Edith Cavell 1865-1915 | Commemorating Edith Cavell, the World War I British nurse who is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers in Brussels from all sides without distinction. Commemorating Edith Cavell, the World War I British nurse who is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers in Brussels from all sides without distinction. Menu Contact Welcome Welcome to edithcavell.org.uk, commemorating Edith Cavell, the World War I British nurse who is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers in Brussels from all sides without distinction. She and Belgian and French colleagues helped over 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium. She was arrested, tried with 33 others by a German military court, found guilty of ‘assisting men to the enemy’ and shot by a German firing squad on October 12 1915. This is one of the most extensive sites dedicated to Nurse Edith Cavell, and contains much exclusive material. Please explore the site using the menus at the top of each page. This year (2016) a number of events have been planned to mark the 101st anniversary of Edith’s death.

Please click here for more information. Thank you for calling by – do contact us via the contact page . Your comments would be most welcome. Standing as I do in view of God and eternity, I realise that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone. Edith Louisa Cavell, October 11th 1915 Edith Cavell BiographyBiography Online Edith Louisa Cavell (4 December 1865 – 12 October 1915) Short Biography Edith Cavell Edith Cavell was a nurse, humanitarian and spy. During the First World War, she helped allied servicemen escape German occupied Belgium; she was eventually captured and executed for treason. Her death by firing squad made her internationally known and she became an iconic symbol for the Allied cause. In particular, she is remembered for her courage in facing execution with equanimity. This included her famous last words that ‘Patriotism is not enough.’ Edith Cavell was born in Swardeston, near Norwich. Her father was a priest in the Anglican church; this religious faith, she was brought up with, was to provide an important influence on her life.

In 1900, she trained to be a nurse at the London hospital. In 1907, she was recruited to be the matron of a new nursing school in Brussels. This was a period of growth in the prestige and importance of nursing; a period which began with Florence Nightingale during the Crimean War. In 1910, Miss Cavell began one of the first nursing journals, L’infirmiere, this documented good nursing practises and basic standards. She became a teacher of nurses in different hospitals throughout Belgium and sought to improve standards of nursing. In the Nursing Mirror, Edith Cavell, writes: “The probationers wear blue dresses with white aprons and white collars. The contrast which they present to the nuns, in their heavy stiff robes, and to the lay nurses, in their grimy apparel, is the contrast of the unhygienic past with the enlightened present.” Edith Cavell – First World War In 1914, the First World War broke out. At the time, Miss Cavell was in England, but she moved back to Belgium to her hospital which was later taken over by the Red Cross.

As part of the German Schlieffen plan, the Germans invaded Belgium and from late 1914, Brussels was under a very strict German occupation of military rule. Many British soldiers had been lost behind in the withdrawal of the allied forces and were stuck in Brussels. Miss Cavell decided to aid the British servicemen, hiding them in the hospital and safe houses around Belgium. From these safe houses, some 200 British servicemen were able to escape to neutral Holland. At the same time, she continued to act as nurse and treated wounded soldiers from both the German and allied side. The occupying German army threatened strict punishments for anyone who was found to be ‘aiding and abetting the enemy’. Yet, despite the military rule, Miss Cavell continued to help. “Nothing but physical impossibility, lack of space and money would make me close my doors to Allied refugees.” – Edith Cavell In mid 1915, nurse Edith Cavell came under suspicion for helping allied servicemen to escape; this was not helped by her outspoken views on her perceived injustice of the occupation. In August 1915, she was arrested and held in St Gilles prison.

After her arrest, she did not try to defend herself, but only said in her defence that she felt compelled to help the people in need. After a short trial, the German military tribunal found her guilty of treason and sentenced her to execution. This surprised many observers as it seemed harsh given her honesty and fact she had saved many lives both Allied and German. Brand Whitlock, the US minister to Belgium and the Spanish Minister, ‘The Marquis de Villalobar’, made representations to the German High Command asking her sentence of death be commuted. In particular, the US minister warned the Germans that this execution of a nurse would damage Germany’s already bad reputation and would be seen as an injustice in the eyes of the world. However, the protestations from the Spanish and American embassies were in vain, the German officer in charge – Count Harrach, dismissed the pleas saying ‘He would rather see Miss Cavell shot than have harm come to one of the humblest German soldiers, and his only regret was that they had not ‘three or four English old women to shoot.‘ Execution of Nurse Edith Cavell For two weeks prior to her execution, Miss Cavell, was kept in solitary confinement, except for a few brief visits.

On the night before her execution, she was visited by the Reverend Stirling Gahan, an Anglican chaplain. He recorded her final conversation. He records that Miss Cavell said: ‘Patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness to anyone.” She is also recorded as having said: “I have seen death so often that it is not strange or fearful to me.” On her last night, she wrote to her fellow nurses, saying: “I have told you that devotion will give you real happiness, and the thought that you have done, before God and yourselves, your whole duty and with a good heart will be your greatest support in the hard moments of life and in the face of death.” The following morning she was executed with other Belgians convicted on similar charges. There are conflicting reports of her execution. But, in one report, a German soldier is said to have refused to execute Miss Cavell and was shot by his commanding officer. However, this account is refuted by Pasteur Le Seur who was at the execution. In some misleading allied propaganda, Edith Cavell was reported to have fainted with fear and refused to wear a blindfold, after which she was shot in head by a German officer.

This was found to be untrue. Edith Cavell and War Propaganda Propaganda stamp After her execution, the fate of Edith Cavell was widely publicised in the British and American media. It was shown as more evidence of German brutality and injustice. Edith Cavell was portrayed as a heroic, and innocent figure who remained steadfast in her Christian faith and willingness to die for her country. It was hoped her example would encourage more men to enlist. The incident and disgust at her treatment by Germany, played an important role in shaping American public opinion and easing America’s entry into the war, later in 1917. Interestingly, during the war the French shot two German nurses helping German forces escape. When asked why they didn’t publicise this for its similarities to Edith Cavell’s execution, the German High Command replied, ‘Why complain? the French had a perfect right to shoot them.’ After the war her body was returned to Westminster abbey for a state burial. Her body was later buried in Norwich Cathedral. Citation : Pettinger, Tejvan. “Biography of Edith Cavell”, Oxford, , 30th Nov. 2010.

Related books Testimony of Pasteur Le Seur Rev Gahan’s account of final meeting with Edith Cavell Edith Cavell – Eight Portraits by Gordon Brown Edith Cavell on Postcards : Tony Allen Edith Cavell On Postcards Tony Allen Today, Edith Cavell is probably the best known female from the Great War. Born in 1865, she was the daughter of a Norfolk clergyman, and in 1895 entered the London Hospital as a probationer and afterwards nursed in England for several years. In 1907, Edith was appointed Matron of the Berkendael Medical Institute in Brussels which she transformed into a teaching hospital of some excellence. After the outbreak of war in 1914, the hospital came under the auspices of the Red Cross. Cavell and her staff aided the sick and wounded but she also gave sanctuary to escaping Allied soldiers. In August 1915, Cavell was arrested by the Germans for "harbouring aliens and helping them to escape".

In due course she was sentenced to death, and despite efforts to save her by neutral diplomats, at dawn on 12th October 1915, she was shot by a firing squad. Just before her death she said "Standing as I do in view of God and Eternity, I realize that patriotism is not enough. I have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone". A number of picture postcards were published after Cavell's death documenting her arrest, trial, execution, burial and the eventual repatriation of her body back to England. Some of these cards are displayed on this page. This black-bordered propaganda postcard, probably went some way to perpetuate a myth which later sprang up. It said the firing squad had refused to open fire on the nurse - who had fainted - and according to the text on the back of the card, "they hesitate to shoot on the prostrate body of a woman", but nevertheless an officer took out his revolver, "and leaning over his victim, deliberately blows her brains out. REMEMBER:" This is the reverse of the card featured above. It was posted by a soldier serving on the Western Front on 6th July 1916, to an address in Essex.

Sometimes, on similar cards the sender will write a brief comment about Cavell's execution. However, 'George' simply wrote, "Tell Louise to send me a cake. I am OK". Cavell's execution was a gift to the British propaganda machine, coming as it did just a few months after the Germans sank the Lusitania, also of great propaganda value to the Allies. Another card released after her death, also fosters the myth that a German officer stepped forward after the firing squad refused to shoot the nurse. This card was printed in Paris and the picture thereon was enough to enrage at least one British soldier. It was sent to Scotland on 26th June 1917, by 'Adam' - to his mother. He wrote on the back of the card "...this is a postcard of our brave nurse, what do you think of it. I know it gives you more courage and God knows it lets you see what they would do it it was not for the British soldier today and we will beat them no matter how long it take but I think he is beat now or else if not.

it will not be long before he is a washout." The story that Cavell was killed by a shot from the pistol of the officer in charge of the firing squad, persisted for some time. Eventually, a German chaplain, Pastor Le Seur, who accompanied Cavell to her execution and witnessed the incident said, "...I told her it was my duty to stand by her side to the last." As the pastor led here to the pole a bandage was put over her eyes, "which, as the soldier who put it on told me, were full of tears." At the command, two salvos rang out from the firing squad of eight men from a distance of six paces. "With a face streaming with blood - one shot had gone through her forehead...without any doubt she was killed immediately", said Le Seur and added, "I only mention this fact because untrue rumours have been connected with it." Le Seur also said, "Finally, no soldier refused to shoot." While a number of cards showed Nurse Cavell been shot by a German officer, a card from a set of six depicted the truth - it showed her execution by a firing squad. The card is depicted below. "L'Assassinat de Miss Edith Cavell".

This card is the third in a set of six depicting the trial, execution and burial of Edith Cavell. The set was published in France and each card carried both French and English captions. Numerous postcard publishers put out patriotic and propaganda cards which featured the brave and dedicated English nurse. One particular photograph of her became world-famous and not least, through the medium of the picture postcard and an example is reproduced below - with its wrapper. This satin-finish card was sold for the benefit of the "Daily Mirror Nurse Cavell Memorial Fund". It became a well-known photograph and showed Edith Cavell with her dogs Don and Jack and is thought to have been taken in Brussels in 1910. The words below the picture, are those she spoke to the prison chaplain on the morning of her execution. After her death Edith Cavell became a household name. A famous photograph of Cavell was used on a fund-raising card captioned "BELGIAN SOLDERS FUND - 1916 - OFFICIAL SOUVENIR" and "issued under the direction of Joseph Clarkson" of Manchester. Following her death, Edith Cavell joined the ranks of good and the famous.

And a splendid example of this can be seen in the pages of The Lord Roberts Memorial Fund Stamp Album . Among her contemporaries there, were Kings and Queens, Generals and Vice-admirals, Dukes and Duchesses, Premiers and Presidents, Statesmen and Maharajahs and many other titles. These postcards were released in conjunction with the publication of the aforementioned, "The Lord Roberts Memorial Fund Stamp Album" in which there were 144 'boxes' (one, two, three or four to a page.) to place a special stamp bearing the portrait of a well-known Great War personality. In addition, sheets of biographies were available to cut up and place next to the relevant stamp in the album or the stamp on the card. The Edith Cavell postcard, stamp and bio are shown above. A most interesting purple concertina-type folder holding 12 black and white printed-photographic cards, recorded details of civilians executed by the Germans at the Tir National Shooting Gallery in Brussels. On the back of each card was printed ‘PHOTOYP . INDUST . BELGE . P.I.B.’ and along the bottom was the announcement ‘Cliche et edit R.

Ringoet, 639, ch’ Louvain, Brux (Repr. interd.)’ Some of the cards relate to Edith Cavell. The text on the front of the folder was in gold lettering - surrounded by a gold border - and read "National Shooting Range (Belgium) SOUVENIR of the CIVILIAN MARTYRS of the GREAT WAR" The purple folder holding the 12 card mentioned below The following captions are given as they appeared on the originals. The first depicts an "execution ground" with the caption saying that where "Mr. Colinet, former Directory of the Tir National, is "seen [standing, is where] the firing party was posted". The second card is an oval portrait of Edith Cavell; The third is captioned "The passage to Edith Cavell’s cell [at St-Gilles Prison"; the fourth depicts the "Visit of their Majestie’s, the King and Queen of England to the Edith CAVELL memorial",the fifth shows the "removal of Miss Edith Cavell’s body from the Tir National"; the sixth shows a memorial to "Edith Cavell and Marie DEPAGE".

The remaining six cards refer to other civilians executed by the Germans. This is the first card in the purple folder. "Mr. Colinet, former Directory of the Tir National, is seen [standing where] the firing party was posted". There is a stool in the foreground upon which "the condemned was placed", the distance between it and Mr. Colinet appears to be about ten feet. After the war, it was decided to bring the body of Edith Cavell back to England. On 17th March 1919, she was exhumed. and was "found to be well preserved and the features still recognizable." "Visit of their Majestie’s, the King and Queen of England to the Edith CAVELL memorial." This is the fourth card in the set. "Removal of Miss Edith Cavell’s body from the Tir National". The fifth card in the set. On 13th May, a troop of British soldiers escorted the body from the Tir National to Ostend,and from there to Dover on HMS Rowena.

On 15th May, a special railway carriage bore the body of Edith Cavell from Dover to London, where - through streets lined with people - a horse-drawn gun carriage took it to Westminster Abbey. After a funeral service - where among the guests was the King - the body (in accordance with the family's wishes) went by special train to Norfolk.There, it was buried outside the south transept of the cathedral. Later, a number of statues and memorials stones dedicated to Edith Cavell appeared in London and other cities and of course they were featured on picture postcards too. The real-photo card on the left was by Rotary and depicted the "NURSE CAVELL STATUE, ST.MARTIN'S PLACE, LONDON." The centre printed-photo card depicted the Cavell memorial in Brussels and gave the date of her death as 12th October 1915 - which was correct. The real-photo card on the right depicted the same memorial. But look at the date given for her execution! There were no publishers details on either card. .

Edith Cavell, RN (1865-1915), Tinker, Tailor, Nurse, Spy - Articles Archive - Nursing Jobs, RN Jobs, Career Advice at Working Nurse Edith Cavell, RN (1865-1915), Tinker, Tailor, Nurse, Spy Share Nurses involved in armed conflicts have often risked injury or death for the sake of their patients, but few nurses have faced an ordeal like that of Edith Cavell, an English nurse whose determination to save lives brought her before a German firing squad in 1915. A Promising Career Unfolds The daughter of an Anglican vicar, Cavell (whose last name rhymes with “travel”) was born in 1865 in the village of Swardeston, near Norwich, England. After working for a time as a governess, she studied nursing at the Royal London Hospital and in 1907 moved to Brussels, Belgium, to become head matron of the Berkendael Medical Institute.

In Brussels, the head of Cavell’s institute asked her to organize Belgium’s first nursing school, L’Ecole Belge d’Infimieres Diplomees, bringing professional discipline and scientific techniques to a role that until that point had been handled mainly by unskilled nuns. In 1910, Cavell founded one of the first European nursing journals, L’infirmière. Although the idea of women having careers was still controversial in conservative Belgian society, she was also in demand as a lecturer. Under an Enemy Flag When war broke out following the assassination of Austria’s Archduke Ferdinand in June 1914, Cavell was visiting her widowed mother in Norwich. Although Cavell could have remained in England, she felt duty-bound to return to Brussels, where her clinic was declared a neutral Red Cross facility. On August 4, the German army invaded and occupied Belgium. British and French civilians were ordered home, but Cavell and her assistant insisted on remaining, now supervising a staff of mostly Belgian and German nurses. That fall, two escaped British prisoners of war made their way to Cavell’s clinic seeking shelter.

Although the German occupation authority had posted signs throughout the city warning of dire penalties for anyone caught harboring an enemy combatant, Cavell’s conscience would not allow her to turn the fugitives away. She agreed to hide them and later helped them try to flee the country. Over the next ninth months, Cavell and a small network of Belgian civilians helped about 200 fugitive Allied soldiers escape back to friendly territory. This was extremely dangerous work; treating injured soldiers was one thing, but hiding them or helping them escape was a violation of Cavell’s neutrality. Moreover, as civilians, if she or her collaborators were caught, they would not be protected by international conventions regarding prisoners of war. Cavell understood the danger, but she also knew that many of the soldiers she was helping would be shot if they were captured (or in some cases recaptured) by the Germans. She was willing to risk her life for the chance to save others. Death Sentence Cavell was cautious enough to avoid suspicion for a time, but in July 1915, several of her collaborators were captured with correspondence naming Cavell. She was arrested on August 15 and, unwilling to lie even in her own defense, confessed everything.

The British Foreign Office was slow to realize Cavell’s plight and assumed that she would receive nothing worse than a prison sentence. Representatives of Spain and the United States, which were both still neutral in the conflict, pleaded for clemency, but on October 11, a German judge sentenced Cavell to death after a perfunctory two-day trial. That night, Cavell told English chaplain Stirling Gahan that she was not afraid and had no regrets about her actions or her sentence. She felt that the lives she’d saved were worth the consequences and expressed no malice towards her captors. Early the following morning, she and another of her collaborators, Belgian architect Philippe Baucq, were executed by a German firing squad. The execution proved to be a major diplomatic blunder for Germany, provoking international outrage and galvanizing anti-German sentiment. England’s King George V attended Cavell’s memorial service and her likeness soon appeared on British recruitment posters. She was hailed as a martyr of the Allied cause.

Cavell’s life has been dramatized in numerous films, plays and novels and the anniversary of her death is still commemorated each year at Norwich Cathedral, where her body was reburied in 1919. The charitable foundation established in her name back in 1917, Cavell Nurses’ Trust ( still exists today, supporting British nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants facing personal crisis or financial hardship. This article is from workingnurse.com. The Legends and Traditions of the Great War: Nurse Edith Cavell By Joy LaValley with Archival Material from Donna Cunningham Both of the Great War Society In the summer of 1914, Edith Cavell, head matron of the Berkendael Medical Institute, was on a brief holiday visiting her family in England when news came of the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand in far Sarajevo. Edith's family urged her to stay in England, but she believed duty demanded that she return to the hospital in Brussels. When she said good-bye she did not know that she would never see her family again. On 4 August the Germans invaded Belgium.

Soon the hospital where Edith worked became a Red Cross hospital and wounded soldiers from both sides Belgians, Germans, French, British were cared for. There were posters all over Brussels warning that "Any male or female who hides an English or French soldier in his house shall be severely punished." In spite of this warning, there were soon successful efforts to hide soldiers who were wounded or separated from their units, then given refuge and helped to escape to safety. In Edith Cavell's hospital, wounded Allied soldiers were tended and then helped to escape. Soon Edith was persuaded to make room for some of the unfortunates who were not wounded but merely fleeing the Germans. They too were helped to get to places where they could rejoin Allied forces. The Germans became more watchful of the comings and goings at the hospital and Edith Cavell was warned by friends that she was suspected of hiding soldiers and helping them escape. But her strong feelings of compassion and patriotism overruled the warnings and she continued to do what she thought was her duty. On 15 August 1915, as was almost inevitable, she was arrested by the German police and charged with assisting the enemy.

The Germans suspected that not only were she and others helping Allied soldiers but that the same communication lines were used to divulge German military plans --- a serious charge indeed. Trafalgar Square Memorial Edith was held incommunicado for ten weeks. Brand Whitlock, the American minister to Belgium, was refused permission to see her. Even her appointed defense lawyer, Sadi Kirchen (a Brussels attorney), was not allowed to see her until 7 October, the day her trial began. Thirty-four others were accused of the same crime and were tried as a group. Several of the accused were friends of Edith's who had worked with her in helping the Allied soldiers. The trial lasted only two days. Each person was accused of aiding the enemy and was told that, if found guilty, would be sentenced to death for treason. Edith's lawyer was eloquent in her defense, saying that she had acted out of compassion for others. But Edith's devotion to the truth condemned her she would not lie to save her life. She openly admitted that she had helped as many as 200 men to escape, who she knew they could then be able to fight the Germans again, and that some of them had written letters of thanks for her help.

This was enough to cause her to be judged guilty and the sentence to be executed. The final judgment was postponed for three days and during that time desperate attempts were made to save her. The American legation petitioned the German authorities in Brussels. A group composed of M. de Leval, the Belgian councilor to the American Legation; Hugh Gibson, secretary to the American Legation; and the Marquis de Villalobar, the Spanish minister to Belgium, made a hurried visit to the political governor of Brussels, Baron von der Lancken. He listened to their pleas but said that he could not reverse the court's decision. Only the military governor, Von Sauberzweig, had such authority. But even he, after being reached by phone, said that the sentence had to be carried out. In despair, the three men left ­ they could do no more. On 11 October the prison chaplain, the Rev. Gahan, visited Edith and found her resigned to her fate. She told him. "I want my friends to know that I willingly give my life for my country. I have no fear nor shirking.

I have seen death so often that it is not strange or fearful to me." Even the German chaplain praised her for being "brave and bright to the last." On the morning of 12 October Edith Cavell and Philippe Baucq were taken to the Tir National, the Brussels firing range. At 7 a.m. both lay dead in the morning sun. On the 90th anniversary of Edith Cavell's execution, a recently completed cataloguing project of Prisoner of War files at The National Archives in Kew has revealed the ineffectual efforts of government officials to prevent the death of the British World War One hero. The documents reveal the frustration, anger and eventual horror of the Government's failure to save Ms Cavell, despite being notified of the nurse's arrest and subsequent trial - on charges of aiding more than 200 allied troops to escape occupied Belgium - almost two months before her execution on October 12 in Brussels. Examples of documents within file FO 383/15 include the following records.

24 August, 1915 (7 weeks before execution) "I have news through Dutch sources that my wife's sister a Miss Edith Cavell has been arrested in Brussels and I can get no news as to what has happened to her since August 5." - Personal Letter from Edith Cavell's brother-in-law, Dr Longworth Wainwright informing the Foreign Office of her possible arrest. 21 September, 1915 (3 weeks before execution) "Ms Cavell has informed the Legation that she has indeed admitted having hidden in her house English and French soldiers. The legation will of course keep this case in view and endeavour to see that a fair trial is given Miss Cavell." - Inter-governmental correspondence from American Minister to Brussels, Brand Whitlock, confirming Edith Cavell's arrest. (Received on September 28). 1 October, 1915 (2 weeks before execution) "I'm afraid it is likely to go hard with Miss Cavell. I'm afraid we are powerless." - In-house memo from Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Sir Horace Rowland.

9 October, 1915 (3 days before execution) "Dr Wainwright will be very grateful for any further information that may be obtained and also for instruction as to whether it is possible to communicate with or send comforts to Miss Cavell." - Letter from Dr Wainwright. (Received October 11). 11 October, 1915 (1 day before execution) "(Miss Cavell's) trial has been completed and the German prosecutor has asked for sentence of death penalty against her. I have some hope that the court martial may decline to pass the rigorous sentence proposed." - Inter-government correspondence from Brand Whitlock. That night, at 2am on the morning of October 12, 1915, Edith Cavell was executed by firing squad, less than ten hours after sentence was passed. Following Edith Cavell's execution letters, reports and newspaper articles (found in FO383/15) give an insight into the horror being felt at the events that took place.

Included are the official report from the American Legation in Brussels on the circumstances leading up to Edith Cavell's death; and the harrowing blow-by-blow account of their desperate efforts to save the nurse as the Germans rushed to execute her less than ten hours after sentencing. Examples of documents within file FO 383/15: 13 October, 1915 (Execution day plus 1) "Miss Cavell sentenced yesterday and executed at two o'clock this morning despite our best efforts continued until the last moment." - Correspondence from US Ambassador to London, Walter Hines Page. 14 October, 1915 (Execution day plus 2) "Dear sir, Forgive my worrying you again so soon, I had a wire dated from Holland yesterday morning, 'Miss Edith Cavell died this morning' from Gahan chaplain, Brussels. Have you any information on what this implies." - Letter from Dr Wainwright. "I had hoped that the Germans wouldn't go beyond imprisoning her in Germany. Their action in this matter is part and parcel of their policy of frightfulness and also I venture to think a sign of weakness." In-house memo from Sir Horace Rowland.

15 October, 1915 (Execution day plus 3) "The Foreign Office desire to state that in this country no woman convicted of assisting the King's enemies, even found guilty of espionage, has hitherto been subject to a greater penalty than a term of penal servitude." - Foreign Office Press Release. For further information visit: From Donna Cunningham Even in death, Edith Cavell caused other lives to be saved. There was such a storm of protest all over the world that the Germans were moved to spare the lives of the other 33 accused prisoners. Another result of the tragic event was that thousands of volunteers in England, Canada, Australia and other parts of the British Empire lined up at recruiting stations. And in the United States, there was enormous popular pressure for America to declare war on Germany. The name of Edith Cavell's lives on in many ways. In Brussels the nurses' training school is called Ecole Edith Cavell. In London's Trafalgar Square there is statue of her in her nurse's cloak. In Paris' Tuileries there is a beautiful sculpture of her. In Canada a western mountain is named Mt. Cavell. In the U.S.

Rocky Mountains, there is Cavell Glacier. And in Swardeston, where she was born, the window over the altar of the church is dedicated to her. Edith is buried in Life's Green, close to the World War I memorial chapel at Norwich Cathedral. Her body was returned to England after the war ended and visitors still stop to see her grave. . Joy LaValley's article is a slightly abbreviated version of her piece which appeared in Relevance: The Quarterly Journal of the Great War Society, Vol. 5 no1. Donna Cunningham drew on Material made available on the 90th Anniversary of Nurse Cavell's execution. The photo of the Trafalgar Square Memorial was contributed by Lanayre Liggera, Chairman of the New York-New England Chapter of the Western Front Association. For more Legends and Traditions of the Great War return to the 10 Greatest Nurses of World War I - Top RN to BSN Top RN to BSN Enter to search; Esc to exit Post navigation 10 Greatest Nurses of World War I By Jonathan Beachy Image Source The nurses of World War I are truly inspirational heroes.

They overcame insurmountable odds, endured gender-based prejudice, and helped a flood of wounded soldiers under enemy fire. Each of these courageous women, though patriots of different countries, were ultimately devoted to the true calling of nursing: saving human life. Some did it through administration and coordination. Some stood firmly at their posts while bombs exploded around them. And others were so passionate that they continued their work despite being in direct opposition to military law. In the end, there is no doubt that each nurse is a credit to the nursing profession. 10. Lenah Higbee Image Source Lenah Higbee was one of the first nurses to join the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps when it was established in 1908. This move required sacrifice and perseverance, as many members of the Navy considered female nurses unwelcome pariahs, indeed, they were not even given rank. Lenah Higbee gave navy nursing her all and was quickly appointed Chief Nurse. A few years later, she was promoted to Superintendent of the Nurse Corps, the second woman to hold the position. Higbee was the first female to be awarded the Navy Cross, for her unusual and conspicuous devotion to duty during WWI.

And after her death, a naval combat ship was named USS Higbee in her honor. It was the first time a naval vessel had been named after a female service member. 9. Linnie Leckrone Image Source Linnie Leckrone was one of the unsung heroes of WWI. She was part of a small gas and shock team who worked tirelessly in France during the war. Despite displaying extraordinary bravery caring for the wounded in the face of a tooth-rattling artillery attack, her return home went unmarked. There was no parade and no welcome-home ceremony. Although Leckrone was going to be awarded a Citation Star for her efforts, she was discharged from the army before it was formally presented. Her courageous service was finally recognized posthumously in 2007, when her daughter Mary Jane Bolles Reed accepted a Silver Star in her place. The Silver Star is the third-highest award for bravery granted by the U.S. military, and Linnie Leckrone was one of the first three women to receive it. 8. Elsa Brandstrom Image Source Elsa Brandstrom was nicknamed “the Angel of Siberia” for good reason.

She was the daughter of the Swedish ambassador to Tsar Nicholas II and was in Russia during the outbreak of WWI. Determined to help, she volunteered and put her nursing skills to use with the Russian army. In 1915, Brandstrom was in Siberia treating German prisoners of war with the Swedish Red Cross. Matters got more complicated when her Russian work permit was revoked, but that didn’t stop her. Brandstrom continued traveling to Siberia illegally for two whole years, until the Russian authorities arrested her in Omsk in 1920. Upon her release, she went back to Sweden and launched a campaign to help POWs. Her efforts included fundraising and founding a children’s home with room for more than 200 orphans. Eventually, she married and moved to the United States. But even there she dedicated herself to helping German and Austrian refugees. 7. Dorothie Feilding Image Source Dorothie Feilding was born into a rich, aristocratic family in Warwickshire, England. She was presented to the King and Queen of England when she was 18 years old. But fielding shunned her entitled upbringing and jumped into the war effort with both feet.

She became an ambulance driver with a volunteer unit stationed in Belgium. And the Western Front soon provided its own challenges, from driving under enemy fire, to dealing with inconvenient marriage proposals and lice. Feilding was easy-going and charismatic, even hosting tea parties amongst the ruins of Furnes. Her bravery earned her a French Croix de guerre (bronze star), a Belgian Order of Leopold II Knights Cross, and the English Military Medal for Bravery. This last honor was presented to her by King George V at Windsor Castle. 6. Florence Farmborough Image Source From writing to photography, Florence Farmborough was a woman of many talents. And she put them to good use during the war. She left Britain for Russia in 1908 and worked as a governess for a family in Kiev. Later, she worked as an English teacher, tutoring the daughters of an accomplished heart surgeon. But when war broke out, she joined the Imperial Russian army as a Red Cross nurse. Farmborough tended to the wounded on the Galician and Romanian fronts. And in the midst of the madness and ravages of war, she was not only a dedicated nurse but also worked as a reporter for The Times and BBC Radio.

Using extracts from her journals, Nurse at the Russian Front was first published in 1974, detailing Farmborough’s wartime nursing experiences. 5. Julia C. Stimson Image Source Julia C. Stimson has been described as energetic, charismatic, courageous, and determined; and she needed to be to make a difference during the Great War. Her passion and devotion to excellence were evident at an early age, as she was one of the few young women of her day to get an undergraduate degree. Julia earned a place at Vassar College at the incredibly young age of 16. Her career path eventually led her to the Army Nurse Corps, and in May 1917 she went to France with Base Hospital 21. By 1918, she’d been made chief nurse of the American Red Cross in France. From there, she was pulled back from the front-line to fill a vital administrative role in Paris, orchestrating the nursing service of the American Expeditionary Forces. Through her efforts, thousands of wounded soldiers received good medical care. And as a result, she was awarded the United States Distinguished Service Medal at the end of the war.

She continued to work as a nurse after the war and was a key recruiter of female nurses for WWII. She was also the first woman to be awarded the rank of major in the U.S. army. 4. Alice Ross-King Image Source For Alice Ross-King of the Royal Australian Imperial Force (AIF), nursing during the war included surviving a pretty dramatic German air attack at the Casualty Clearing station where she was working in Omer, France. Only five days after her arrival in Omer, German planes bombed the station. Missiles whistled out of the night sky and exploded all around her, throwing her to the ground. She staggered back to her feet, temporarily confused by the sound of planes and artillery roaring overhead. Bombs were bursting around the buildings and tents, but Alice ran straight into the danger zone, her only thought being the welfare of her patients. Alice Ross-King’s inspirational service under enemy fire earned her the Military Medal for great coolness and devotion to duty. 3. Anna Caroline Maxwell Image Source Not all of the great nursing successes of WWI happened on the frontline. Anna Caroline Maxwell, who has been called the “American Florence Nightingale,” worked behind the scenes.

And her dedication to education and improved standards helped to make nursing the prestigious profession it is today. Anna is known for her role in establishing the U.S. Army Nurse Corps. She was also pivotal in ensuring that nurses were awarded military ranks. Her main focus through the years was education and training. She was the director of the Presbyterian Hospital’s nursing school, which later became Columbia University’s School of Nursing. All this work and training became vital at the outbreak of World War I. Using her administrative gifts and educational programs, she was crucial in preparing nurses for active service. The French government awarded her the Medaille de l’Hygiene Publique (Medal of honor for Public Health). 2. Mairi Chisholm Image Source Mairi Chisholm was a Scottish motorbike fanatic whose penchant for hairpin turns won her an invitation to join the Flying Ambulance Corps in Belgium. She and her biker-friend Elsie Knocker joined forces and were soon doing vital wartime work, ferrying wounded soldiers to a field hospital in Furnes. Mairi was also tasked with taking mutilated corpses to the mortuary. Yet, discouraged by the number of men they were losing, Mairi and Elsie decided to leave the Corps.

They found an abandoned cellar in Pervyse and set up their own illegal dressing station, just 100 yards from the trenches. With no affiliation to the Belgian Red Cross, they had to find their own supplies and support. Fortunately, Mairi and Elsie managed to be seconded to the Belgian troops stationed nearby. Together, they saved the lives of thousands of men on the Belgian Western Front Ð men who would have no doubt died on their way to the Corps hospital. Mairi was awarded the Belgian Order of Leopold II Knights Cross, the Order of Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, the 1914 Star, and the British Military Medal. 1. Edith Cavell Image Source Edith Cavell was a British nurse famous for treating countless soldiers, no matter their nationality, and helping as many as 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during WWI. When Brussels fell to the Germans in November 1914, Cavell walked away from her British Secret Intelligence Service recruitment to hide wounded Allied soldiers and sneak them out of the country to safety. The soldiers were given fake identification and hidden until they could make it to the Dutch frontier.

In August 1915, Edith was betrayed by German collaborator Gaston Quien. German soldiers arrested Edith for treason and subjected her to a court-martial. Cavell admitted that she had personally harbored about 175 men in her home and helped them to escape. Her actions went directly against German military law. Despite international pressure for mercy, she was sentenced to death and executed by a 16-man German firing squad on October 12, 1915. Highlighting the impact of Edith’s role in the war and the resonance of her ultimate sacrifice, popular British starlet Anna Neagle played the fearless nurse in the Oscar-nominated 1939 film Nurse Edith Cavell. In addition to the numerous stone memorials that have been erected, streets, medical and nursing facilities, schools, and gardens, from the UK and Belgium, to Australia, Canada and the USA, have all been named in Edith Cavell’s honor.

Great Ladies of History - Edith Louise Cavell - The Association of the Covenant People Posted by ACP | Jul 10, 2015 | Bits and Pieces | 0 | Not the labour of my hands, can fulfill Thy law’s demands. Could my zeal no respite know, could my tears for ever flow? All for sin could not atone, Thou must save and Thou alone. In the grey light of an October morning in 1915, Nurse Edith Cavell faced a firing squad of German soldiers with a calmness and dignity which won the admiration of the world. The chaplain who was present with her at the end carefully noted her last words, “I am not afraid or apprehensive. I have seen death so often that it does not seem to me strange or terrible. I want to say now that I face God and eternity, that I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must not hate or feel bitter towards anybody.” Edith Louisa Cavell, then not quite 50 years of age, was a British nurse.

She is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers from both sides without discrimination and in helping some 200 Allied soldiers escape from German-occupied Belgium during the First World War, for which she was arrested. She was subsequently court-martialed, found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. Despite international pressure for mercy, she was shot by a German firing squad. Her execution received worldwide condemnation and extensive press coverage. Her father was rector of the village for over fifty years, but did not live, as his wife did, to mourn with pride the tragic end of their daughter. She was a special child of God. Indeed, as a child she early revealed a fondness and natural ability for nursing the sick. The story is told that when on one occasion she was missing from her home all night; the next morning was found in the house of a sick neighbor whom she had attended to throughout the night. She was subsequently appointed the first Ma­tron of the Berkendael Medical Institute, Brussels, which became a Red Cross hospital on the outbreak of the First World War Edith Cavell set the highest possible example of selfless and devoted care for the wounded and broken soldiers who were brought to the hospital.

She did more: when the country was overrun by the Germans she played a leading part in helping many English and French soldiers to reach the Dutch frontier. But the brave British woman soon fell under suspicion, and on 5th August, 1915, she was arrested and put into prison for having sheltered and helped to the frontier some two hundred soldiers. A court-martial was held on 7th and 8th October, at which she was sentenced to death. All efforts to obtain a reprieve were unsuccessful, and on 12th October, 1915, Nurse Cavell walked serenely to her appointment with death. On the base of her memorial statue, which stands opposite the National Portrait Gallery in London, her last historic words are inscribed: “Patriotism Is Not Enough.” There are many people who have never learned that patriotism, or the observance of any other duty, however excellent, is not enough with which to face God and eternity. But the Bible makes it clear that the only way to obtain that necessary inward peace and assurance is through acceptance of Christ’s atoning sacrifice. Have you rested your soul alone and entirely upon Christ?

Share this: 1000+ images about We Will Remember Them on Pinterest | Poppy fields, Remembrance day activities and The 11th hour Forward Edith Louisa Cavell - Was a British nurse who is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers from all sides during World War I, for which she was arrested. She was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. Despite international pressure for mercy, she was shot by a German firing squad. Her execution received worldwide condemnation and extensive press coverage. She is well known for her statement that "patriotism is not enough. I can’t stop while there are lives to be saved." See More 1000+ images about We Will Remember Them on Pinterest | Poppy fields, Remembrance day activities and The 11th hour Forward Edith Louisa Cavell - Was a British nurse who is celebrated for saving the lives of soldiers from all sides during World War I, for which she was arrested. She was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death. Despite international pressure for mercy, she was shot by a German firing squad. Her execution received worldwide condemnation and extensive press coverage. She is well known for her statement that "patriotism is not enough.

I can’t stop while there are lives to be saved." See more

Question: Who was the British nurse arrested in Brussels and shot by firing squad in 1915 on suspicion of helping Allied solders to escape?
Answer: Edith Cavell