Nurse cape with badges
- Made:
- 1940 in unknown place
Nurse's cape, red lining, half covered with military badges, 1940
We do not know who owned this cape or why they stitched the badges of different army regiments to the inside. It may have been a reminder of all the places that they looked after armed service personnel.
Capes like this one with the dark blue outer layer and red lining, were a recongisble part of nursing uniforms, especially those associated with the Red Cross.
In 1870, the British National Society for Aid to the Sick and Wounded in War was formed, following the out break of war between France and Prussia. In 1905, it was renamed as the British Red Cross.
The red cross symbol was first adopted under the Geneva Convention of 1864. It reverses the colour of the Swiss national flag of a white cross on a red background. Those wearing the red cross, crescent or crystal are protected under international law and symbolises they are there to give help. The Geneva Convention forms the basis of how soldiers and civilians should be treated during wartime.
Details
- Category:
- Nursing & Hospital Furnishings
- Object Number:
- 2013-32
- Materials:
- wool (unspecified)
- Measurements:
-
overall (laid flat): 780 mm x 1240 mm x 50 mm,
- type:
- cape
- credit:
- Transferred from the Balfour Red Cross Museum
