World Wars

This guide is designed to help you locate material relating to war time hospitals.

We hold a small number of records relating specifically to hospitals and individuals in Edinburgh during the First World War (1914-1918) and the Second World War (1939-1945). Several hospitals in Edinburgh were taken over by the War Office for use as military hospitals.  Most administrative and patient records created during these periods were transferred to The National Archives at Kew in London.

Explore The National Archives website.

Hospital Management Minutes and Annual Reports over the war years will provide general information on how the wars affected a particular hospital.

Please note that personnel and patient records relating to specific individuals and created within the last 100 years are subject to access restrictions under the terms of the UK Data Protection law.

  • Edinburgh War Hospital, Bangour (outwith war periods known as Bangour Village Hospital). LHSA holds photographs only.
  • Seafield War Hospital (formerly Seafield Poorhouse, became the Eastern General Hospital). LHSA holds photographs only.
  • Second Scottish General Hospital, Craigleith (formerly Craigleith Poorhouse, became the Western General Hospital). LHSA holds the hospital’s in-house magazine, the Craigleith Hospital Chronicle, only.

[More details and an online 'page turner' are available to view.

Explore the Craigleith Hospital Chronicle resources.]


World War 1 - Resource list (85.76 KB / DOCX)

  • Bangour Emergency Hospital (built during Second World War, later known as Bangour General Hospital). LHSA holds Surgical Neurology and Plastic Surgery patient case notes only.
  • Bangour Village Hospital. LHSA holds photographs only.
  • East Fortune (patients transferred to Bangour).
  • Edinburgh War Hospital, Bangour (outwith war periods known as Bangour Village Hospital).
  • Gogarburn. LHSA holds patient case notes only.

World War 2 - Resource list (85.09 KB / DOCX)

The Leith Roll of Honour, created by a resolution of the Leith Town Council in 1920, lists the 2206 officers and men who were killed in the Great War of 1914-1918, as well as the 350 who earned special honours. The first volume contains details on the background to the War and a summary of its events, including the part played by the town and people of Leith. The list of deceased gives name, age, address, army division and number, and cause and date of death.

The first volume of the Roll also provides the background to its inclusion as part of a war memorial at Leith Hospital. It had been decided to erect a new wing at the hospital as a memorial to the people of Leith who lost their lives serving in World War One. Contributions were made by people from all walks of life and the wing was officially opened on 29th January 1927. A managers’ minute of 12th May 1927 tells us that a design for the case in which to display the Leith Roll of Honour was unanimously approved. The new wing and its contents, including the Roll of Honour, were formally handed to the managers of the hospital on 15th December 1927 by ex - Provost Lindsay on behalf of the War Memorial Committee. 

Leith hospital became part of the NHS in 1948, and its records were later transferred to LHSA after the hospital closed.  The Roll of Honour is permanently preserved in appropriate archival and environmental conditions.


A number of our collections, including photographs, have been digitised and are available to everyone.

Heritage Collections image collections website.

Bangour Village Hospital

Bangour Village Hospital was a psychiatric hospital which was taken over by the War Office in 1915 and again in 1939. LHSA holds photographs of soldiers and staff, including nurses, from the First World War.

Bangour Village Hospital images.

2nd Scottish General Hospital, Craigleith

  • Photographs

Craighleith Poorhouse was requisitioned by the War Office during both the First and Second World Wars and we have images of military patients and the hospital from the First World War.

2nd Scottish General Hospital, Craigleith images.

  • Ethel Miller’s scrapbook

Ethel Miller was trained as a nurse at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh between 1911 and 1916. She was a member of the Territorial Force Nursing Service and worked at the 2nd Scottish General Hospital in Craigleith during the First World War. This scrapbook includes sketches and autographs.

Ethel Miller's scrapbook images.


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