Evelyn May Cridlan (24 December 1889 – 31 March 1961) was a British nurse and ambulance driver in 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 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 ...

in 1918 while serving in France as a driver in the

First Aid Nursing Yeomanry The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry (Princess Royal's Volunteer Corps) (FANY (PRVC)) is a British independent all-female registered charity structured like a military reserve unit. which primarily provides surge relief to civil and military authoriti ...

(FANY.). Her commendation noted the award was for "performing most efficient service in conveying the wounded to hospital during a bombing raid." She was also one of the earliest members of the

Women's Engineering Society The Women's Engineering Society is a United Kingdom professional learned society and networking body for women engineers, scientists and technologists. It was the first professional body set up for women working in all areas of engineering, pred ...

and the first woman to be elected a member of the Military Medalist's League, serving as a committee member until she became ill. On her death she left a legacy bequest of £100 to the Women's Transport Service(FANY)

Personal life

Born in Paddington, London on 24 December 1889, Evelyn May Cridlan was the daughter of John Joseph Cridlan and Ann Cridlan (née Harrison). She was the youngest of five siblings. Her father was a prosperous butcher and employed a governess to educate his children. Her hobbies were reportedly woodcarving and bookbinding. She was charged with binding a presentation copy of the history of the FANY Corps for

Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (Alice Mary Victoria Augusta Pauline; 25 February 1883 – 3 January 1981) was a member of the British royal family. She was the longest-lived Princess of the Blood Royal, and one of the longest-lived Britis ...

, who became the Corps' first Commander-in-Chief in 1933 and retained the role until her death in 1961.

Military career

Cridlan attempted to enlist as an ambulance driver as soon as the First World War began, drawn to the role through her patriotism and love of engineering. She was initially unsuccessful as she lacked experience in driving heavy vehicles. She addressed this by then working for Gorringes, a department store in London with premises on

Buckingham Palace Road Buckingham Palace Road is a street that runs through Victoria, London, from the south side of Buckingham Palace towards Chelsea, London, Chelsea, forming the A3214 road (Great Britain), A3214 road. It is dominated by London Victoria station, V ...

. Her experience as a delivery driver meant by 1917 she was posted to

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

, France, as a member of the FANY unit based there, focusing on moving invalided military personnel between aerodromes, stations and hospitals.

Awards and decorations

Military Medal

Cridlan was awarded the Military Medal in September 1918, for her conduct during an air raid on strategically important Marquise aerodrome near

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

where she was stationed. The site, which was used to receive newly delivered planes and repair damaged military aircraft, was bombed and

strafed Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such a ...

over several hours. Five and a half tonnes of bombs were dropped, 27 aircraft burnt and 46 damaged. The RAF sustained heavy casualties, with 46 personnel killed. Cridlan evidently found her experiences on that night distressing, not wishing to discuss the event and paraphrased in her obituary as saying, "never again would she see a harvest moon without seeing other things besides". Cridlan's investiture ceremony was held at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

on Saturday, 29 March 1919, the same occasion of that of two of her fellow nurses, Red Cross ambulance drivers, and FANY members, Mary D. Marshall and Christina M. Calder Urquhart. Following the ceremony both British Red Cross and Military Medal recipients attended an event hosted by Queen Alexandria at

Marlborough House Marlborough House, a Grade I listed mansion on The Mall in St James's, City of Westminster, London, is the headquarters of the Commonwealth of Nations and the seat of the Commonwealth Secretariat. It is adjacent to St James's Palace. The ...

Later life

Cridlan was an early member of the

, attending meetings, writing articles and speaking about her experiences of driving heavy vehicles for the FANY during times of war and peace. She remained with the FANY and took part in the annual training camps in Aldershot, supported by the army, particularly the Motor Transport unit, where attendees were trained in ever aspect of motor mechanics and higher driving skills. Cridlan held a number of roles within the FANY over the next twenty years, working in every department of the corp but was most interested in the mechanical side. In December 1939, she reported to WES that she was Records Officer (F.A.N.Y.) Headquarters and liaison officer to their Kenya Group on active service with the East African Force. She was also in charge of any overseas member who were stationed abroad. She served as a staff officer in their London headquarters in 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 ...

. When the building was bombed, she was a key figure in organising alternate offices alongside nearby St Paul’s Knightsbridge. Evelyn May Cridlan died on 31 March 1961.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cridlan, Evelyn May 1889 births 1961 deaths British military nurses British women in World War I Female nurses in World War I World War I nurses Recipients of the Military Medal Women's Engineering Society Military personnel from the City of Westminster People from Paddington British women engineers First Aid Nursing Yeomanry people