Editing Friends' Ambulance Unit (section)

====Civilian relief in Ypres====

As the Unit developed its ambulance service in [[Ypres]], they discovered an emerging civilian crisis. Though the majority of Ypres’ civilians had been evacuated by late 1914, a large number remained behind, hidden in cellars and scattered across the countryside. These civilians were vulnerable to illness, malnutrition, and the deadly violence of an active war zone. The Unit quickly mounted a response.

Between the [[First Battle of Ypres|First]] and [[Second Battle of Ypres]], the FAU established two civilian hospitals in the area: the Chateau Elisabeth in [[Poperinghe]], and the Sacré Couer in Ypres itself. Their humanitarian work was made possible through cooperation with local partners, such as Father [[Charles Camiel Delaere]] and the Sisters of La Motte. These partners provided translation services, material support, staffing, and leadership. Besides medical aid, the Unit’s relief activities eventually expanded to include supply distribution, organizing gainful employment for refugees, screening for typhoid, and inoculation.

The outbreak of the Second Battle of Ypres, which involved the first significant use of gas weaponry on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]], forced a rapid end to the FAU's civilian relief in the region. As the fighting escalated, British military authorities ordered a definitive evacuation of all remaining civilians. The entirety of the FAU's ambulance fleet was mobilised to support this effort. The final evacuation involved an estimated 5,000 civilians.<ref>Palfreeman 2017, p. 165.</ref> 

The FAU was widely recognised for its exemplary service in Ypres. Besides the unit as a whole receiving letters of thanks from Flemish civilian organisations, Geoffrey Young (who served as a leader of the Unit) and Father Delaere both received the [[Order of Leopold (Belgium)|Order of Leopold]] for their work.<ref>Palfreeman 2017, p. 168-169; 171.</ref>