Edith Louisa Cavell (1865 - 1915)

Born 4 Dec 1865 in Swardeston, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom

Ancestors

Died 12 Oct 1915 at age 49 in Tir national, Schaarbeek, Brussels, Belgium

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Edith Cavell - World War I British nurse, celebrated for saving the lives of over 200 Allied soldiers in German-occupied Brussels. She was arrested, tried and executed by a German firing squad.

Biography

Edith Cavell is Notable.

EDITH LOUISA CAVELL, first child to the Rev. Frederick Cavell and his wife Louisa Sophia, was born on December 4, 1865 at Swardeston, Norfolk, England. She was baptised by her father, at Swardeston Church on February 4, 1866. ^[1][2]

Edith and her brother and sisters, Florence, Lillian and John (also called Jack), were educated at home by their father and mother. At the age of 14, Edith went away to school and it was during this period that she developed her skill of French. When she was 18 she became a governess to a family from Steeple Bumpstead in Essex. This was short lived, as she used a legacy left to her by a relative, to travel abroad. Her next post was as governess to the Francois family who lived in Brussels, where she stayed for six years.^[3]

In April 1895, Edith was working at the Foundations Fever Hospital in London and it was here that she trained as a probationer nurse from 1896 to 1898. In 1897, a typhoid epidemic broke out at Maidstone in Kent, and Edith Cavell was one of the nurses despatched to assist with the care of patients. She was awarded the Maidstone Typhoid Medal for her work. She then went on to hold the post of night sister at St Pancras Infirmary in 1901 and assistant matron at Shoreditch Infirmary from 1903.^[4]

On October 10, 1907 Edith was put in charge of a pioneer training school for lay nurses, L'Ecole Belge d'Infirmieres Diplomees, on the outskirts of Brussels. When war broke out, in 1914, the clinic was taken over by the red cross. Although most of the nurses had been sent home, Edith remained to help care for the wounded irrespective of their nationality. ^[5]

It was at the hospital that Edith was asked if she would help two wounded, and fleeing, soldiers. She agreed despite the danger. This saw her entry into an escape organisation that was centred on the district of Mons. Over the next year, she helped to house, or out-house, fugitives and arrange their escapes. All those involved knew they could be shot for harbouring allied soldiers.^[6]

Two members of the escape route team were arrested on July 31st, 1915. Edith was arrested five days later on August 5, 1915. After interrogation Edith was transferred to St Gille Prison, where she was kept until her trial began. The trial lasted two days and on October 11, 1915 she was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death with the order that she was to be executed immediately^[7]

At dawn on October 12, 1915, Edith Cavell was executed by firing squad at the Tir National. After the war, her body was exhumed and returned to England where, after a memorial service at Westminster Abbey, she was buried at Norwich Cathedral.^[8]

After Edith's death countless articles were published about her story, the execution and how her death was an act of German barbarism and moral depravity. She became an iconic figure for military recruitment in Britain.^[9]

Sources

1. ↑ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/NT67-957 : accessed 07 Jun 2014), Edith Louisa Cavell, 04 Feb 1866; citing Swardeston, Norfolk, England, reference 66; FHL microfilm 1565750.
2. ↑ England & Wales General Register Office, GRO Online Index - Birth (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/ : accessed 30 April 2021) database entry for Cavell, Edith Louisa (Mother's maiden name: Warming) GRO Reference: 1866 Q1 in Henstead, Volume 04B, Page 189.
3. ↑ "Edith Cavell's Schooling and First Jobs." Edith Cavell : 1865-1915 : A Norfolk Heroine. http://www.edithcavell.org.uk/ (accessed June 7, 2014).
4. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Edith Cavell," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Edith_Cavell&oldid=611801045 (accessed June 7, 2014).
5. ↑ "War is Declared." Edith Cavell : 1865-1915 : A Norfolk Heroine. http://www.edithcavell.org.uk/ (accessed June 7, 2014).
6. ↑ Fatal Decision: Edith Cavell WWI Nurse, by Terri Arthur, Publisher: Beagle Books, 2011,
7. ↑ Chisholm, Hugh. "1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Cavell, Edith." WikiSource. http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1922_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Cavell,_Edith (accessed June 7, 2014).
8. ↑ "Her Last Days." Edith Cavell : 1865-1915 : A Norfolk Heroine. http://www.edithcavell.org.uk/ (accessed June 7, 2014).
9. ↑ M.M.R. (1941). Book Review - Edith Cavell. The American Journal of Nursing, 871

See Also

• Wikipedia: Edith_Cavel
• Wikidata: Item Q237564, en:Wikipedia

• Wikipedia article about Edith Cavell.

• Image of the Parish Baptism Record for Edith Cavell showing her father as the vicar.

• Short film clip of the Funeral of Nurse Edith Cavell.

• Eye Witness account of the execution of Edith Cavell by the prison Chaplin.

• Find A Grave memorial of Edith Louisa Cavell.

• Nurse Recipients of the Maidstone Typhoid Medal also contains some fascinating photos of inside the hospital.