Who Was Edith Cavell?

Edith Cavell, born in 1865, was a British nurse during World War I and is considered a hero and martyr of the war. Cavell worked as a nurse at Brussel's Berkendael Clinic when the war broke out in 1914 and German troops invaded Belgium.

Cavell led the Red Cross hospital in Brussels during the first two years of the war and did not discriminate between friendly and enemy soldiers. Cavell treated many wounded Germans, as well as Entente soldiers. She also helped British, Belgian and French soldiers escape German-occupied Brussels. Cavell is credited with helping over 300 soldiers escape from Belgium into Holland.

The Germans did, however, soon realize that Cavell was involved in more than just regular medical activities. She was eventually tried and found guilty by a military court. Cavell was sentenced to death in 1915 and executed, despite calls for amnesty on the part of American diplomats.

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