Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green: Angel of Mercy Ward

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Bethnal Green Hospital, in the East End of London, opened in 1900. In March 1915, the hospital was taken over by the military. Its civilian patients were moved out and it became a hospital for servicemen wounded at the front. Florence Baker, from Lancashire, was a Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) nurse posted to the Bethnal Green Military Hospital. The British Red Cross provided 90,000 VADs to help wounded and sick servicemen in the UK and abroad. Throughout her time in London Florence wrote to her mother at home in Lancashire. Her letters provide a snapshot of life at the Bethnal Green Military Hospital. Location: Cambridge Heath Road (former site of Bethnal Green Military Hospital), Bethnal Green, London E2 9NP Image: Florence Baker at Bethnal Green Military Hospital