The keynote of the book is found in the preface where it is stated that "the central thesis of the authors is the inextricable interweaving of nursing service with all other branches of human culture." The development of nursing is traced through the record of human history starting with primitive times and ending with the problems facing the world at the conclusion of World War II.
Up to the middle of the 19th century, nursing was under the auspices of religious orders. After the Protestant revolt, nursing as a profession for lay people began to take root.
