Royal Army Medical Corps: Encyclopedia II - Royal Army Medical Corps - History

Royal Army Medical Corps - History

Medical services in the British military go as far back as the formation of the Regular Army after the Restoration in 1660; each regiment had its own Regimental Surgeon and Assistant Surgeon. In 1898, officers and soldiers providing medical services were incorporated into one body known by its present name, the Royal Army Medical Corps.

The RAMC began to develop during the Boer War, but it was during the First World War that it reached its apogee both in size and experience. During Britain's colonial days the RAMC had set up clinics and hospitals in countries where British troops could be found. In modern times it has once again contracted and its main bases, the Queen Alexandra Hospital Millbank, and the Cambridge Military Hospital, Aldershot, are now closed, with the majority of work concentrated at Haslar, near Portsmouth.

Royal Army Medical Corps - Colonels-in-chief

• HRH The Duke of Connaught (1919-1942)
• HM Queen Mary (1942-1953)
• HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (1953-2002)
• HRH The Duke of Gloucester (2003- )

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki