobel Prize winner took pot-shots at former British prime minister Tony Blair and ex-US president George W. Bush among others.
His death came after repeated bouts of illness in which images of the increasingly frail former president failed to erase memories of his fierce spirit.
Democrat James Earl "Jimmy" Carter Jr. swept to power in 1977 with his "Trust Me" campaign, helping to beat Republican president Gerald Ford.
Serving as the 39th US president from 1977 to 1981, he sought to make government "competent and compassionate," but was ousted by the unstoppable Hollywood appeal of a certain Ronald Reagan.
A skilled sportsman, Carter left his home of Plains, Georgia, to join the US Navy, returning later to run his family's peanut business.
A stint in the Georgia Senate lit the touchpaper on his political career, and he rose to the top of the Democratic movement.
But he will also be remembered for a bizarre encounter with a deeply disgruntled opponent.
The president was enjoying a relaxing fishing trip near his hometown in 1979 when his craft was attacked by a furious swamp rabbit, which reportedly swam up to the boat hissing wildly.
The press had a field day, with one paper bearing the headline "President Attacked By Rabbit."
Away from encounters with belligerent bunnies, Carter's willingness to address politically uncomfortable topics did not diminish with age.
He recently said that he would be willing to travel to North Korea for peace talks on behalf of Donald Trump.
He also famously mounted a ferocious and personal attack on Tony Blair over the Iraq War, weeks before the prime minister left office in June 2007.
Carter, who had already denounced George W. Bush's presidency as "the worst in history," used an interview on BBC radio to condemn Blair for his tight relations with Bush, particularly concerning the Iraq War.
Asked how he would characterise Blair's relationship with Bush, Carter replied: "Abominable. Loyal, blind, apparently subservient.
"I think that the almost undeviating support by Great Britain for the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq has been a major tragedy for the world."
Carter was also voluble over the Rhodesia crisis, which was about to end during his presidency.
His support for Robert Mugabe at the time generated widespread criticism.
He was said to have ignored the warnings of many prominent Zimbabweans, black and white, about what sort of leader Mugabe would be.
This was seen by Carter's critics as "deserving a prominent place among the outrages of the Carter years."
He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his commitment to finding peaceful solutions to international conflicts, his work with human rights and democracy initiatives, and his promotion of economic and social programmes.
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