British Military Hospital BMH Iserlohn

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It closed in March 1994. BMH Iserlohn was housed in Argonne Barracks which was a German Calvary and Armoured Regiment building from the 1930s. In the post World War Two years Argonne Barracks became No 6 British General Hospital in 1946. My thanks to Sue Light at Scarlet Finders for the photograph above of BMHIserlohn which was taken in the winter of 1974. QA Nurses From BMH Iserlohn The first junior ranks of the newly formed QARANC to receive an overseas posting were posted to BMH Iserlohn in 1951. The Regiment in the area at this time were the 1st Battalion The Queen's Royal Regiment (cited in the book Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps (Famous Regts. S) by Juliet Piggott). Vol 13 No 9 of The Gazette of the QA Association has a photo of these nurses from the collection of Private Vaughnie Berry. The back of the photograph names the other first ranks as Mary, Celda, Dot, Irene, Joan, Glen, Cary, Taffy Doreen, Norah and May. A newspaper clipping describes the nurses being met by a regimental band and marched to the hospital, where patients and staff waited to greet them. Later they paraded before Major-General Cameron, Director of Medical Services in BAOR who welcomed them to Germany on behalf of Rhine Army. 1st Battalion of the Queens Royal Regiment The band was the 1st Battalion of the Queens Royal Regiment and the parade started at Dortmund Flughaven aistrip to march the detachment of QARANC to BMH Iserlohn. Qaranc.co.uk were delighted to hear from Bryan Clayton, ex drummer 1st Queens Royal Regiment, who kindly passed on this wonderful photo of the parade with BMH Iserlohn in the background. Bryan is the drummer third from the left, front row. The photograph below is of Dorothy Maat-Davey (nee Davey) wearing the No 2 dress uniform of the 1960s. She served in the QARANC at BMH Iserlohn in West Germany in 1962. She told me a funny story of when her boyfriend phoned the hospital to talk with her ward sister. Rather than call her by her proper surname he asked for her by her nickname which was Captain Twitty! Needless to say Dorothy got into a wee bit of trouble, but despite this error by her boyfriend she married him! QA Angela Coote has fond memories of her time in Germany: BMH Iserlohn was wonderful, there were still a few Canadians there and we enjoyed huge steaks and pancakes and maple syrup for breakfast. I made many lifelong friends there and met my husband there who was one of the walking wounded in the Rehab Unit. I have in recent years nursed QAs that served in Singapore during the Japanese Invasion. I recall we had a rude version of Corp Motto which had to do with crutch and candida but it escapes me now! Read more of Angela's memories on the Cambridge Military Hospital page. A QARANC wall plaque and shield is available to buy through Amazon. The QA shield is hand made and ready to hang on the wall. . Buy Now. Findextrawork Since leaving the QA's we have done an assortment of self employed work and jobs, some which only take an hour a week, others have been full time. We have written about these at our other website Findextrawork at www.findextrawork.co.uk where we share the information for free to help others with information and resources about earning more money. Visit Findextrawork for more information. If you have a memory of BMH Iserlohn or other time or place during your service in the QAs and would like it to appear at the QARANC website then please contact us and help keep the QA history accessible to our readers. ********** In 1953, along with many others, I was doing my National Service with the BAOR. During the Autumn I suffered a shoulder injury while playing rugby. I was treated in BMH Iserlohn, where I remained for approximately 8 weeks. I am sure the doctor who looked after me was a Dr DOWSE. I was in hospital over the Christmas period and as a result I have retained my Christmas Menu. I was certainly well looked after and my treatment was excellent. Roy Young, Snainton, Scarborough. ******** The photo above is of the Children's and Maternity Ward of BMH Iserlohn taken in 1960. Pictured with the QARANC Nursing Sisters and RAMC personal are some German nursing staff. Please get in touch if you recognise any of the nurses. At times patients were transferred to BMH Iserlohn by German Air Force helicopter. The photograph above shows one such German Air Force helicopter patient transfer to the BMH. The sports field at the British Military Hospital was used as the airfield and landing pad. The picture above is the Eagle statue that was situated at the main gate of BMHIserlohn. It now stands in the grounds at the far end of the former ward blocks. BMH Iserlohn was situated on the site of a former German Kazerne (barracks), hence the magnificent Eagle relic. The photo below shows QA Carol Little standing below the Eagle and was taken by her friend Angela Coote. Former QA Angela Coote has kindly sent these delightful collection of QA photos at BMH Iserlohn taken during the summer of 1971 and 72.The photographs include Pauline Martin, Carol Little, Rene Berwick and Walter Holden with Angela Coote. The BMH Iserlohn Naafi, the Rehab unit and the gate to the QA billets can be seen in the pictures: ******** The following photos are from Christine Eden (nee Lennox). The first is of the Iserlohn Eagle: Nijmegen March The photograph below is the BMH Iserlohn team taking part in the Nijmegen March in July 1972. The only name Christine can remember is Paddy. If you can help with the other names of the group or wish to get in touch with Christine please contact us. The Nijmegen March takes place over four days each July and was initially for worldwide military teams to encourage sport and exercise, though nowadays many civilians take part in the marches. Marchers will typically cover between 30 to 50km each day. Below is the RAMC flag of BMH Iserlohn: ******** The three photos below were kindly provided by John who served in the 1st Royal Tank Regiment (1RTR) at Osnabruck and at Minden with 658 Squadron Army Air Corps (AAC) in the early 1970's. The buildings in the background were long low buildings that accommodated service personnel whist having rehabilitation treatment at BMH Iserlohn. In the 1950s they were used by the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC): ******** I recently came across your interesting web site that brought back many memories of my service with the QARANC during the period 1961 - 63. I served at BMH Iserlohn 1962-63 where I met and subsequently married a Canadian Military Policeman. Our eldest girl was born at BMH Iserlohn and I fondly recall that one of my former QA mates was the assistant nurse during the birth of my daughter. I have resided in Canada since 1964 and visit the UK frequently. These photos were taken at BMH in 1963 and show my former best mate, Rita Henderson from Scotland, along with two other QA's whose names I can not recall. I am the blond girl (Margaret Warren) looking over the top of the sign. I would enjoy hearing from any of my former QARANC mates. Margaret (nee Warren) Pittman Margaret’s husband, Mel, runs the website for the Canadian Provost Corps Association (former service police of the Canadian Army) at canadianprovostcorps.ca ******** BMH Iserlohn was shared with Canadian Forces until 1970. Between 1978 and 1993 BMH Iserlohn had the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) role of 31 Field Hospital in support of 1 (BR) Corps. In 1985 BMH Iserlohn closed for six years and the building was refurbished and then opened as a modern hospital for the British Army. During the Gulf War of 1990 to 1991 staff at BMH Iserlohn worked alongside the staff of local German hospitals and Bundeswehr (Federal Defence Force) medical staff. This was known as Operational Friendship. On the 24 March 1994 BMH Iserlohn closed after a flag lowering ceremony and presentation of a Fahnenband. Guests included General Artz Doktor Paul the senior Medical Officer in the Bundeswehr who presented the CO of BMH Iserlohn with the Fahnenband. The parade was led by Captain R N Wilson of the RAMC. Brigadier C G Callow L/RAMC the Commander Medical BAOR performed the inspection. Padre Peter Clements performed the service of dedication, address and presentation. The three flags of the Army Medical Services (AMS), QARANC, RAMC and RADC, were lowered by representatives of each Corps as The Last Post was played. This included Sergeant Sandy Stewart of the RAMC. Lt Sue Whitehead QARANC led the march past of the QARANC Platoon. My mother was a QA in the 1960's. I am writing in particular to the page on BMH Iserlohn and wanted to add a bit more information on the closure of the BMH in 1994. Unknown by many people, when the flag was lowered on 24 March 1994 that was only the "official" closure. My father, Major Clive Mullen (RAMC), became the Quartermaster of the BMH in November 1991 (came from having closed BMH Berlin) and in March 1994 he was then given the task of de-commissioning the hospital which was then to be finally handed over to the Germans in October 1994. To say the least, he was the last one out. My father and his team worked hard to distribute all the hospital equipment in those six months - a lot of it was very new as the hospital had had an update a few years before it was subsequently closed. It was a sad day when my father handed the keys over to the Germans. It was by no means an easy feat. The ones that were left behind to do the "non-official" closing of the hospital worked hard. My father has been in the Army for over forty years, from a young private in the RAMC (he met my mother whilst they were both stationed at the military hospital in Colchester) to a Major. Michelle. ******** This is a little piece of information about Iserlohn, - you state on the web page that the regiment in Iserlohn in 1950 was the 1st Battalion, the Queens Royal Regiment, and they were - but also there, in Epsom Barracks, was the 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales Own). I think they had gone to Iserlohn around 1947 and 1948 and my late Father joined the regiment as Bandmaster in late 1949 after graduating from Kneller Hall. We joined him on 19th December of that year and were in Iserlohn until mid 1953, when the regiment was posted to Tidworth. The regiment was then posted to Aqaba, Jordan in February 1956 and we were one of the families that went. There was a small hospital there, I'm pretty sure it was a military hospital, my brother had to go there after a nail pierced his leg when he was playing with other children. I remember we all went in a jeep and drove through the village to get to the hospital, where my brother was treated. In later years the regiment was amalgamated with the 11th Hussars, and now I think the regiment is called The Royal Hussars. Diane Kerwin Sadly none of the QARANC.co.uk team had a German posting and would love to expand this page with more details about this former army hospital and include a photograph. If you are a former or serving member of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps we would love your help. If you would like to contribute any info, photographs or share your memories of BMH Iserlohn then please contact me. Below are some memories of serving or being nursed at BMH Iserlohn: Hello I am an ex Sgt GR Munroe RCAMC (Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps) here - just discovered your website (BMH Iserlohn) and was amazed and delighted to see the pics and information. I was (X-Ray Tech) - worked for Col Fava and Lt Col Guthrie (Cdn) back in 1961 - 1962, and have a lot of fond memories for the old place. I still have a copy of the program for "The Mikado" which was organized by a number of the British and Canadian units in the area. My buddy Sgt 'Dusty' Miller and I did the scenery and props in the old Engineer shed (no heat - early spring) for two weeks - armed with a jug of Bacardi's. Usually wound up the evening singing our bawdy version of the Mikado's lyrics...? Can't believe the scenery turned out as well as it did! The play was booked for five nights at the Soldatenheim but was so popular they had to extend it for a few more nights. Great talent! Another pleasant surprise was the picture of the Maternity ward staff in 1960. My oldest daughter Janet (she hates that), was born there on 3 Jan 1960. My other daughter Linda was born there the following year. I Emailed them the picture and text and got quite a reaction! The staff must have made quite an impression on them - they are both in the medical field - Janet is Radiologist at the Medical College of Georgia, and Linda is Lab Manager in British Columbia. Thank you BMH Iserlohn gang for looking after my wife and daughters. If I could, I would treat you all at the Zum Baren (more memories). Anyways - for those who are still with us from that era, good health, many thanks and all the best for the future. It was good while it lasted! Yes, and pass along all my best wishes to a great crew. Also I wonder if anyone remembers (late 50s early 60s) Dennis Harwood. He was a transfer from RAMC (RadTech) to RCAMC and was Lt Admin officer in 1 CBMU. He was a major when he passed away a few years ago in Barrie, Ontario. Also, when I was working in a small hospital in Ontario I met a doctor, Ian Irvine, who was, in addition to being a Scot, a medic (RAMC), and had just left Korea before I arrived, then a RadTech in BMH Iserlohn (late 50s), but had just left before I got there, then got his MD and moved to Canada where we finally collided. Anyway - nice to jog the memory banks. Thanks for the reply and talk to you again. Jerry Munroe ******** The BMH Iserlohn later became an International Business School and then a Campus Garden Hotel (a business and conference hotel). More information can be found about the history of the town of Iserlohn at www.iserlohn.de/englisch/town_history/townhistory5.php and at www.iserlohn.de/englisch/town_history/townhistory6.php The Real Tenko The latest book about British Army nurses and nursing describes a dark chapter in the history of the QAs. The Real Tenko: Extraordinary True Stories of Women Prisoners of the Japanese by Mark Felton is an account of the fall of the Far East to Japan. It comprehensively covers war atrocities performed by the Japanese troops to women stationed in places such as Singapore and Hong Kong. This included Sisters of the QAs who were stationed in hospitals such as BMH Bowen Road Hong Kong and BMH Singapore. Read the Qaranc.co.uk review or Buy Now with free delivery available. View more British Army Nursing Books - with free delivery available. If you would like to contribute to this page, suggest changes or inclusions to this website or would like to send me a photograph then please e-mail me. The photos and pictures on this page have been kindly sent to us for inclusion on this page. If you would like to contribute photographs then please contact us. For the official Army QARANC webpage please go to www.army.mod.uk/home.aspx For the QARANC Association website please go to www.army.mod.uk/army-medical-services/qaranc/9884.aspx ******************************************* Help Needed** A reader of Qaranc.co.uk is researching the exhumation of Heinrich Himmler in Luneberg, Germany circa 1945-46. He thinks that two nurses from the QAIMNS attended the exhumation due to the poor state of health of Walter Schellenberg. He would like to learn if any of the nurses kept a diary of the events leading up to the exhumation or sent any personal letters home to friends or family that may have provided an insight into Walter Schellenberg and the exhumation. Please contact Qaranc.co.uk if you have any information. Qaranc.co.uk have recently learnt about two former Military Hospitals that we would like to write about. These are the British Military Hospital at Wuppertal in Germany and BMH Benghazi. If you know any information, would like to share your memories or have photographs that we can use on the site then please contact Qaranc.co.uk A reader is writing an article about the demise of the Military Hospital for the RAMC Magazine and seeks some help. There was, in Kuala Lumpur, a hospital called BMH Kinrara. He would like to know when it opened and closed, what happened to the buildings and the staff. He thinks that Kinrara closed as Terendak opened and that the staff were transferred across to 34 Company RAMC? He would also like any information about the Military Maternity Hospital, Penang. If you can help then please contact Qaranc.co.uk There is a lovely photo of three QA Midwives from the 1960s about half way down on the Royal Herbert Hospital page. If you can help with information about the Maternity Unit in Woolwich or identify the QA Officers then please contact Qaranc.co.uk The BMH Dhekelia has new photos which includes a stunning picture of the demolition of the original building and some staff photos. The contributor would like some help with the date it was demolished and would love to hear from anyone who worked with her relative.			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