Undoutedly Florence Nightingale’s most famous contribution came during the Crimean War. In 1854 war was declared by Great Britain and other countries on Russia and reports began to filter back to Britain about the inhumane conditions and the lack of care for the the sick and injured ally troops.
Money for medical supplies was raised by the public to be sent to the Crimea and Sidney Herbert, Britain’s Secretary of War and family friend wanted Florence to take responsibility to change the conditions in the army hospitals by taking trained female nurses to the front line, but the army did not allow women in their hospitals.
By the end of 1854, Florence and a staff of 38 women volunteer nurses, trained by Nightingale and including her aunt Mai Smith, had travelled to the army hospital at Scutari in Turkey. There were a huge number of injured soldiers, hardly any of which were receiving even basic care and treatment for their injuries. Despite this, the male army doctors still refused to allow Florence and her nurses to help at all.
Then, at the battle of Balaclava, many men were killed and injured. The hospital was overrun with seriously injured soldiers and Florence and her nurses were allowed to help them; they provided clean bedding and bandages for the soldiers and cared for the injured and dying soldiers, but the doctors still restricted what Florence was allowed to do.
The situation was desperate and eventually the male army doctors gave Nightingale a free hand to organize the hospital. She changed the wards, the kitchens and the bedding. She provided clean clothes for the soldiers, and even arranged for one derelict wing of the hospital to be rebuilt.
It was also during the Crimean war that Florence Nightingale gained the nickname ‘The Lady of the Lamp’ because she was continually checking all parts of the hospital day and night. ‘The Times’ newspaper reported:
“She is a ‘ministering angel’ without any exaggeration in these hospitals, and as her slender form glides quietly along each corridor, every poor fellow’s face softens with gratitude at the sight of her. When all the medical officers have retired for the night and silence and darkness have settled down upon those miles of prostrate sick, she may be observed alone, with a little lamp in her hand, making her solitary rounds”.
William Tyndale was an English scholar and theologian whose translation of the New Testament was the first to be printed in English. His simple, clear style was a model for subsequent English translations of the bible and his influence on modern day society is still very strong.
Talking about his work, John Pawson said “St Paul’s is one of the most recognisable buildings in the country. Inevitably it’s the grand architectural moves which everyone knows – the west elevation, the nave and the dome. In collaboration with Swarovski, I have been given the chance to turn the focus on a less familiar element – the Geometric Staircase – which is a detail, but also a complete architectural moment in its own right. The cathedral is an immensely complex work of architecture and the temptation when you visit is to try to take in everything. This is about offering a spatial experience based around a single, sharply honed perspective. The form this experience takes is shaped by Wren’s own interest in creating scientific instruments out of buildings.”
John Bunyan was an English Christian writer and preacher, who is probably best known for writing ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’.