Nurses
Nurses
Lady Carnarvon was walking through into the front hall of the Castle, her devoted secretary Mary Weekes hurrying along behind, notebook and pen in hand. The army ambulance had pulled to a stop on the gravel whereupon the orderlies jumped out to go round to the back and begin to manoeuvre the patients out. Lady Carnarvon stepped forward. One of the young men looked especially ill, gaunt and filthy dirty, a grubby bandage over his lower leg. He was groaning from pain – the jolts in the slow trailer from Southampton has been unbearable.
She could already smell the festering wound but lent towards him and smiled, “Good Afternoon, I am so glad you have arrived, we will just get you upstairs and then we can have a good look at your leg”.
She turned back to the other three patients, taking time to welcome each man enquire of his name and injury. Mary made notes, asking for addresses and family names so she could write and reassure their relatives straightaway.
The gaunt young man was carried upstairs to Portico bedroom overlooking the Castle entrance. Two nurses helped him wash and clean himself thoroughly. Lady Carnarvon brought him clean pyjamas and a dressing-gown. Then Lady Carnarvon and Dr Johnnie sat down near him to assess him.
Almina explained she was going to help dress his wounds and look after him.
He had dysentery and the best thing to do was to drink plenty of water and tea. He looked very small and grey against the soft white pillows on the bed. He was not to move to begin with. His foot looked ghastly, swollen and dark in colour. She washed and dressed it each day and visited him at mealtimes to check he was comfortable.
Gradually, over the next few weeks, Lady Carnarvon gathered his story. During a mission above the beaches of Gallipoli, David Campbell was shot in the calf of his leg. Whilst one soldier helped him dress his calf, he was shot in the foot, and David Campbell helped dress his foot.
In terrible pain and unable to move from fear of snipers, he passed out. Coming too, he started to try and crawl back past other wounded men. His journey back, as he joined in with a stream of other bloodied men, ended with his collapse from loss of blood. He was picked up by a Ghurkha and hit again in the left leg whilst being carried down the hillside.
Eventually they made in back to the First Aid Post where the Ghurkha deposited him and melted away into the crowd. The orderlies dressed his calf but not his foot . There were no stretchers left so hopping between two orderlies, crawling on all fours and exhausted David Campbell and helpers crawled into the Field Ambulance station. He was placed on an stretcher and left overnight. Turkish snipers ensured there were soon no stretcher bearers to carry a stretchers. Suffering from the burning sun, David Campbell eventually crawled across the beach himself. He reached the Field Hospital and was attended to straightaway as few others had made it.
He was one of a group of wounded men who made it to a launch, then trawler and then to a hospital hip. He had hardly eaten but now found he had dysentery. Operations on the ship could only be described as basic and splinters of lead were removed from his calf with no anaesthetic. His foot became gangrenous and he was marked for an amputation. The surgeon then became ill so David Campbell arrived back in England with two feet.
To begin with visiting friends hardly recognised him because his frame and face was so shrunken and hollow from the dysentery as well as the mental fatigue but, over the next 3 months, he regained his health.
He wrote that there could be no better solace to wander over the cool green grass and sit under the cedars. It was not just the restorative peace of nature but also the care and time given to him by Almina and all her nurses.
Almina was Head Matron – she had found her vocation in life: nursing. She took a very professional and organised approach, visiting other hospitals for research and asking surgeons for advice. Operations were conducted on a Monday. A stickler for hygiene and kind recovery conditions, very few patients died. In fact Almina saved David’s leg and slowly got the better of the dysentery from which he was suffering. After a week he was encouraged to go and sit outside, and then progressed from a wheelchair to crutches. Time, confidence and courage helped him overcome some of his mental trauma.
Almina was simply following the example of extraordinary women such as Florence Nightingale, or the Agnes and Fanny Keyser who founded what became King Edward VII hospital in London.
Today is the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birthday in 1820. Her legacy was profound not merely encouraging others to care as she did, but encouraging statistical analysis, hygiene, compassion and thoughtful hospital administration.
Today USA nurses still recite ‘The Nightingale Pledge’, there is a Nightingale Initiative for Global Health’, there are statues in her honour, many wards are named for her, she has been on a bank note, museums and monuments pay tribute to her.
Thank you to all who nurse today.
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54 Comments
I read your book on Lady Almina, which you also signed for me when we visited Highclere. It was an amazing book about an amazing lady.
Lovely the pictures of nurse and did you and lord Carnarvon have a wonderful weekend lam fan of Downton Abbey and highcelere castle
What a heart rendering story ,thank you so much grateful thanks now to all our hardworking nurses ,
I was born into a family of nurses, and my aunt who was an obstetric nurse help my Mom delivered me. Amazing story of Almina, thank you for sharing.
Thank you Lady Carnarvon for such an interesting story
What a story! You seem to have no end of them, Lady Carnarvon.
Thank you for telling this one as it is a true example of resilience, determination and bravery.
Diana Squibb
South Florida
Thank you Lady Carnavon for such an interesting article on worldwar first aid and recovery. I'm sure Miss Nightingale would be very pleased that her ideas and the ability to carry them out at Highclere and save life and limbs and still being talked about today she would be honored but shy of her achievements.
Being a uk trained nurse she is still remembered as you say by naming wards and rehab centers. So many don't know her full story but hopefully your article will spark interest again.
Thank you so much for this story. Lady Almina was ahead of her time in helping the wounded that were brought to Highclere.
Thank you for noting the anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth. She laid the foundation on which modern nursing is based.
Thank you for this wonderful part of Almina’s story. I remember it from the book. I’m a nurse, now retired, but can still remember reciting the Nightingale Pledge at my pinning ceremony.
Thank you for such a moving blog today. I read your book about Lady Almina some time ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. She was a very special lady who made a huge difference to the young soldiers in her care when you consider the horrific injuries many had suffered.
All my working life was spent in the National Health Service and I know all nurses have to be special caring people to look after the patients in the way they do each and every day. We should thank them all.
I worked in Trafford General Hospital, Manchester, which had the honour to be chosen by Aneurin Bevan to be the first NHS hospital in Britain in 1948. It was called Park Hospital Davyhulme in those days and is still referred to as the Birthplace of the NHS.
Lady Carnarvon,
Lady Almina was such a role model for other caring nurses, taking care of soldiers herself. The nursing profession is so highly valued, and your story surely reminds us to thank these women and now men for their selfless work - and it is truly work. I have the book and enjoyed it so much.
Martha G.
Thank you so much for the story. My heart is with nurses as I was one for 43 years. Loved my profession. Celebrate nursing! I thank you Lady Carnarvon!
Further to my comment above:-
Park Hospital was an American Military Hospital during WW2. Glenn Millar and his Band are said to have played in the grounds during 1944. It must have been shortly before he tragically died.
Do you have any idea what happened to David Campbell after the war? This man did not give up -- even in the most horrendous circumstances.
Kudos to Lady Almina for working directly with these men and tending to their wounds. She did not flit about as the grand lady of the manor--she dealt with matters on a personal level. It cannot have been easy, to say the least.
I was a critical care and ER nurse for 40 years. I worked mainly at teaching hospitals which means positions are highly sought by doctors and treatments are generally top notch. Still, the occasion happens when nurses have to step in. Which I did whenever necessary. For this I was given senior nurse status (much better salary) within 5 years of graduation. Thank you for recognising nursing and nurse leaders.
He was so fortunate to find himself at Highclere Castle. Hopefully the soldier went onto have a long and successful life thanks to the excellent nursing he received.
What a touching story of kindness, caring, and ability to go above and
beyond for the well being of others.
Lady Almina’s face portrays an almost
saintly disposition as well. How she
ministered to that severely wounded
young soldier is truly remarkable
and memorable.
Thank you for this amazing story.
Lady Carnarvon,
I read your book, I am a big fan of Downton Abbey and my wife is a nurse. She will appreciate your tribute to all that nurses do.
Thanks,
Rick Burfoot
Thank you for sharing this wonderfully inspiring story! Truly, these nurses, caregivers, nurturers, these unsung heroes were, and still are, some of the angels that walk amongst us!
Michael Sloboda
Lindsay,
Ontario Canada
Amazing that David Campbell made it to the Field Hospital!
He must have experienced great pain before finally reaching Highclere!
And to think they were going to amputate his foot!
My question is what medicines did Alina have access to, to treat David Campbell’s infection??
Had antibiotics been invented yet?
How difficult it must have been to nurse these patients back to health!!
Thankyou Lady Carnarvon
Best wishes
FLEURINA
Orange City East
Central Western NSW
Australia
Dear Lady Carnarvon,
The selflessness that you describe, of the nurses and the soldiers they cared for, is truly humbling. Lady Almina led by example, as did Florence Nightingale, and their resolve to constantly improve their profession is inspirational on every level of medical care. I learn something new every week.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful story, and may we always be grateful for our nurses!
Best regards,
Charlotte Merriam Cole
David’s story was so touching. It goes to show that nurses are so vital in the care of patients. Doctors diagnose and do operations, but the follow-up care of nurses is critical for patients to recover. I read your book and admired Almina for her compassion and diligent care. She left quite an impressive legacy. I am very proud of my son who is a nurse. It’s difficult work but rewarding.
As a retired nurse
and Professor of Nursing, I was pleasantly surprised to read your post today, which brought back so many memories of Downtown Abbey, Highclere and Lady Almina, you, Florence Nightingale, and of course, my own journey of over 50 years in the field of nursing, and the recitement of the Nightingale Pledge. No doubt, without your publication of Lady Almina's mission and achievements during WW I, and Downtown Abbey's episodes which addressed Lady Sybil's avocation, the war, the arrangements and provisions which temporarily altered Highclere from a "home" into a hospital, and so many other important human aspects of this time in history, many would not be aware that such a world existed. Add WW II and the "wars" which have occurred since then, and are currently ongoing, and the loss of the "greatest generation", makes your post very poignant, and a reminder that (paraphrased) "time and history marches on". My heartfelt thanks for your acknowledgment and recognition of those that care, and in particular of Florence Nightingale and nursing.
My middle name is Emma, named after a great-aunt. She had been a nurse in WWI. She later married and subsequently died in childbirth so I never knew her. When I read stories about nurses during that time period I imagine my own great-aunt delivering care and compassion. Thank you for this inspiring story.
Lady Carnarvon,
Highclere would have been a wonderful place for the wounded to recuperate.
Lady Almina sounds like a dedicated woman.
Are there nurses in your family?
My wife, a retired nurse herself (Although, do nurses every truly retire?) and I had the opportunity to visit Highclere a few years ago. A memorable day! The only thing that could have made it better would have been an escort down the famous red staircase by a few of the castle Labradors! Anyone on your side of The Pond wishing to learn more about Florence Nightingale has an excellent opportunity at her museum, located at St. Thomas’s Hospital in London. I must admit to not knowing the address, but it is directly across the Thames from Parliament and Big Ben. Thank you for this month’s installment. We look forward to visiting again, soon.
Michael and Tamara Breton
Maine, USA
Beautiful. Thank you.
This is National Nurses Month over here. I have had some wonderful nurses in my day. Thank God for them, for Almina, and many others. P.S.: Your book about her was WONDERFUL.
You are kind ..
How very kind - I hope you will come back soon!
I hope kindness but not nurses!
It was amazing how they faced life
Thank you
Cleanliness but no antibiotics
Very kind!
She was utterly absorbed by her vocation
Thank you for all you did
He lived and had a family ..
Thank you
How amazing!
Florence Nightingale was extraordinary
She filled every minute of her life
Most of life is about carrying on
The book means much to me- it is the story of the patients -
As a retired nurse this story as well as the book were of a special interest. You did a great job writing it.
Thank you so much for sharing this story! Hearing of the women who were just as much a hero as men, maybe more, is wonderful. My grandmother, my sister and now my daughter are/were emergency department nurses.
Several of my uncles served in WW2, one was even a POW. I admire all who help the wounded and the sick. I am sure Lady Almina is happy see she and her work have not been forgotten!
Thank you!
What brave people and also what caring people. The will to live and the courage to keep one’s life is amazing. Also, how kind was Lady Carnarvon, these poor men must have thought she was an angel, along with those special nurses; nurses are a special breed.
Thank you
Lovely story. Truly dedicated professionals.
My dearest Lady Fiona,
Good morning from Brazil.
Dieu les récompensera tous,
pour leurs oeuvres.
GOOD WEEK MILADY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR LOVELY WORDS.
Vila Alemã
Rio Claro- São Paulo
Brazil.
I've been a nurse for 32 years. I've always enjoyed historical accounts of nurses. I bought and read this book several years ago and reread it last month. I think I enjoyed it even more the second time. Its a wonderful story beautifully told.
Thank you so much
I enjoyed reading your blog on two levels: my mother served as a nurse in the U.S. Navy during World War II including victims of Pearl Harbor bombing. I enjoyed reading your books, including Lady Almina. If she were still alive, I know I would enjoy discussing both events and topics with her. Thank you for all the work you do Lady Carnarvon!
What an amazingly brave man. He endured unthinkable pain and suffering. Thank goodness for Almina and the care she gave him and others.
Such an incredible account.