Rectory Lane Cemetery, Berkhamsted

The Beeches is a large house on Kings Road Road in Berkhamsted. During World War I it was used as a hospital by the Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD), a voluntary unit of civilians who provided nursing care for military personnel. It was known as “The Detention Hospital”.

Nursing Sister Hannah Maude Cottingham was Matron here during WWI. Originally from Downpatrick in Northern Ireland, Sister Cottingham died of influenza in 1918 during the Spanish Flu epidemic.

At the time, the Inns of Court OTC had a large army training camp in Berkhamsted. Affected by the death of a young woman who died far from home in the service of her country, the trainee officers paid for her memorial in Rectory Lane Cemetery.

The Beeches was later converted into a girls’ school, becoming part of Berkhamsted School for Girls. In 1996, it became part of the Berkhamsted School.