Sisters

On 3 September 1939 the Prime Minister declared that Britain was at war with Germany. Thousands of men signed up to train as soldiers and fight for their country. What is less well known is that thousands of young women, many of them barely out of school, were plucked from very different backgrounds and sent headlong into grueling training regimes that would see them become wartime nurses. This was a world of long hours, harsh discipline and extreme circumstances. Matrons, sisters, staff nurses and student nurses all worked to save men and women without antibiotics, disposable products or labour-saving equipment. Yet the authentic voices of the thousands of women whose acts of heroism and sacrifice played such a vital role in the Second World War have never been collected together until now: they are a missing piece of its history. "Sisters" features over 150 previously unpublished interviews from the archives of the Royal College of Nursing and for the first time reveals the incredible true story of nursing during the Second World War in the nurses' own words. From the bombed out wards of the Blitz to the harsh conditions of army field hospitals, and from the pioneering work in the treatment of horrific burns to the challenges of delivering a baby in a blackout, nurses from both the forces and the many branches of civilian nursing relate with candor, wit and compassion their personal experiences of war. The members of this sisterhood dealt with the most appalling physical and mental wounds, yet found reserves of inner strength and made friendships that carried them through episodes of unrelieved horror. They brought comfort to soldiers fresh from the battlefields and nursed the survivors of the Nazi concentration camps, while also helping a suffering civilian population. The wartime generation of nurses carried out their duties during a time of enormous social and personal upheaval and, for many, it was a life-changing experience. In telling their vivid, poignant and riveting stories, "Sisters" captures the pride, grief and joy of their experiences. It is a fitting tribute to their spirit and bravery.