With a rich history dating back hundred and thousands of years, the Maltese Islands have been through the ringer, overcoming trying times and even becoming a beacon of hope to ailing soldiers in World War I.

A BBC News video sheds light on this period in Malta’s history – a time in which the island came to be known as the Nurse of the Mediterranean. Seated in a boat in Malta’s picturesque harbour, doctor and broadcaster Kevin Fong narrates how the hospital ships had to survive German submarines and mines to get to the lift shaft that would carry the wounded up to Bighi naval hospital.

“Malta was well situated to receive Allied casualties from the Turkish battlefields in Gallipoli and Salonika, but they were hundreds of miles away, and it would take a week-long voyage by sea to reach her,” he continues, pointing out the distance on a map.

“By the end of the war, there were 27 hospitals with over 25,000 beds filled with servicemen, and it was at the Bighi naval hospital that the most serious casualties were received,” says Kevin, as he strolls among the storied columns of the ex-naval hospital.

The video also features a cameo by local cardiothoracic surgeon Alex Manche, who details the seriousness of one of the surgeries carried out at Bighi. “The operation had to be finished quickly because the blood donor had actually collapsed… it was a very adventurous procedure, but a great success,” says Dr Manche, adding that sadly, a month later, the patient died of sepsis, which was common in that pre-antibiotic era.

“In Malta, they went out of their way to care for patients in their care. In 1915 they went so far as to build Australia Hall, a place of amusement for the convalescing serviceman,” continues Kevin, as the video showcases the now-abandoned building, and what it looked like in its glory days.

Marc Zimmermann, Chairman of the Cinema Heritage Group in Malta, also makes an appearance, describing Australia Hall as a “fully fledged theatre” which offered distraction and helped with the healing process.

“Medicine found itself profoundly out of step with the horrors that the modern machines of warfare could bring. Nevertheless, what was achieved here is simply remarkable,” the narrator concludes, adding that “many thousands, if not tens of thousands of Allied soldiers came to owe their lives to the Nurse of the Mediterranean.”