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Royal Army Medical Corps Association Association |
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In Arduis Fidelis. |
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From the time of the introduction of the standing army by Charles 11, a very basic medical service was provided comprising a Regimental Surgeon and his assistant, with the regiment providing the hospital. This was improved up to and including the Napoleonic Wars. Following Waterloo the hard learnt lessons were forgotten and the medical services went into decline with catastrophic consequences in the Crimea. The resulting public outcry lead to the setting up of a Royal Commission which reported over 1854—56 and sowed the seeds for the formation of today’s Army Medical Services. The first real stern trial was the Boer War where the Corps had some 22,000 wounded and over 74,000 sick (mainly dysentery and typhoid) to deal with. The lessons of the Boer War were not forgotten and the outbreak of the Great War saw the RAMC supported by the Empire medical services deal with over 2.5 million casualties and 6 million cases of sickness.
The Army Medical Services comprise the Royal Army Medical Corps, Royal Army Dental Corps, Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Service and the Royal Army Veterinary Corps. The AMS Museum tells the story of the Army Medical Services and the contribution that the Army has made in the history of medical, veterinary, dental and nursing sciences through realistic life sized dioramas and displays artifacts and memorabilia, which are enhanced with audio-visual displays and an audio guide. Included in the museum is a shop selling a large range of gifts, uniform items and books, many bearing the badge of the Corps. A full price list is available form the museum.
There are a few records of WW1 medical units , other than war diaries, held in MH106 at the National Archives.
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AMS Museum |
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The Second World War provided the RAMC with its sternest challenge, having to provide a service world wide. Hostilities lasted 71 months and over 5 million cases were treated and 1,000 medical units mobilised. Since 1945 there has been no major conflict but the Army has been committed in many theatres from Korea to the Gulf/Iraq and latterly Afghanistan. |
