This is Walter Yeo, an English sailor who was injured while manning the guns aboard the battleship HMS Warspite during the Battle of Jutland on May 31, 1916. Although the exact cause of his injuries is not documented, he was likely struck by flying shrapnel from an exploding shell and suffered burns from the accompanying hot gases. The blast left Yeo severely disfigured, with the loss of both his upper and lower eyelids.
Yeo was first treated at Plymouth Hospital before being transferred to Queen Mary’s Hospital, where he came under the care of Harold Gillies. Thanks to Gillies’ pioneering work in reconstructive surgery, Yeo received a ground-breaking facial graft. A flap of skin was transplanted across his face and eyes, and after several months of recovery, he was declared fit for active service once again.
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