The ceremony at which the Earl and Countess Cadogan were presented with their engraved brass trowels was for the laying of the foundation stones for the Chelsea Hospital for Women and the adjacent Nurse’s Home. The original hospital had opened in 1871, in London’s Kings Road, but this had been replaced in the following decade by a larger building in the same borough which specialised in gynaecological conditions.

By the early years of the 20th century this second site had been outgrown and in 1911 the Earl Cadogan donated land off the Kings Road on which to build a larger hospital. Two years after the laying of the foundation stones, the new Hospital was officially opened by Queen Mary on 11th July 1916. Much had happened between these two dates, the first occurring just weeks before the outbreak of the First World War, the latter just days after the beginning of the deadly Battle of the Somme. This situation may explain delays in building the Nurse’s Home, which was not completed until 1924.

The patronage by wealthy individuals like the Cadogan’s was a key factor in the provision of healthcare before social changes during the 20th century that culminated in the creation of the National Health Service.

The ceremony at which the Earl and Countess Cadogan were presented with their engraved brass trowels was for the laying of the foundation stones for the Chelsea Hospital for Women and the adjacent Nurse’s Home. The original hospital had opened in 1871, in London’s Kings Road, but this had been replaced in the following decade by a larger building in the same borough which specialised in gynaecological conditions.

By the early years of the 20th century this second site had been outgrown and in 1911 the Earl Cadogan donated land off the Kings Road on which to build a larger hospital. Two years after the laying of the foundation stones, the new Hospital was officially opened by Queen Mary on 11th July 1916. Much had happened between these two dates, the first occurring just weeks before the outbreak of the First World War, the latter just days after the beginning of the deadly Battle of the Somme. This situation may explain delays in building the Nurse’s Home, which was not completed until 1924.

The patronage by wealthy individuals like the Cadogan’s was a key factor in the provision of healthcare before social changes during the 20th century that culminated in the creation of the National Health Service.

The ceremony at which the Earl and Countess Cadogan were presented with their engraved brass trowels was for the laying of the foundation stones for the Chelsea Hospital for Women and the adjacent Nurse’s Home. The original hospital had opened in 1871, in London’s Kings Road, but this had been replaced in the following decade by a larger building in the same borough which specialised in gynaecological conditions.

By the early years of the 20th century this second site had been outgrown and in 1911 the Earl Cadogan donated land off the Kings Road on which to build a larger hospital. Two years after the laying of the foundation stones, the new Hospital was officially opened by Queen Mary on 11th July 1916. Much had happened between these two dates, the first occurring just weeks before the outbreak of the First World War, the latter just days after the beginning of the deadly Battle of the Somme. This situation may explain delays in building the Nurse’s Home, which was not completed until 1924.

The patronage by wealthy individuals like the Cadogan’s was a key factor in the provision of healthcare before social changes during the 20th century that culminated in the creation of the National Health Service.

The ceremony at which the Earl and Countess Cadogan were presented with their engraved brass trowels was for the laying of the foundation stones for the Chelsea Hospital for Women and the adjacent Nurse’s Home. The original hospital had opened in 1871, in London’s Kings Road, but this had been replaced in the following decade by a larger building in the same borough which specialised in gynaecological conditions.

By the early years of the 20th century this second site had been outgrown and in 1911 the Earl Cadogan donated land off the Kings Road on which to build a larger hospital. Two years after the laying of the foundation stones, the new Hospital was officially opened by Queen Mary on 11th July 1916. Much had happened between these two dates, the first occurring just weeks before the outbreak of the First World War, the latter just days after the beginning of the deadly Battle of the Somme. This situation may explain delays in building the Nurse’s Home, which was not completed until 1924.

The patronage by wealthy individuals like the Cadogan’s was a key factor in the provision of healthcare before social changes during the 20th century that culminated in the creation of the National Health Service.