Rachael Pratt, (18 July 1874 – 23 March 1954), sometimes spelt Rachel Pratt, was an Australian army nurse. She served with the Australian Army Nursing Service 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 ...

and was one of only seven Australian nurses 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 ...

Early life and education

Pratt was born on 18 July 1874, at Mumbannar, northwest of Heywood in Victoria. She was the daughter of Phoebe (née Ward) and farmer William Pratt, both of whom had migrated from

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

. She was educated at the Mumbannar State School.

Nursing career

Pratt enrolled to train as a nurse at Ballarat Hospital in 1909, understating her age to be accepted. After qualifying she continued to work at Ballarat Hospital, before moving to Melbourne to the Women's Hospital. Pratt enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force for service with the Australian Army Nursing Service in May 1915 and was immediately embarked aboard RMS ''Mooltan'' to

Lemnos Lemnos ( ) or Limnos ( ) is a Greek island in the northern Aegean Sea. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within the Lemnos (regional unit), Lemnos regional unit, which is part of the North Aegean modern regions of Greece ...

to join No. 3 Australian General Hospital (3AGH) and nurse soldiers wounded at

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

. She subsequently served with 3AGH in Abbassia, Egypt, before transferring to No. 1 Australian General Hospital in England. Pratt was posted to the 1st Australian Casualty Clearing Station (1ACCS) at Bailleul in France in May 1917. Two months later, during an air raid in the early hours of 4 July, she was wounded but continued to tend her patients. When she eventually collapsed, it was discovered that shrapnel had lodged in her lungs. She was promoted to sister on 5 July, stabilised and sent to England for treatment. An operation failed to remove the shrapnel but she recovered to resume service at postings in England. For her bravery during the raid, Pratt was awarded the

. She was one of only seven Australian nurses to receive the Military Medal in the First World War. She was presented with her award by

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 ...

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 ...

in October 1917, the citation for the medal praising her "conspicuous gallantry displayed in the performance of her duties on the occasion of hostile air raids on Casualty Clearing Stations in the field". After the war, Pratt and her sister opened St Margaret's Hospital, a private hospital in

Malvern, Victoria Malvern ( ) is a inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, eight kilometres south-east of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Stonnington Local government areas of Victoria, local government area. Malve ...

. In 1937 she attended the coronation of George VI in London. Her post-war life was badly affected. Not only did she suffer chronic bronchitis from her wounded lung, but she was also afflicted by severe mental illness. Pratt died at Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital on 23 March 1954.

References

External links

Stories of Service – Nurse Pratt
produced by the Department of Veterans Affairs, presented by Ray Martin, with Dr Meleah Hampton, military historian. {{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Rachael 1874 births 1954 deaths Australian military nurses Australian women nurses Recipients of the Military Medal Australian military personnel of World War I Australian women of World War I Military personnel from Victoria (state) Women in the Australian military