29 Facts About Caroline Matthews

Caroline Matthews served in the Italian Red Cross in the 1908 Messina earthquake, and in military hospitals during the Balkans War and World War One, and was taken as a prisoner of war.

Caroline Matthews was awarded King Victor Emmanuel's Medal, the Italian Red Cross Medal, King Victor Emmanuel's Commemoration Medal and the Montenegrin Order of Danilo.

Caroline Matthews had two brothers, John S Twigge was born on 1872 and who was to become a curate at Waverton-cum-Dundraw, Cumbria before in 1896, being ordained in Carlisle Cathedral to serve in the parish of Ravenstondale, Westmorland.

Caroline Matthews was privately tutored before went to study medicine in 1898 at the age of 21 in Edinburgh, and was living in Newington, in the 1901 census, and at three addresses during her studies, finally at Masson Hall, George Square.

Caroline Matthews passed the third level professional examinations in medicine and surgery in July 1903, and qualified in medicine on 17 October 1903, after studying as an extra-mural to the University of Edinburgh, based at the Edinburgh College of Medicine for Women.

Caroline Matthews later holidayed as a single woman in Brighton in 1905.

Caroline Matthews married Joseph Matthews, a surgeon who was a widower and almost thirty years her senior, in 1907, in the Sheriff Court in St Giles district, Edinburgh, but at the date of her death, she was already a widow.

Caroline Matthews served voluntarily in the 1908 Messina earthquake, when the city lost almost half its population including nurses and doctors.

Caroline Matthews was among those involved in the international relief effort who were awarded King Victor Emmanuel's Medal.

Caroline Matthews had been expected to take up a medical role with a leper community in China but did not get there, returning from Tibet on a ship specially chartered to lend assistance to Italy.

Caroline Matthews was said to have been simply treated as one of the soldiers when attached to the Grenadiers and had seen 'horrors unspeakable' or 'gruesome sights' including an 'inferno worse than that depicted by Dante' whilst working to save lives in this destructive disaster.

In 1910, Dr Caroline Matthews was the only woman, and the only English speaker, among the soldiers assisting civilians in the village of Cinquefronde, Calabria, where a smallpox infection was rife and the town was placed 'under the yellow flag'.

Caroline Matthews herself had to rest with an unspecified 'serious illness' in Rome, before being able to return home.

Caroline Matthews was awarded another honour, that of the Order of Danilo.

Caroline Matthews continued on with the journey and task of treating the man's wounded leg, and, after a few days for her own recovery, returned to her hospital post.

Caroline Matthews spoke of the continuing patriotic attitude of the Montenegrin people, despite their extremes of poverty and severity of many people's injuries.

Caroline Matthews's recollections give gossipy details of her journey, contrasting with a matter of fact approach to detailing the wounded in body and mind she came across during concerns with poor quality hygiene and a lack of resources, in the military hospital.

Caroline Matthews praises the courage and chivalry of the injured men, whom she calls 'brave, patient, grateful'.

Caroline Matthews said that as she used her skills, she felt that 'Life was worth living in these days.

Caroline Matthews was eventually released to the Scottish Women's Ambulance Unit, in Hungary, and allowed to leave with them, but had further challenges running into German 'spies' whilst travelling through Switzerland, one of whom she was said to have pushed off the train at Lucerne.

Caroline Matthews was pictured under the heading 'Lady Doctor in Khaki' on the front page of The Sheffield Independent on her return.

Caroline Matthews was explaining the need for at some times being brave and defiant, and at others more cautious and reserved, in conversations with her captors.

Caroline Matthews gave details, such as working amicably with the Hungarian chief medical officer during a deadly diphtheria outbreak, who was to be replaced by a 'coward' CMO, who would not enter the cholera ward, but left Matthews in charge.

Caroline Matthews explains that she caught diphtheria herself and felt desperate but 'crawled' round the wards.

Caroline Matthews's work was compared with autobiographical writing from another woman who became a volunteer fighter in the Serbian army, Flora Sandes, whose memoirs were aimed at raising money for the Serbs.

Caroline Matthews left her dolls to play with soldier toys,.

Caroline Matthews then contested her friend's will for re-transfer of these bonds but this was denied.

Caroline Matthews' health was indeed harmed from her war experiences, and she died of pneumonia after influenza at the age of 49, at home in Longton Grove, Sydenham and buried in Amy Johns' grave in the small cemetery at Downe, near Farnborough.

Caroline Matthews was called 'The Florence Nightingale of the Balkans' in the Evening Telegraph.