Dr Elsie Inglis

[ericwebb]

All,

To stimulate interest, as I hope.

I ran across Elsie in the course of some earlier researches a few years ago and went a bit deeper last year. Here is a brief summary of an illustrated talk I gave at our local WFA branch.

Elsie Inglis 1864 - 1917

Winston Churchill wrote: ‘The fame of Elsie Inglis will shine in history.’

The Serbs said: ‘In Scotland she was a Doctor; in Serbia we would make her a Saint!’

Who was this paragon of womanly virtue?

Elsie Inglis was a daughter of the Raj; she was born in British India, where she spent her early years. After she and her parents returned home to the UK she completed her education in Edinburgh.

She then trained as a Doctor, at a time when there were still few women in the medical profession and they still had much prejudice to combat. She went on to establish herself, in Edinburgh, as an obstetrician and gynæcologist and general surgeon. Over the years she became one of the city’s leading medical consultants, of either sex.

She also involved herself in the women’s suffrage movement and in this too she rose to a leading position, as honorary secretary of the Scottish Federation of Women’s Suffrage Societies.

In her 50th year the Great War broke out; she offered her services to the RAMC but she was turned down: ‘My good lady, go home and sit still!’ Not to be thwarted, with the support of the Suffrage Societies she set out to offer battlefield hospitals to Britain’s allies in the War. After a little debate, the organisation which came into being to that end was entitled the Scottish Women’s Hospitals, but despite its name it drew donations, and volunteers, from the whole country.

By 30th October 1914, less than 3 months into the War, the SWH had raised £1,000 [about £100,000 at today's values], enough to equip a 100 bed hospital. In early January 1915 that first hospital opened, at Royaumont 25 miles north of Paris. Royaumont then operated continuously until it closed in March 1919. At its peak it was the largest British voluntary hospital in France, with 600 beds. Together with a later out-station, it treated over 10,000 patients, mostly French soldiers with some civilians.

At the same time the SWH was also sending hospitals to Serbia; in April 1915 Elsie went out to take charge of these. That autumn in a fresh offensive the Germans, Austrians and Bulgarians together overran the country. Elsie sent most of her people to safety, but she and one hospital stayed put and eventually, in November 1915, they were captured. They were permitted to continue in operation until February 1916, then repatriated.

The Germans were entirely polite, until Elsie refused to sign a statement attesting to their good behaviour, when they became very threatening. She kept her head, and her nerve, and maintained her refusal until eventually they backed down. She later learned that they had very recently shot Edith Cavell in Belgium. A testimonial of good conduct over her own signature would have had immense propaganda value to set against that.

Back in the UK, through the early months of 1916 she tried strenuously to win official blessing for a hospital for British Indian forces in Mesopotamia, but without success. The Indian Government was keen enough but the British War Office was not. It is very tempting to see male prejudice at work here, in the shape of the Secretary for War himself: the famously misogynous Lord Kitchener.

Later that year, Elsie returned to the Balkans, to Rumania, with 2 more hospitals. These had originally been intended for the benefit of Serb troops serving with the Russians, but in the event, as the fighting ebbed and flowed, they treated Russians and Rumanians too. They several time had to move at short notice to avoid being overrun by enemy advances.

In 1917, as Russia fell into revolutionary chaos, Elsie became increasingly involved in efforts to have the Serb troops brought to England. She lobbied vigorously on their behalf by letter and telegram. Eventually that autumn her efforts bore fruit, but by then she was mortally ill with cancer. After a gruelling 2 week train journey across Russia to Archangel, then by ship back to Newcastle, she died there in the Station Hotel on 26th November, just 3 days after arriving home.

She received a state funeral in Edinburgh; her body lies in Dean Cemetery and she has a fine memorial in St. Giles Cathedral.

In Scotland and in Serbia she is still well-renowned, but alas all-but forgotten otherwise, and although she has had several biographers she has earned no place in any official history of the War.

Yet she was a key figure, and a true heroine. She deserves to be remembered both as a great individual, and as representing an ideal: of determination and of self-sacrifice. Her achievements still have a lively resonance, if we will only pay them due regard.

Eric Webb

[PhilB]

She has appeared before, Eric. See :-

 

[marina]

Good to see her flagged up again, though. A truly remarkable woman.

Marina

[sunflower]

Elsie Inglis was a remarkable women and surgeon. There is an exhibition in Edinburgh at the The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Nicolson St,Edinburgh, EH8 9DW, UK (just 10 minutes from Princes St) which is all about the Scottish Women's Hospitals and has lots of interesting info on display.

The Scottish Women's Hospitals

Surgeons' Hall Pathology Museum

June 2005 - June 2006

"these quiet women...were the true pioneers. They did not call upon the world to listen to what women might, could or should do under quite different conditions; they simply did - under the existing conditions - first the thing that needed to be done, then and there"

http://www.rcsed.ac.uk/site/619/default.aspx

Regards, sunflower

[Tom Morgan]

There's also a very good book about Elsie Inglis - "Between the Lines - Letters and Diaries from Elsie Inglis's Russian Unit" by Audrey Fawcett Cahill.

Tom

[Roxy]

I'd heard of Elsie Inglis before (born in the Hospital in Edinburgh named after her) but had not read about her. A truly remarkable woman. Thanks for the info.

Roxy

[Malcolm]

Dr Elsie Inglis plaque in St Giles Cathederal.

To The Beloved and

Honoured Memory

of Elsie Maud Inglis

Surgeon Philanthropist

Founder in 1914 of the

Scottish Women's Hospitals

for service with the Allies

in France * Serbia * Russia,

born 1864

Died on Active Service 1917

MORS JANUA VITAE

(Death is the gate of Life)

Aye

Malcolm

Edited 9 February , 2006 by Malcolm

[marina]

Nice photo, Malcolm.

Marina

[ericwebb]

Thaks all, especially for the link to the previous discussion. Here's the great value of an Internet forum: so far as I know, none of the photos has previously been published.

The best [fairly] modern biography of Elsie, albeit sadly no longer in print [but easily available 2nd hand on Abebooks], is Shadow of Swords by Margot Lawrence pub. 1971 Michael Joseph.

Good wishes,

Eric