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Roll over the map to see nurses on a world stage
From the mid-19th century onwards, western nurses became increasingly influential, introducing middle-class values of respectable femininity alongside modern methods of health care in societies around the world. Learn about the nurses featured on these postcards, in service to different countries around the world. View the postcards as a list.
Postcards from All Countries
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A promotional postcard for the Red Cross training hospital in Algiers which had 80 nursing students and saw over 100,000 patients a year, ca. 1954
A postcard commemorates 30 years of the French Red Cross working in Algeria and training Algerian nurses.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A World War I anti-German propaganda postcard denouncing the death of British nurse Edith Cavell, 1915
Shot by the Germans in 1915 during World War I, British nurse Edith Cavell helped over 200 Allied soldiers escape from German occupied Belgium. Her death was commemorated worldwide.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A Dutch Catholic nurse with a patient with Hansen's disease (leprosy), Dahomey (today Benin), ca. 1910
Catholic nurses from the Dutch branch of the Society of African Missions care for people suffering with Hansen's disease (leprosy) in Dahomy (today Benin).
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Mission nurses at a dispensary prepare to treat a teenager, Toma, Upper Volta (today Burkina Faso), early 20th century
Catholic mission nurses treat a young man infected with dracunculiasis or guinea worm disease outside the entrance to the Toma dispensary, Upper Volta, French Sudan (today Burkina Faso).
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A Canadian Red Cross fundraising postcard, ca. 1916
Fundraising reproduction of a painting of a volunteer for the Canadian Red Cross. Nurses served around the world in first aid posts, military, and civilian hospitals.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Dr. Aspland (front row, center) and hospital staff of the Anglican Hospital, Beijing, China, early 20th century
Medical missionary work in China was supported by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK), an Anglican organization founded in 1658 to promote Christian teaching in Britain's colonies.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A Belgian Red Cross doctor with Congolese assistant nurses at a rural hospital, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo), 1920s
A locally trained Red Cross nurse assists at a rural clinic in the Belgian Congo, under colonial rule until independence in 1960.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Belgian instructors (seated and standing in front) with students at a Red Cross nursing school, Pawa, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo), early 20th century
A hospital school run by the Belgian Red Cross in Pawa, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo). The school trained some pupils to be nurses and midwives.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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An American Red Cross nurses decorate the tomb of Marquis de Lafayette, Paris, ca. 1918
American Red Cross nurses honor General Lafayette, a French aristocrat who served beside George Washington in the American Revolution and helped draft the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen."
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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The nurse portrayed as comforting presence supports a wounded French colonial soldier, 1915
During World War I the French raised troops from colonial territories such as Algeria; French Red Cross nurses staffed battlefield hospitals and cared for the wounded.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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An illustration of a balcony dispensary missionary hospital, India, ca. 1910
Missionary nurses were sent to every part of the British Empire; this artist's impression of nursing in India depicts an outdoor clinic run from a balcony.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A nurse with children outside a health clinic, Beersheeba, Israel, ca. 1950
Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, provides funding and support to Israeli Star of David nurses establishing infant welfare clinics in Southern Israel.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Princess Maria Josè of Italy returns from volunteering as a Red Cross nurse during the Italian invasion of East Africa, ca. 1935
Princess Marie-Jose of Belgium married Prince Umberto II, heir to the Italian throne, in 1930. She served as a Red Cross nurse in World War II.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A Japanese Red Cross 75th anniversary commemorative card, 1952
Japan became a full member of the International Red Cross Society in 1877; this card celebrates 75 years of membership.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Princess Kan-in Chieko of Japan served as president of the Volunteer Nurses Association during the Russo-Japanese war (1904–1905), ca. 1905
The Ladies Volunteer Nurses Association, formed by the Japanese imperial princesses, played a crucial role in developing modern nursing in Japan.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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An illustration of a British missionary nurse treating African patients, Malindi, Nyasaland (today Malawi), ca. 1911
The artist created an illustration of a nurse caring for families from a dispensary in Nyasaland (today Malawi) run by the Universities Mission to Central Africa, a British Anglican society.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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The nursing sisters of St. Paul with patients at the Holy Spirit Hospital, Martinique, France, ca. 1910
A hospice for patients with incurable diseases was run by the Catholic Congregation of Sisters of Saint Paul in Chartres, Martinique, French Caribbean Islands.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Nursing students gather for a class photograph, Philippines, 1920s
By the 1920s, nurse training in the Philippines is delivered by various American non-denominational mission societies, the Catholic Church, and the Philippines Department of Health.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Czarina Alexandra of Russia with the Princesses Tatiana and Olga, nursing wounded Russians, ca. 1915
Similarly to other European aristocrats, Alexandra, Empress of Russia, and her daughters Tatiana and Olga organized support for the Russian Red Cross.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Слава Боевым подругам (Glory to our Sisters in the Fight), Soviet Union (today Russia), 1942
The Red Cross Society of the Soviet Union replaced the Russian Red Cross after the revolution (1917–21). Soviet women were active in WWII as nurses and soldiers.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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British nurses pose for a photograph portrait on their way to the front in the Boer war, ca. 1900
These nurses are leaving Britain to support the British army in South Africa; the Boer War (1899–1902) sought to convert the Boer states into British colonies.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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A promotional postcard for a missionary organization, which ran free mobile health clinics in the Middle East, Bethlehem, Jordan (today State of Palestine), 1950s
The Christian Approach Mission, based in Kansas City and Bethlehem, offers free medical care and nursing services from its mobile clinics in Israel.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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British nurses march in a parade in honor of the dead and wounded of World War I, London, ca. 1920
Military nurses march in a Peace Parade at the unveiling of the Cenotaph in honor of the dead and wounded of World War I.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Queen Mary of the United Kingdom (left) and Princess Mary, wearing the uniform of a Red Cross nurse, at Buckingham Palace, Westminster, England, ca. 1918
Princess Mary (right), daughter of King George V and Queen Mary of England (left), became Commander in Chief of British Red Cross Detachments worldwide in 1926.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Huns bomb red cross hospitals, war bond drive features an illustration of a Red Cross nurse shielding her patient, ca. 1918
Representations of women as Red Cross nurses and their work during the war were used to raise money during bond drives.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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In celebration of the centenary of the American Red Cross, a first day of issue stamp is paired with an image of a recruitment poster for nurses during World War I, 1981
The recruitment poster "Feminine Patriotism" celebrates women's contribution to the American war effort on the home front, in nursing and in the military during World War I.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
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Members of the National Association of Army Nurses of the Civil War sit for a group portrait, United States, ca. 1911
The women who posed for this photograph pioneered nursing as a profession during the American Civil War; for the first time, army leaders permitted women to serve in field hospitals.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Algeria
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A promotional postcard for the Red Cross training hospital in Algiers which had 80 nursing students and saw over 100,000 patients a year, ca. 1954
A postcard commemorates 30 years of the French Red Cross working in Algeria and training Algerian nurses.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Belgium
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A World War I anti-German propaganda postcard denouncing the death of British nurse Edith Cavell, 1915
Shot by the Germans in 1915 during World War I, British nurse Edith Cavell helped over 200 Allied soldiers escape from German occupied Belgium. Her death was commemorated worldwide.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Benin
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A Dutch Catholic nurse with a patient with Hansen's disease (leprosy), Dahomey (today Benin), ca. 1910
Catholic nurses from the Dutch branch of the Society of African Missions care for people suffering with Hansen's disease (leprosy) in Dahomy (today Benin).
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Burkina Faso
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Mission nurses at a dispensary prepare to treat a teenager, Toma, Upper Volta (today Burkina Faso), early 20th century
Catholic mission nurses treat a young man infected with dracunculiasis or guinea worm disease outside the entrance to the Toma dispensary, Upper Volta, French Sudan (today Burkina Faso).
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Canada
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A Canadian Red Cross fundraising postcard, ca. 1916
Fundraising reproduction of a painting of a volunteer for the Canadian Red Cross. Nurses served around the world in first aid posts, military, and civilian hospitals.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
China
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Dr. Aspland (front row, center) and hospital staff of the Anglican Hospital, Beijing, China, early 20th century
Medical missionary work in China was supported by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK), an Anglican organization founded in 1658 to promote Christian teaching in Britain's colonies.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Democratic Republic of the Congo
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A Belgian Red Cross doctor with Congolese assistant nurses at a rural hospital, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo), 1920s
A locally trained Red Cross nurse assists at a rural clinic in the Belgian Congo, under colonial rule until independence in 1960.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
Belgian instructors (seated and standing in front) with students at a Red Cross nursing school, Pawa, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo), early 20th century
A hospital school run by the Belgian Red Cross in Pawa, Belgian Congo (today Democratic Republic of the Congo). The school trained some pupils to be nurses and midwives.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
France
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An American Red Cross nurses decorate the tomb of Marquis de Lafayette, Paris, ca. 1918
American Red Cross nurses honor General Lafayette, a French aristocrat who served beside George Washington in the American Revolution and helped draft the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen."
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
The nurse portrayed as comforting presence supports a wounded French colonial soldier, 1915
During World War I the French raised troops from colonial territories such as Algeria; French Red Cross nurses staffed battlefield hospitals and cared for the wounded.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
India
-
An illustration of a balcony dispensary missionary hospital, India, ca. 1910
Missionary nurses were sent to every part of the British Empire; this artist's impression of nursing in India depicts an outdoor clinic run from a balcony.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Israel
-
A nurse with children outside a health clinic, Beersheeba, Israel, ca. 1950
Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, provides funding and support to Israeli Star of David nurses establishing infant welfare clinics in Southern Israel.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Italy
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Princess Maria Josè of Italy returns from volunteering as a Red Cross nurse during the Italian invasion of East Africa, ca. 1935
Princess Marie-Jose of Belgium married Prince Umberto II, heir to the Italian throne, in 1930. She served as a Red Cross nurse in World War II.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Japan
-
A Japanese Red Cross 75th anniversary commemorative card, 1952
Japan became a full member of the International Red Cross Society in 1877; this card celebrates 75 years of membership.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
Princess Kan-in Chieko of Japan served as president of the Volunteer Nurses Association during the Russo-Japanese war (1904–1905), ca. 1905
The Ladies Volunteer Nurses Association, formed by the Japanese imperial princesses, played a crucial role in developing modern nursing in Japan.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Malawi
-
An illustration of a British missionary nurse treating African patients, Malindi, Nyasaland (today Malawi), ca. 1911
The artist created an illustration of a nurse caring for families from a dispensary in Nyasaland (today Malawi) run by the Universities Mission to Central Africa, a British Anglican society.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Martinique, France
-
The nursing sisters of St. Paul with patients at the Holy Spirit Hospital, Martinique, France, ca. 1910
A hospice for patients with incurable diseases was run by the Catholic Congregation of Sisters of Saint Paul in Chartres, Martinique, French Caribbean Islands.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Philippines
-
Nursing students gather for a class photograph, Philippines, 1920s
By the 1920s, nurse training in the Philippines is delivered by various American non-denominational mission societies, the Catholic Church, and the Philippines Department of Health.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
Russia
-
Czarina Alexandra of Russia with the Princesses Tatiana and Olga, nursing wounded Russians, ca. 1915
Similarly to other European aristocrats, Alexandra, Empress of Russia, and her daughters Tatiana and Olga organized support for the Russian Red Cross.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
Слава Боевым подругам (Glory to our Sisters in the Fight), Soviet Union (today Russia), 1942
The Red Cross Society of the Soviet Union replaced the Russian Red Cross after the revolution (1917–21). Soviet women were active in WWII as nurses and soldiers.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
South Africa
-
British nurses pose for a photograph portrait on their way to the front in the Boer war, ca. 1900
These nurses are leaving Britain to support the British army in South Africa; the Boer War (1899–1902) sought to convert the Boer states into British colonies.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
State of Palestine
-
A promotional postcard for a missionary organization, which ran free mobile health clinics in the Middle East, Bethlehem, Jordan (today State of Palestine), 1950s
The Christian Approach Mission, based in Kansas City and Bethlehem, offers free medical care and nursing services from its mobile clinics in Israel.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
United Kingdom
-
British nurses march in a parade in honor of the dead and wounded of World War I, London, ca. 1920
Military nurses march in a Peace Parade at the unveiling of the Cenotaph in honor of the dead and wounded of World War I.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
Queen Mary of the United Kingdom (left) and Princess Mary, wearing the uniform of a Red Cross nurse, at Buckingham Palace, Westminster, England, ca. 1918
Princess Mary (right), daughter of King George V and Queen Mary of England (left), became Commander in Chief of British Red Cross Detachments worldwide in 1926.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
United States
-
Huns bomb red cross hospitals, war bond drive features an illustration of a Red Cross nurse shielding her patient, ca. 1918
Representations of women as Red Cross nurses and their work during the war were used to raise money during bond drives.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
In celebration of the centenary of the American Red Cross, a first day of issue stamp is paired with an image of a recruitment poster for nurses during World War I, 1981
The recruitment poster "Feminine Patriotism" celebrates women's contribution to the American war effort on the home front, in nursing and in the military during World War I.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
-
Members of the National Association of Army Nurses of the Civil War sit for a group portrait, United States, ca. 1911
The women who posed for this photograph pioneered nursing as a profession during the American Civil War; for the first time, army leaders permitted women to serve in field hospitals.
Courtesy National Library of Medicine
