The Victoria Memorial Jewish Hospital was established in 1904 in the Cheetham Hill area of Manchester. It was the first Jewish hospital to be opened in Britain. Demand was very high, and arguments had been put forward for a separate hospital in Manchester as far back as 1868.

The established, wealthy Jewish elite argued that a separate hospital would be bad for integration, whilst the middle class professionals and recent immigrants on the pro-hospital side argued the elite were out of touch with the poor Jewish population and its needs.

The hospital opened in 1904 having raised funds of £4,500 (over £400,000 in today’s money), through donations and subscriptions from the majority of poor Jewish households.

The hospital was run by volunteers, and had just ten beds upon opening. This number had increased to seventeen in just the first year, and four years later a major expansion was opened by Winston Churchill.

In 1948 the hospital was absorbed into the newly formed NHS, and remained as such until its closure in 1992, when the Jewish Victoria Wing was established at North Manchester General Hospital in commemoration.