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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Mary Seacole
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(Mary Grant, 1805-1881) A woman of remarkable enterprise who became a popular heroine during the *Crimean War. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, of mixed race (her mother was a free black woman, her father a Scottish army officer), she married in 1836 Edward Horatio Seacole whose middle name reflected the fact that he was a godson of Lord *Nelson. He died soon after their marriage, and Mary began travelling around the Caribbean and in central America (particularly Panama) earning her living by her skills as a nurse - learnt from her mother, whose employment had been the care of sick and injured British soldiers and sailors stationed in Jamaica.
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News of the outbreak of the Crimean War prompted Mary to cross the Atlantic in 1854 to offer her services as a nurse, but she failed to get herself taken on by any of the people, including Florence *Nightingale, who were recruiting nurses for the front (the implication is that the colour of her skin stood in her way). Undaunted, Mary made her own way to Turkey and set up a 'British Hotel' close to the front, where she provided food and nursing to those in need. Her reputation grew as news of her exploits reached Britain. She received a commendation from Queen Victoria. And her autobiography, Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands, was a bestseller when it was published in 1857.
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