Since being founded over 200 years ago, Moorfields has remained at the forefront of eye treatment, care, teaching and research.
1837
Queen Victoria gives the hospital in Lower Moorfields its Royal Charter. Although it was renamed the Royal London Ophthalmic Hospital, everyone continued to call it Moorfields.
1897
The Prince of Wales laid the foundation stone for the new hospital on our current City Road site and two years later the building opened.
1902
The introduction of electric current in the operating theatre meant that more powerful electromagnets for particle removal were now available and, combined with newfound accuracy in localisation, this led to a dramatic improvement in surgical results: by 1902, 58% of eyes were saved, compared to 26% in 1895.
1948
With the forming of the NHS, Moorfields became a de facto postgraduate teaching hospital. At the same time, an Institute of Ophthalmology was established and our partnership with University College London to pioneer ophthalmology research through the Institute continues to this day.
2004
We were one of the first ten organisations to become an NHS foundation trust.
2007
We opened both the world’s largest children’s eye centre adjacent to our main hospital in City Road, and an overseas branch in Dubai.
For over
200 years
Moorfields has been at the forefront of eye care
The
1st
hospital in the world dedicated to eye care
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Looking to the future
We continue to look to the future, with our purpose built new hospital due to open in 2027.
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