Daughters of Charity

La douceur attentive a son lit de souffrance. Met au coeur du soldat la joie et l'esperance. [postcard]

Vincentian postcards collection

Catholic Women & World War I

The Daughters of Charity from many nations, including the United States and France, were active participants in World War I.

When the United States entered the war in April 1917, hospitals served by the Daughters of Charity began to recruit nurses nationwide. These nurses served alongside the Daughters, from what was then the Western Province centered in St. Louis, in the American Expeditionary Forces. They formed the staff of Base Hospital #102 in Vicenza, Italy, the hospital unit operating closest to the Italian Front.

D'évouement Charité. [postcard]

Vincentian postcards collection

Religious women in France had a long tradition of nursing as a vocation. In 1870s France, 11,000 Catholic sisters operated 1,500 hospitals. By 1911, there were 15,000 nuns from over 200 religious orders serving as nurses. The war brought to light the importance of nursing as a profession, and by 1922 the French government began to issue specialized diplomas.

From: Jolly, Ellen Ryan, Mrs. Nuns of the Battlefield. [Providence, The Providence Visitor Press, c1927]. VSI. 973.775 J75n1927