Our history

Old photograph of the Hospital building when Medway hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
On this page:
The Opening
The NHS acquisition
Image Gallery

1905 – The Opening

Medway Maritime Hospital was originally a Royal Naval Hospital, opened by King Edward VII in 1905.

The hospital clock tower, which is a local landmark, cost £100 and was built from funds left over from the plastering budget for the main hospital building. Until 1950, Royal Marines police guarded the entrance to the hospital and visitors and tradesmen had to show a pass to gain access.

The hospital cost £800,000 and boasted a main corridor of nearly 1000 feet in length.

Old photograph inside a ward with patients laying in their beds alongside nurses, taken when Medway Hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital

1961 – The NHS Acquisition

In 1961 the NHS acquired the hospital from the Navy.

Buildings and facilities were modernised as part of a £1.5m modernisation scheme and the hospital reopened again as Medway Hospital in 1965.

Old photograph of the Medway hospital building taken from the road entrance including a vintage car and the iconic clock tower
Old photograph of the Medway hospital building taken from the road entrance including a vintage car and the iconic clock tower
Old photograph of patients undertaking rehabilitation activites, taken when Medway Hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital

Significant work that followed includes:

  • the creation of a new orthopaedic block and accident and emergency centre in 1970
  • a new extension for elderly and mental health services (A Block) in 1990
  • a new £60 million development which saw the hospital double in size in 1999 when services provided at neighbouring hospitals in Rochester (St Bartholomew’s) and Chatham (All Saints’) were brought under the umbrella of Medway Hospital
  • the hospital changed its name in 1999 to mark the start of a new era. The new name ‘Medway Maritime Hospital’ reflects the hospital’s proud naval tradition.
Old photograph of the Medway hospital building taken from the road entrance
Old photograph showing the Royal Navy wheeling a patient on a bed through the hospital grounds
Old photograph of the Hospital building when Medway hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
Old photograph showing the Medway hospital building when it was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
Old photograph of staff using onsite tennis courts, taken when Medway Hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
Old photograph inside a ward with patients laying in their beds alongside nurses, taken when Medway Hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
Old photograph showing the entrance of the Medway Hospital when it was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital
Old photograph of the Hospital building when Medway hospital was Chatham Royal Navy Hospital