A Nigerian Princess Who Became A Nurse In Wartime Britain

A Nigerian Princess Who Became A Nurse In Wartime Britain

I want to tell you about Princess Adenrele Ademola. She crossed cultural and social boundaries at a time when that was far from easy.

Adenrele Ademola was born in Nigeria on the 2nd of January 1916. She was the daughter of Oba Ladapo Ademola II, the Alake of Abeokuta, meaning she grew up as part of a royal family. In 1935, while still very young, she travelled to Britain and stayed at the West African Students’ Union hostel in Camden Town. It must have been a huge adjustment arriving in such a different country during the tense years before the Second World War.

After studying in Somerset, she began nurse training at Guy’s Hospital in London in 1938. By 1941 she had qualified as a registered nurse and went on to train in midwifery. During the war years she continued caring for patients in London hospitals, including Queen Charlotte’s Maternity Hospital and New End Hospital. Patients reportedly nicknamed her “Fairy” because of her kindness.

During the war she also appeared in the film Nurse Ademola, produced for audiences across West Africa. The film is now sadly lost, but it was created to show her work as a nurse and inspire support for the war effort. Sadly, very little is known about her later life.