Nurses of Passchendaele

The Ypres Salient saw some of the bitterest fighting of the First World War. The once-fertile fields of Flanders were turned into a quagmire through which men fought for four years. In casualty clearing stations, on ambulance trains and barges, and at base hospitals near the French and Belgian coasts, nurses of many nations cared for these traumatised and damaged men. Drawing on letters, diaries and personal accounts from archives all over the world, The Nurses of Passchendaele tells their stories - faithfully recounting their experiences behind the Ypres Salient in one of the most intense and prolonged casualty evacuation processes in the history of modern warfare. Nurses themselves came under shellfire and were vulnerable to aerial bombardment, and some were killed or injured while on active service. Alongside an analysis of the intricacies of their practice, the book traces the personal stories of some of these extraordinary women, revealing the courage, resilience and compassion with which they did their work.

"The two books I have so far read and reviewed on Passchendaele concentrated on military involvement and engagements. This superb book looks at the part played by the nurses, their courage under fire, their determination to help, and their compassion. Uplifting and inspiring."-- "Books Monthly", The author is to be commended for an engaging, easy to read account which draws the reader in and which provides a compelling insight into the life and work of these remarkable women. Worthy of a place on anyone's bookshelf.--Mark Marsay "The Great War Magazine" (11/1/2017 12:00:00 AM), this books main aim is to capture the way the perspectives of the nurses involved and it draws heavily on letters, diaries and personal accounts from across the world. It describes the way the medical systems worked and the challenges faced by the nurses with the conditions and the injuries they had to cope with. With the interest in medical advances of WWI this book is well worth getting to add to your knowledge.--Guild of Battlefield Guides

Christine Hallett is Professor of Nursing History at the University of Manchester. She is Chair of the UK Association for the History of Nursing and President of the European Association for the History of Nursing, and holds Fellowships of the Royal Society of Medicine and the Royal Society for the Arts. She is a trained nurse, and has PhDs in both Nursing and History. She practised as a nurse in the North of England from 1985 to 1989, before moving into teaching and research. Her most recent work has focussed on the nurses of the First World War, and among her many publications are three single-authored books: Containing Trauma: Nursing Work in the First World War (Manchester University Press, 2009); Veiled Warriors: Allied Nurses of the First World War (Oxford University Press, 2014); and Nurse Writers of the Great War (Manchester University Press, 2016).