World War 1 | Hursley Park

1914-1918, The Great War

Soldiers, Hospitals, Flyers & Americans

From the earliest days of the Great War in August 1914 through until after the hostilities had ceased in 1918 Hursley Park was to play an important part on the Home Front. The grounds were to become home to the 18,000 men of the 8th Division before their departure for Flanders in November 1914. Their departure was followed by the arrival of elements of the 28th Division who were to suffer horrendously in the winter of 1914, and a steady stream of men of Kitchener's New Army throughout 1915 and into 1916. As the soldiers prepared to go to war, casualties of it were returned to the two hospitals on the estate. For the officers Hursley Park House was to become their home, as "Lady Cooper's Hospital for Officers", whilst "Other Ranks" were cared for in the Hursley Park Camp Military Hospital, a less appealing 350 bed "hutted" hospital.

By 1917 the soldiers of Kitchener's Army had long since left for the Front and the Camp had given way to the Royal Flying Corps, first as Cadets and then as Observers, coming to receive advanced training in the Artillery Infantry Cooperation School. Their departure in May 1918 (now as the newly formed Royal Air Force) made way for the camp to be taken over by the Americans who, like the British Army before them used the Winchester area as a staging post before embarking for France. In Hursley the US AEF established a new Base Hospital by bringing together the British Military Hospital and Army Camp to create a massive new hospital to handle an expected 2,000 casualties. Meanwhile at Standon the camp became a staging post for many of the American Army's new Aero Squadrons. However, with the ending of hostilities in November 1918 the camp was rapidly run down and by 1921 the huts had been sold off and almost all trace that the Camps had ever existed was gone forever.