Royal Naval Hospital Haslar Opens

1753

The Royal Naval Hospital Haslar opened in 1753 on the Haslar peninsula, south-east of the town centre. It was the largest brick building in Europe at the time of its construction and represented an enormous investment in the care of sick and wounded naval personnel. The hospital was designed by Theodore Jacobsen and built between 1746 and 1762, with later additions extending the complex over the following century. At its peak, Haslar could accommodate over 2,000 patients and employed a large staff of surgeons, physicians, nurses, and support workers. The hospital's scale reflected the brutal realities of naval warfare in the age of sail, when disease killed far more sailors than enemy action. Scurvy, typhus, and tropical fevers were routine, and the hospital dealt with a steady flow of casualties from the wars of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The hospital grounds included gardens designed to aid recovery, a chapel, and extensive support buildings. Haslar served the Royal Navy continuously for over 250 years, treating casualties from every major conflict from the Seven Years' War to the Falklands. The hospital closed in 2009, and the site has since been the subject of redevelopment proposals that have generated considerable local debate about the balance between heritage preservation and new housing.

Context

Before Haslar, sick sailors were treated in temporary quarters ashore or left aboard ship, leading to appalling mortality rates.

Impact

Haslar became one of the most significant naval medical institutions in the world and shaped the development of the entire south-eastern corner of the Gosport peninsula.