A new exhibition has opened at Tunbridge Wells Museum & Art Gallery marking the centenary of the start of the First World War.

‘Back to Blighty’ was opened on Friday, July 25 and has already welcomed great numbers of visitors.

Between 1914 and 1918, Tunbridge Wells – like the rest of the country– was transformed by war.

The town had a vital role as a medical centre for treating wounded soldiers.

This exhibition explores the experiences of both the wounded soldiers and those who cared for them and runs until January 2015.

From late September 1914 wounded British and Belgian soldiers began to arrive from the continent. The General Hospital in Tunbridge Wells received the more seriously injured soldiers, with the auxiliary Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) hospitals across the borough mainly treating convalescents.

To deal with the injuries caused by a modern, technological war, a highly organised system of medical support was developed.

On the frontline, stretcher bearers carried injured soldiers to regimental aid posts and casualty clearing stations. From there, ambulances and trains transported them to base hospitals, or if they were in a stable but serious condition, back to Britain or ‘Blighty’.

The exhibition was opened by Baroness Emerton, former chief nursing officer of South East Thames Regional Health Authority, and chancellor and chief commander of St John Ambulance.