Flora Sandes: The British Woman Who Fought on the Front Line in World War One

Flora Sandes, a soldier officially recognized as the sole British woman to engage in front-line combat during World War One, has been celebrated as a “pioneer for women” by a local historian. Born in 1876, Flora Sandes grew up in Marlesford, near Wickham Market in Suffolk. After being unable to join the British army, she enlisted in the Serbian army. She participated in battles against German forces and progressively advanced through the ranks before eventually relocating back to Suffolk. Janette Robinson, a historian specializing in Suffolk, delivered a presentation in Ipswich on Wednesday about Sandes’ life. This event was organized for the Suffolk Family History Society, held in anticipation of Remembrance Day on Monday. Ms Sandes was born in Nether Poppleton, close to York. Ms Robinson explained that Sandes was the daughter of a “very well connected” Anglo-Irish vicar who later became the Marlesford vicar and moved his family there. When World War One commenced in 1914, she was 38 years old and eager to serve. “She ended up volunteering for the Red Cross when World War One broke out and she was rejected because she only had St John’s Ambulance Brigade certificates and no practical experience,” Ms Robinson told BBC Radio Suffolk. “That really upset her and she then discovered there was a group of volunteer nurses going to Serbia and she went with them.” Sandes worked in Serbia for several years. However, when the country was invaded in 1916 and a retreat was ordered, Ms Sandes declined to abandon the forces she had been assigned to, choosing instead to join them. She was the only British woman fighting directly against the Germans. Over time, she ascended through the army’s ranks to become an officer and, according to Ms Robinson, her contributions are still remembered in Serbia today. After the war concluded in 1918, Ms Sandes reportedly found it challenging to reintegrate into normal life in England. “She drank, she smoked, she did everything a man did and she did it very well,” Ms Robinson said. “Women didn’t do that and so after the war she found it very difficult to adjust.” She added, “Men found it very difficult to talk to her and so did women.” Years later, after also having fought in World War Two, her husband passed away, and she moved back to Suffolk. She died in 1956 at the age of 80. Ms Robinson encountered Sandes’ story while working as an archivist at Wickham Market Archives. “There was only one folder dedicated to a person (Ms Sandes), all the other folders were dedicated to a subject,” Ms Robinson stated. “I began to research but she did keep a diary for most of her life – that is in the Imperial War Museum.” “All of her paperwork has been deposited by her family in the Imperial War Museum and there have been quite a few books written about her.” Ms Robinson continued, “In fact she wrote two autobiographies herself so the story is out there but although she was known completely throughout the Commonwealth she is hardly known today which is sad.” Ms Robinson conveyed that her talk at the Salvation Army Citadel in Ipswich merely offered a glimpse into Sandes’ life, which was filled with numerous adventures. She asserted, “She really was a pioneer for women [and] for anybody who wants to do what they want to do,” adding, “She wanted to enjoy life and she did a lot of good things.” Concluding, “I think she’s an inspiration to a lot of people.”