Endell Street Military Hospital

Endell Street Military Hospital stood in Covent Garden, central London, on the site of the former St Giles Union Workhouse. The building had been empty before the Women’s Hospital Corps took it over in May 1915. The hospital grew quickly from its planned 520 beds to 573, with extra wards added when needed. At times it housed up to 800 patients, including soldiers sent straight from ambulance convoys. Trains arriving at nearby stations brought groups of 30 to 50 wounded men, sometimes as many as 80 in a single night. The hospital was run entirely by women under Flora Murray as Doctor in Charge and Louisa Garrett Anderson as Chief Surgeon. They had already proved their skill in France, where they set up a hospital in Wimereux in 1914. Among the staff were surgeons, dentists, pathologists and drivers, all recruited within two weeks. The women published seven papers in The Lancet, showing their medical contributions. Patients praised the bright colours, flowers and good lighting that made the wards feel less like a military hospital. Visitors found a busy ward block with operating theatres running round the clock. A small ward cared for servicewomen, and auxiliary hospitals nearby took extra patients. After the war the building was demolished, but a plaque once marked the staff who died. Today the site lies within the Oasis Sports Centre. The hospital’s motto, “Deeds not words,” remains a reminder of what those women achieved.