The Angel
of the Crimean
My title for this report might
sound very strange, but I do believe it is very fitting. In my heart, I do
believe that this title was very fitting for Florence Nightengale. During the
Crimean War, she was able to save hundreds, if not thousands of lives by her
nursing and care. Our nursing program is as great as it is today because of
her. I do thank her for it.
Florence
Nightengale was born on May 12, 1820 in the town of Florence, Italy. Her
parents were wealthy British citizens, and were on one of their many trips
across the globe to Italy when Florence was born. She was named after the city,
Florence Italy.
Back then,
it was practically required of young ladies to be married and have children.
Florence knew that this was not the call for her. Her mother was a very social
person, and loved to have social events and find a husband for her youngest
child. Florence on the other hand was quite awkward at social events. She and
her mother argued a lot about these things, her mother wanting her to get
married, Florence, wanting to do exactly what God wanted her to do. When she
was young, she often would tend to the sick or afflicted around her. At the age
of 16, she knew that her calling from God was to be a nurse. Nursing was not a very
proud position back then, and her mother and father did not approve. At the age
of 17, she turned down a proposal by a young suitor, Richard Monckton Milnes.
Though she felt she loved him, she knew the right thing to do was to pursue
nursing. She left her home and went to pursue her divine mission, and enrolled
herself into Lutheran Hospital of Pastor Fliedner in Kaiserwerth, Germany.
After
returning from school, Nightengale came back to London and was hired at a
Middlesex Hospital for governesses. Her employer was so impressed by her, that
just after a year, she promoted her the superintendent at the hospital. Shortly
after her raise, Florence came down with Cholera Fever and was sick for some
time. Just as she became fully recovered, the biggest challenge in her nursing
career began.
In
October of 1853, the Crimean war broke out between the Russian and Great
Britain. The war broke out because they both wanted to be in power over the
Ottoman Empire. Thousands of British Soldiers were sent to the Black Sea.
Supplies vanished quickly, and just one short year after the war started,
Britain had 18,000 or more soldiers in military hospitals.
England
did not want to hire any female nurses, because of their past experience with
the very selfish ladies, but soon, they were left with no other choice.
Fortunately, it was probably the best choice they were to ever make. Florence
Nightengale was coming to the rescue.
Sydney
Herbert, secretary of war sent Miss Nightengale a letter concerning their
conditions. In the letter, he asked her to make a corpse of women, and come to
Crimean as fast as they could. She and a team of 34 nurses left only a few days
later.
Though
they had been warned of the conditions of the military hospitals, nothing could
prepare them for what they saw. Men, strewn about on stretchers lying on their
own filth. Unclean water, and medical supplies was very scarce. The place stunk
more than some of the nurses could bare. Rats and bugs going around and eating
anything they could find. More soldiers were dying from disease then from their
battle wounds. The place was a mess.
Florence
didn’t like what she saw. So, she decided to fix it. She took as many scrub
brushes as she could find, and asked the least ill and hurt soldiers to help
her clean up. Miss Nightengale herself spent every hour in the day to care for
the patients. The soldiers were very moved by her kindness and compassion
towards them. They called her the ‘Lady with the Lamp’ as she made her rounds
each night caring a lamp. As she would pass, the soldiers would kiss at her
shadow because of their gratitude and love toward her. Her work she did during
the Crimean War, stopped the death rate by two thirds.
Florence
Nightengale is one of my heroes. The showing of her compassion and mercy to
those men through their time of need has made an impact on me. I hope that I
can learn and have the compassion she had someday. She taught me a lesson I
will never forget. She is The Angel of the Crimean. Miss Nightengale died on
August 13, 1910 at the age of 90 in the United Kingdom. Until the day she died,
she continued to nurse the sick and wounded. She changed the history of
nursing. Thank you, Miss Florence Nightengale, for changing the world. For me,
your work will never be forgotten.
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