The role and impact of British hospitals in Malta during World War I

Abstract

Malta, often referred to as the “Nurse of the Mediterranean,” played a crucial yet often overlooked role in the broader narrative of wartime medicine. Through this work, I aim to shed light on how a small island became a major hub of healing, recovery, and resilience. The second chapter (first one being the introduction) considers how transportation and hospital distribution shaped the medical response in Malta. With thousands of wounded soldiers arriving from Gallipoli and other fronts, the coordination of space, routes, and infrastructure became a matter of life and death. The placement of hospitals; both in purpose-built facilities and in converted civilian spaces, reveals a great deal about British logistical thinking and the pressure to adapt quickly. In the third chapter, I turn to the role of voluntary organisations and, especially, the unrecognised efforts of women. From nurses and orderlies to fundraisers and organizers, women were central to the functioning of Malta’s hospital system. Their contributions, often undervalued at the time, deserve full recognition not just as support work, but as vital to the war effort. The fourth chapter addresses water supply and sanitary conditions, mundane yet fundamental concerns that determined whether hospitals could be safe, effective places of care. Clean water, functioning drainage, and adequate hygiene practices were not guaranteed, and their absence could turn places of healing into sites of further suffering. Chapter five is where I will focus on disease prevention and the everyday medical scenes that unfolded: antiseptic routines, isolation wards, vaccinations, and the growing understanding of infection control. These were spaces where medical theory met real-world urgency. The sixth chapter traces the slow decline in hospital bed numbers after 1916, as the war shifted and priorities changed. The expansion and contraction of Malta’s hospital network reflected both broader strategic decisions and the island’s own limits in capacity and resources. Finally, the dissertation ends with a case study of Tigné Hospital. This chapter brings the themes together through a closer look at one key institution, its buildings, its staff, its patients, and its place in the wider system. Tigné offers a tangible window into the everyday realities of care during wartime. Ultimately, this is a story about how a colonial outpost became a medical centre under pressure. It is about the ingenuity, compassion, and endurance of the many individuals, soldiers, nurses, doctors, volunteers; who passed through these hospital doors. By examining the hospitals of Malta during the First World War, I hope to highlight a forgotten chapter of medical history.