Joanna Cruickshank
Dame Joanna Margaret Cruickshank, DBE, RRC (28 November 1875 – 16 August 1958) was a British military nurse and nursing administrator. She founded Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service in November 1918 and served as its first Matron-in-Chief from 1921 until her retirement in November 1930.[1]
Dame Joanna Cruickshank | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 November 1875 Murree, India |
| Died | 16 August 1958 (aged 82) Sussex, England |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army Royal Air Force |
| Rank | Matron-in-Chief |
| Commands held | Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service (1918–30) |
| Battles/wars | First World War |
| Awards | Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire Royal Red Cross |
Biography
Joanna Margaret Cruickshank was born the second daughter of William and Johanna Cruickshank on 28 November 1875 in Murree, India (now in Pakistan). She trained at Guy's Hospital, London,[2] then travelled back to India in 1912 to serve as sister in the Lady Minto Nursing Association. In 1917 she joined Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service (QAIMNS). After contracting a malignant form of malaria, and suffering a series of fevers, she was invalided home to Britain in March 1918.[3] She was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1931.
In 1940, Cruickshank was named Commandant of the Rushen Women's and Married Internees Camp on the Isle of Man;[2] she was later succeeded by Detective Inspector Cuthbert of New Scotland Yard.[4]
Dame Joanna Cruickshank died in Sussex at age 82 in 1958. The Dame Joanna Cruickshank Ladies Singles tournament (Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service) is named in her honour.
References
- RAF Nursing Service
- Chappell, Connery (31 May 2017). Island of Barbed Wire: The Remarkable Story of World War Two Internment on the Isle of Man. Robert Hale Ltd. ISBN 978-0719824432. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
- Mackie, Mary (2014). Wards in the Sky: The RAF's Remarkable Nursing Service. The History Press. ISBN 978-0750962735. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
- WWII history per The Times Online archive; accessed 3 January 2018.
Sources
- Cuthbert, C. R., Papers of the Commandant of Rushen Women's and Married Internees Camp 1941– 1945 Detective Inspector Cuthbert of New Scotland Yard succeeded Dame Joanna Cruickshank as Commandant. This small deposit contains two volumes of UK and IOM newspaper cuttings relating to internment as well as letters and greeting cards from internees. (Archive Reference# MS 11196)