A watercolour showing the Queen, with Prince Albert, laying the stone, which is suspended on a golden rope. Behind them stand the Princess Royal, Prince of Wales, and Prince Alfred. Signed and dated. During the Crimean War it became evident that the layout and facilities of existing military hospitals in Britain were inadequate. The Royal Victoria Hospital was built at Netley near Southampton to counter this. On 19 May 1856 Queen Victoria laid the foundation stone of the hospital; below the stone was a box containing coins, a Crimea medal, a Victoria Cross and a document signed by the Queen, which were recovered when the hospital was demolished in 1966. The hospital had been completed in 1863, at a cost of over £350,000.