September 9, 2018

100 Days Centenary Countdown: Case study- Hospitals

At the outbreak of the First World War Britain was unprepared for the large numbers of casualties that would soon arise.

Military hospitals had been prepared to accept an expected 50,000 wounded when war broke out. However, by the end of 1914 73,000 wounded soldiers had been brought back from the front for treatment in the UK. The War Department desperately needed to find more hospital beds for the large numbers of wounded soldiers.

Soldiers recuperating in hospitals throughout the UK wore a distinctive uniform known as a ‘Hospital Blue’ uniform. This was so that they could be easily identified if they decided to go AWOL. The images below show this distinctive uniform.

Wounded servicemen arrive in ambulances at Charing Cross Hospital on Agar Street London, September 1914. Onlookers crowd the pavements to view the servicemen. Copyright: © IWM (Q 53275)

By the end of the war the number of beds had increased to 364,133. This was a huge increase and it wouldn’t have been possible without a combined effort by the War Office and various civilian organisations; such as the Red Cross and Order of St. John.

By the end of the war an effective treatment network had been established to treat the wounded and many lives were saved by the hospitals of the Home Front.

Military Hospitals

William Ferguson Massey, New Zealand’s Prime Minister, and Joseph George Ward, Deputy Prime Minister, with convalescent troops outside the New Zealand military Hospital, Oaklands Park, Walton. Copyright: © IWM (Q 30750)

The army already had a network on Military Hospitals, many of which had been established during the second Boer War. These hospitals had been well equipped and more than capable to treat the wounded of a small but professional army fighting a colonial war. However, military hospitals were quickly inundated when the war with the central powers reached stalemate in late 1914.

The introduction of industrialised warfare created such large numbers of causalities that the War Department had to act fast to find additional space for the wounded. Throughout the war the vast majority of the casualties were caused by artillery (not machine guns as is commonly believed), which wreaked havoc especially in the wide open countryside of Belgium and France. This quickly led to the adoption of trenches as a form of protection from the incessant shrapnel and shell splinters.

War Hospitals & Territorial Force ‘General Hospitals’

Birmingham University 1st Southern Hospital © C. Kolonko

As early as 1908, through Haldane’s Territorial Force reforms, shadow hospitals were established to support the Territorial Force’s own General Hospitals. These shadow hospitals were to provide additional space in the event of war, such as Birmingham University.

In 1915 War Hospitals were established to stem the flow of casualties and introduce an effective casualty treatment network. War Hospitals were often civilian hospitals, asylums and large buildings requisitioned by the War Office. These were converted into basic hospitals where the wounded could be housed, stabilised and treated.

However, these additional hospitals struggled to stem the flow of wounded coming from the Western front.

Notable War Hospitals & General Hospitals-

Birmingham University

Joyce Green Hospital

Wharncliffe War Hospital

Auxiliary Hospitals and the Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD)

Cornwall Hall VAD Hospital © C. Kolonko

Auxiliary hospitals were established to support the Military and War hospitals and help treat the additional wounded. Many auxiliary hospitals were established in stately homes, large town houses, town halls and schools. These hospitals were often coordinated by the Red Cross.

These hospitals were staffed by nurses of the Voluntary Aid Detachment and often supported by civilian volunteers. The Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) was established as early as 1909 by the Red Cross and Order of St. John. The organisation provided trained nurses and other medical staff to work within the new hospitals established during the First World War.

3,000 auxiliary hospitals were established throughout the country. A list of these hospitals can be found HERE

Notable Auxiliary Hospitals-

Dunham Massey, Wrest Park

Holmfirth Auxiliary Hospital

Werrington Mansion

Cramond House Auxiliary Hospital.

Notable VAD hospitals-

Cornwall Hall VAD hospital

Suffolk Hall VAD

Stoneleigh VAD Hospital

Convalescent Homes and Camps

Convalescent homes and camps were established to further treat recuperating soldiers who were on the road to recovery. This helped to free up beds in the hospitals and ensured that the wounded were fully recovered before being returned to their units or invalided out of the armed forces.

War Hospital Supply Depots

Members of the Stamford and District Needlework Guild and Hospital Supply Depot standing by hospital materials, which are packed ready for transportation to military hospitals and casualty clearing stations on the Western Front, ca. 1917. The bags are labelled Socks, Mittens, Slippers and other items of warm clothing. Copyright: © IWM(Q 108285)

Civilians established war hospital supply depots to provide and store much needed material and supplies for nearby hospitals. These organisations sourced fabric to produce bandages, sometimes made from sphagnum moss which is a natural antiseptic.

Notable War Hospital Supply Depots-

Imperial Hotel

Tythrop House

Godolphin and Latymer School

Burlington House

Over To You

There are still plenty of First World War hospitals that remain to be recorded. You can record further hospitals through your local Historic Environment Record. Contact details can be found on the Heritage Gateway website.