Dunluce Castle and other photos of Hospital ships and impressions from the Mediterranean Theater of War

[GreyC]

Hi,

a while ago I posted a question with regard to the Dunluce Castle. The reason being that I bought a photo-album years ago that belonged to a Sub-Lieutnant of HMHS Dunluce Castle with about 100 photos covering his service on board and images of the theater of war in the Mediterranean.

I have a few questions regarding some of the photos and hope to find answers via the knowledgeable people here at the GWF. On the other hand I noticed how few photos were included in the existing photos around the topic of Hospital Ships during the campaign, so some of you like @seaJane, @frev, @ZeZe, @KizmeRD, @alf mcm, @Bryn, @Jeff Pickerd, @FionaBam and others may be interested. If any of you know of other folk interested, please let them know of this thread.

I will post photos a few at the time, so as to be able to concentrate on the images and possible questions or comments around them.

First a photo of Katharine Harley, a nurse who was killed on duty in 1917, sister of FM French.

A fine biography has already been posted here:

https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/145809-fm-frenchs-sister-nurse-katharine-harley/#comment-3346090

But as most of the contributors to it haven´t been active for years I have decided to post the photo here. It shows Haley among her group of Scottish nurses on board the Dunluce Castle.

First, though, a pic of the ship itself off Sulva:

 

 

 

Edited 24 November by GreyC

[Jeff Pickerd]

GreyC, 

Many thanks for your post, adds a little more to my grandfathers evacuation to hospital at Malta on board the HMHS Dunluce Castle, I now know it was Hospital Ship No. 18 and sailed from Lemnos to Malta and the nursing compliment were most probably the Scottish nurses pictured. 
 

Jeff

[KizmeRD]

The SWH nurses/orderlies* were transiting to Greece in late 1915, they were not the permanent nursing compliment of Dunluce Castle during the Gallipoli Campaign.

M…

Edit  - I understand this was the Newnham & Girton Unit (named after the two Cambridge women’s Colleges that funded it) of the SWH.

Edited 25 November by KizmeRD

[GreyC]

Hi,

thank you for your comments,

here seem to be the "regular" nurses. And as a bonus, they are named!

GreyC

Edited 25 November by GreyC

[alf mcm]

GreyC,

  This is an excellent photograph. The Matron, in centre with dark {scarlet] cuffs is Winifred ATTENBOROUGH, T.F.N.S.. I'm sure we can put full names and nursing service to all the other nurses.

Regards,

Alf McM

[GreyC]

Thank you for providing the name to the matron. Great! TFNS = Territorial Forces Nursing Service

@ZeZe  has her as

Served A/Matron, H.M.H.S. Dunluce Castle, 23 December 1915 to 5 November 1916 (in: hospital-ships-dunluce-castle-and-devanha-evacuation-of-the-serbian-army-from-the-coast-of-albania), so we have a time frame for dating the photo and a point in time for the service of the other nurses on it.

GreyC

Edited 25 November by GreyC

[ZeZe]

Hi GreyC

It’s very good to see the nurses' faces in the named group photo so clearly.

The timeline (on the GWF post 'Hospital Ships Dunluce Castle and Devanha; Evacuation of the Serbian Army from the Coast of Albania early 1916') is missing the following:

Forsyth, Williams, Mabel, Sparrow, Gerty,

Two possible matches (both are on the timeline): 

for Dodd – she could be Amy Dodd WO 399/10902 who was present on “Devanha” in the period.

and for Sophie – there is Annie Sophia Shaw WO 399/7488 who was also awarded the Serbian Cross. There appears to be a gap in her record which fits date wise between ‘Struck off strength No.21 Gen Hosp 03.10.15’ and ‘Joined for duty 31 Gen Hosp (Port Said) 16.04.16’.

Regards ZeZe

[GreyC]

Great!

That´s what I hoped for: to fill in gaps and put faces to names.

Best,

GreyC

PS: Will post the next ones tomorrow.

Edited 25 November by GreyC

[GreyC]

For more interesting information on Mrs. Harley see:

https://www.greatwarforum.org/topic/71358-katherine-mary-harley/page/2/

GreyC

Edited Monday at 18:15 by GreyC

[KizmeRD]

Earlier today I misattributed the SWH unit sailing on the Dunluce Castle as the Newnham & Girton unit, whereas having now done a lot of further reading, I have established that it was in fact the so called ‘American’ unit (aka the Ostrovo unit). This unit was the second of three SWH units established in Macedonia. (It was funded chiefly by Americans and was named in gratitude to the donors).

In August 1916 the unit (including Katherine Harley) embarked on the Dunluce Castle (together with No 41 British General Hospital) and sailed from Southampton to Salonika. Dr Agnes Benett was the Chief Medical Officer. Soon after the unit arrived at Salonika they deployed 90 miles to the north–west in the area around Lake Ostrovo (now Lake Vegoritida in Greece), where they supported the Serbian Army. (Mrs Harley, remained behind in Salonika as head of mission).

M…

Edited Monday at 18:33 by KizmeRD

[GreyC]

Thank you Michael,

so the Dunluce Castle was in Southampton in August 1916 and from there made her way to Salonika? I have a couple of photos of Salonika but none of Southampton, regrettably. Do you know when she reached Southampton?

GreyC

Edited Monday at 18:56 by GreyC

[seaJane]

With QAIMNS ladies aboard this will have had RAMC staff so I'm afraid I can't help. But everyone else seems to be rallying round!

[GreyC]

That´s quite ok, hope I can keep you interested.

GreyC

[seaJane]

Always 

[GreyC]

7 minutes ago, seaJane said:

Always

Dear SeaJane,

one more post and you´re a member of the 10,000 club!

Fabulous!

GreyC

[GreyC]

To honour SeaJanes upcoming 10,000 post a photo showing five hospital-ships on "cab-rank" in Alexandria. So with the Dunluce Castle there must have been at least six HMHS in the port at the time. I wonder if anybody can supply a date to the photo or was it common that so many hospital-ships lay idle in Alexandria? Four of them are named, the fifth barely visible on the left (just a bit of the bow).

GreyC

Edited Monday at 22:28 by GreyC

[seaJane]

Well, perhaps this will be useful. Some Dunluce Castle mentions in here:   https://archive.org/details/withcamerainmypo0000moll/mode/1up?q="dunluce+castle"

[KizmeRD]

3 hours ago, GreyC said:

so the Dunluce Castle was in Southampton in August 1916 and from there made her way to Salonika? I have a couple of photos of Salonika but none of Southampton, regrettably. Do you know when she reached Southampton?

Not sure exactly when she arrived in Southampton, but must have been sometime at the end of July/beginning of August 1916.

The ship sailed (I think) on 3rd August and arrived in Salonika on 13 August - so I doubt that she made any stops on the way (2,832 n.m.)

Michael

[GreyC]

 

19 minutes ago, seaJane said:

Well, perhaps this will be useful.

Very useful, thank you for linking it. And congrats to 10,000 posts!

GreyC

15 minutes ago, KizmeRD said:

must have been sometime at the end of July/beginning of August 1916.

Thanks a lot Michael, much appreciated!

GreyC

Edited Monday at 22:50 by GreyC

[GreyC]

The link SeaJane provided gives the account of a nurse by the name of Hughes who joined the crew of Dunluce Castle on 17th July 1917. Quite interesting.

From ZeZe we know that Annie Sophia Shaw (who is on the photo of all the named nurses) left the Dunluce Castle before 16th April 1916, the photo must have been taken before that date, the earliest date Annie Sophia Shaw could have been on board was the 3rd Oct 1915. So the photo was taken between these dates.

GreyC

[frev]

19 hours ago, GreyC said:

GreyC

Great photo - thanks for sharing.

Sorry if this has already been pointed out, but the five nurses at the back are:

 

FORSYTH, Ethel Lilian (AANS)

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=4019236

https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/127499

On staff of the Dunluce Castle 24/8/1915 – was in London by 19/7/1916

 

YOUNG, Elizabeth Buchanan – NZANS (22/93)

https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C35814?srt=relevance&n=elizabeth+buchanan+young&from=%2Fwar-memorial%2Fonline-cenotaph%2Fsearch&ordinal=0

 

JEFFRIES, Eleanor Wibmer (AANS)

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=11610405

https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/166516

Joined the Dunluce Castle 24/8/1915 to… present at the evacuation – appointed Head Sister 1AAH, Harefield, London 1/3/1916 – attached 1AAH 3/7/1916

 

WILLIAMS, Bertha Mary (AANS)

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1805742

https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/802336

On staff of the Dunluce Castle 1/5/1916 – 3^rd AGH, Abbassia, Egypt 7/7/1916

 

O’CONNOR, Mary – NZANS (22/86)

https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C52071?srt=relevance&n=mary+o%27connor&from=%2Fwar-memorial%2Fonline-cenotaph%2Fsearch&ordinal=1

From her Bio: “Served on the Hospital Ship Dunluce Castle from March to November 1916.”

 

Cheers, Frev

Edited Tuesday at 04:09 by frev

[GreyC]

Thank you very much Frev! That helps a lot.

As I am not familiar with the topic so much could you tell me what

3rd AGH

and

1AAH

means?

Thanks again,

GreyC

[KizmeRD]

Great info from Frev.
In view of the time difference between Aus and Europe, allow me to reply…

3rd Australian General Hospital.  https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/3rd-australian-general-hospital

1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital.  https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/harefield
 

M…

[michaeldr]

5 hours ago, frev said:

WILLIAMS, Bertha Mary (AANS)

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1805742

https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/802336

On staff of the Dunluce Castle 1/5/1916 – 3^rd AGH, Abbassia, Egypt 7/7/1916

That's very useful as it gives a likely time-frame for the photograph: 1st May to 7th July 1916

[GreyC]

6 hours ago, frev said:

JEFFRIES, Eleanor Wibmer (AANS)

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=11610405

https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/166516

Joined the Dunluce Castle 24/8/1915 to… present at the evacuation – appointed Head Sister 1AAH, Harefield, London 1/3/1916 – attached 1AAH 3/7/1916

Hi,

just to understand this information better: Does "attached" mean that she was physically present from 3rd July 1916 and appointed Head Sister 1AAH while still someplace (Dunluce Castle) else? Which would narrow the time frame as suggested by @michaeldr for the photo even further (thanks for pointing that out MichaelDr). And thanks to KizmeRD for helping me to understand the abbreviations,

GreyC

Thank you,

GreyC