Craiglockhart Hydropathic facts for kids

Craiglockhart Hydropathic, now called Craiglockhart Campus, is a cool old building in Edinburgh, Scotland. It's part of Edinburgh Napier University. The outside of the building still looks like it used to, but the inside has been updated a lot.

Main front showing the scale of the Hydropathic

View of the side of the campus showing the original Hydropathic building and the newly built Business School.

What is a Hydropathic?

Back in 1877, this place became a "hydropathic institute." A hydropathic was like a health resort where people went to relax and get treatments using water. Think of it as an old-fashioned spa! The building was designed in an Italian style by architects Peddie & Kinnear.

A Hospital During World War I

Craiglockhart was a hydropathic until the First World War started. From 1916 to 1919, it became a special military hospital. It helped officers who were suffering from "shell shock." This was a type of mental trauma caused by the stress and horrors of war.

Famous Poets at Craiglockhart

Two very famous poets, Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, were patients at Craiglockhart. They met there and became friends. Their poems often talked about their experiences in the war.

The hospital even had its own magazine called The Hydra. Wilfred Owen was the editor of this magazine while he was there.

Siegfried Sassoon was sent to Craiglockhart because he wrote an anti-war letter. He later wrote a book called Sherston's Progress about his time at the hospital. Today, there's a special area in the building that celebrates the lives and work of both Sassoon and Owen.

One of the well-known doctors at the hospital was W. H. R. Rivers. The hospital was even featured in a book called Regeneration by Pat Barker, and a movie made in 1997 with the same name. In the movie, it was called Craiglockhart War Hospital.

What it is Today

After the war, the building had a few different uses. First, it was a convent for nuns. Then, it became a college where people trained to be Catholic teachers.

Eventually, the building became part of Napier College, which later became Edinburgh Napier University. Today, much of the old building is still there, but a big new part has been built behind it. This new section is home to the university's Business School.

See also

• Regeneration (1997 film) - a movie set at Craiglockhart.