London SE1 community website

Florence Nightingale’s image projected onto Parliament

London SE1 website team

Images of Florence Nightingale were projected onto the Houses of Parliament from the grounds of St Thomas' Hospital on Tuesday night to mark the bicentenary of the birth of the nursing pioneer.

Florence Nightingale’s image projected onto Parliament
Florence Nightingale’s image projected onto Parliament

During the day on Tuesday, chief nursing officer Ruth May and Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby both visited St Thomas' Hospital as part of the Nightingale 200 commemorations.

Florence Nightingale established her school of nursing at St Thomas' in 1860.

Prime minister Boris Johnson said: "200 years ago today, while holidaying at a villa in Tuscany, a young English couple welcomed the arrival of a beautiful baby girl. The birth would have been much like any other at the time. But this child's life would prove to be anything but typical.

"Because Florence Nightingale – author, data scientist and above all the pioneer of modern nursing – would go on to change the world forever.

"She revolutionised Victorian healthcare, establishing principles that stand to this day. She changed and shaped the very perception of what a nurse is, what a nurse should be, transforming the job into what she called 'the finest of fine arts'.

"And in so doing she saved lives not just in her own lifetime and her own country but for decades to come and in every corner of the globe. That's why it's no coincidence that today, her birthday, is also International Day of the Nurse."

The Florence Nightingale Museum at St Thomas' is currently running an urgent fundraising appeal to secure its future as it finds its doors shut during what should have been a busy bicentenary year.

The SE1 website is supported by people like you
We are part of
Independent Community News Network
Email newsletter

For the latest local news and events direct to your inbox every Monday, you need our weekly email newsletter SE1 Direct.

Archive
News archive from February 1999 to January 2001
Got a story for us?
Contact us with your tip-offs and story ideas.