'Clarkey' was a lively hostess who didn't care about her appearance. Florence Nightingale’s Early Influencesįlorence Nightingale got introduced to the English-born Parisian hostess Mary Clarke, whom she connected with during a family trip to Europe in 1838. On tour to Europe in 1838, Nightingale met a significant figure who profoundly impacted her life. The more scholarly of the two sisters, Florence showed an outstanding talent for collecting and assessing material from an early age, which she would use to great success later in life.' Classical education strives to revive a traditional and historic 'liberal' education by reinstating a thorough study of the liberal arts, natural sciences, and 'great books.' The modern term for Florence Nightingale education is classical education. History, mathematics, Italian, ancient literature, and philosophy were among the subjects they studied. 'Florence benefited from their father's progressive ideas on women's education,' according to a BBC documentary.

Florence Nightingale’s Family Treeįlorence's liberal-humanitarian outlook was instilled in her by both sides of her family. William acquired his estate at Lea Hurst from him and took on the name and arms of Nightingale.īeing born into a wealthy household had several advantages, such as a decent education for Nightingale. Mary née Evans, William's mother, was a niece of Peter Nightingale. Nightingale's father was a wealthy landowner with two estates: one in Lea Hurst, Derbyshire, and the other in Embly, Hampshire. William Edward Shore was Nightingale's father (who had changed his surname from 'Shore'), and Frances ('Fanny') Nightingale, née Smith, her mother. William Smith, an abolitionist and Unitarian, was Fanny's father (and Florence's maternal grandfather). Florence's older sister, Frances Parthenope, was named after her birthplace, Parthenope, a Greek colony now part of Naples.įlorence Nightingale's family resided in Embley, Hampshire, and Lea Hurst, Derbyshire, after returning to England in 1821. Nightingale was the younger of two girls from a wealthy British family who belonged to upper-class social circles.

Nightingale was born in Florence, Italy, on May 12, 1820, the city that inspired her name.

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