Catherine Murray Roy, (24 January 1883 – 14 August 1976) was a decorated Scottish military nurse who served at the front during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. She was later Matron-in-Chief of Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service.

Early life and education

Roy was born on 24 January 1883, one of eight children of Rev. John Roy, minister of the Church of Scotland at Drymen, Stirlingshire. She was educated at Glasgow High School and at Esdaile, Edinburgh. She trained at the Western Infirmary,

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

Nursing career

Roy joining the

regular army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a ...

as a staff nurse in 1909 and was one of a group of 50 British nurses to be sent to France with the British Expeditionary Force one week after the war started. She served in both France and Belgium and was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. In 1917, she was awarded the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the British Armed Forces, armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, below commissioned o ...

for conspicuous gallantry, displayed in the performance of her duties on the occasion of hostile air raids on Casualty Clearing Stations in the field. At the end of the war she was awarded the Royal Red Cross, receiving this honour from

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly known as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood has s ...

, Edinburgh, on 5 July 1920. After the war Roy remained in France to nurse victims of the Spanish flu pandemic. During the 1920s Roy received several overseas postings, including Hong Kong, Syria and China. From 1934 she was Principal Matron at the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

, a senior position with a rank equivalent to that of a lieutenant colonel. On 13 April 1938, Roy was appointed Matron-in-Chief of Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service, the most senior nursing role at the War Office with overall charge of the service, and a position she held until 1940. Roy was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1940 for her work during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Later life

In 1940 Roy retired and returned to live in Scotland with her mother and one of her sisters. She enjoyed music and art, and Elizabeth Mary Watt painted a portrait of her wearing her uniform and medals. In later life she lived in

Helensburgh Helensburgh ( ; ) is a town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local government reorganisation in 1996. Histo ...

. She died on 14 August 1976 from complications following a fall.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roy, Catherine 1883 births 1976 deaths British women in World War I Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps officers British nursing administrators Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Female nurses in World War I World War I nurses People from Stirling (council area) Recipients of the Military Medal Scottish nurses British Army personnel of World War I Members of the Royal Red Cross