Death in Training at Liverpool Field Hospital in early 1915

This presentation examined the deaths of recruits to the army in 1915 at the Liverpool Infantry Camp Field Hospital, the public outcry and the subsequent Royal Commission about the abysmal conditions at the Liverpool Field Hospital. The deaths sent a shock across the country. These conditions were first recognised by volunteers from the newly formed Red Cross, which assisted where possible. The military authorities were ill-prepared for war and overwhelmed by the conditions at the Liverpool Military Camp and the conflict's early months. The local Member of Parliament raised the issue in the Federal Parliament, and a Royal Commission was established on the conditions at the camp. This story also examines the groundbreaking role of the Red Cross in Australia following its formation in 1914 and its interaction with military authorities in Australia during the early months of the war.