St. John Ambulance Australia (SA)

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A LONG AND HONOURABLE HISTORY

St John Ambulance has been active in Australia since 1883. St John is a Royal Order of Chivalry with the Queen as Sovereign Head and the Governor General as Prior in Australia. The Order’s inspiration dates back to the eleventh century when Knights of the Order established the Hospital of St John in Jerusalem.

		The Order maintained a strong presence in England until the time of Henry VIII and the dissolution of the monasteries. It was restored in the nineteenth century and took its modern form with the founding of the St John Ambulance Association 1887. Its aim was to train the public at work and at home in first aid and Ambulance transport. Within ten years a St John Ambulance Brigade had been formed as a body of uniformed training volunteers to provide first aid cover for the public.

		The first Australian St John Ambulance Association Centre was established in Victoria in 1883 and a St John Ambulance Brigade of uniformed volunteers began operating in New South Wales in 1903 followed closely by Western Australia in 1904. Today St John Ambulance is operating in every State and Territory in Australia. It has a major presence in the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand and the United States of America, and has affiliates throughout Asia, Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.




	stjohn@stjohnsa.com.au