Page 4 - The Princess Mary's Hospital 40pp book.pdf

Introduction
The Princess Mary’s Hospital, Akrotiri2, more familiarly known by its initials as TPMH, at the south-western tip of the Akrotiri peninsula within the Western Sovereign Base Area in Cyprus, is the last permanent British military hospital remaining out of fifteen that existed in the 1960s (as distinct from operational field hospitals such as Camp Bastion, in Helmand Province, Afghanistan). Its closure brings to an end an era of permanent British military hospitals dating back to pre-Napoleonic times. It is only fitting, in this 50th and final year of its existence, to commemorate this anniversary by recalling how TPMH and its predecessor at RAF Akrotiri3 have provided essential hospital services in peacetime and in times of conflict for service personnel, dependants and the local population in Cyprus. It has also given succour to individual seafarers in distress and supported maritime operations and humanitarian missions overseas during this period, as well as supporting military operations further afield, such as in Aden, Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Oman and Libya.
This commemorative booklet contains extracts from the complete history available separately in the form of an iBook (electronic interactive book for iPad and iPhone users), with a full range of accompanying images and bookmarked PDF (portable document format), on DVD.
These extracts give a fascinating insight into the role of a British military hospital strategically located at the junction of three continents and next to major international flashpoints with ongoing tension.
2The Princess Mary’s Hospital (official website) http://aepiiis/tpmh/default.asp 3RAF Akrotiri (official website) http://aepiiis/akrotiri stn/default.asp
4Maps provided by www.worldatlas.com
2
Strategic location of Cyprus, some 40 miles south of Turkey, 60 miles west of Syria, and 230 miles north of Egypt4
TPMH
Cyprus – a divided island