On 6 February this year, the Queen became the first British monarch to achieve 70 years on the throne, reaching her Platinum Jubilee. This extended bank holiday sees us celebrating her milestone and we will be proudly raising the flag to full mast across all main sites throughout the four day period. Patients will be treated to cake to mark this historic occasion and UHSussex chapels have created their own Jubilee displays and themed prayer cards.
Historical Connections
This is not the first Jubilee that has been celebrated here at UHSussex. The Jubilee Building at Royal Sussex County Hospital was opened in 1887 to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee.
Queen Elizabeth II’s connection to UHSussex can be dated back to 1951, when she visited Worthing to open Courtlands Recovery Hospital, which specialised in postoperative care. The visit was just two year’s shy of The Queen’s Coronation and her entry into the visitor’s book highlights her princess status with her signature H.R.H Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh.
Royal Visits
The Trust has played host to a number of royal visits over the years and has welcomed key members of the royal family to officially open several of our buildings.
Princess Royal Hospital bears the title name of HRH Princess Anne, who officially opened the hospital in 1991. The Princess Royal also visited Worthing Hospital in 1998 to open the East Wing. Princess Anne then visited Sussex Eye Hospital to mark its 180th anniversary in 2012, where she was given a tour of the Accident and Emergency and Outpatients departments and met with patients.
The Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital was opened by Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra in 2007.
On her return in 2017 to mark 10 years of the hospital and 50 years of the Rockinghorse Children’s Charity, she was appointed patron of the hospital. Princess Alexandra also proudly opened The Donald Wilson House Neurological Rehabilitation Centre at St Richard’s Hospital in 2009.
Sophie, Countess of Wessex, officially opened Chichester Treatment Centre at St Richard’s Hospital in 2006. A return visit to Sussex in 2018 saw her officially open Western Sussex Eye Care, a purpose-built eye care department at Southlands Hospital, following a tour of the facilities where she met patients, staff and volunteers.
You can see more highlights of our royal history on our social channels throughout the Bank Holiday. Follow UHSussex on social media: