THEY were the unsung heroes - the dedicated medics who cared for the wounded warriors who returned to Hampshire shores from the bloody battlefields of Normandy.

Now a fascinating exhibition puts under the microscope the healing work carried out at Netley's Royal Victoria Hospital where thousands of D-Day casualties were treated.

Once the country's largest military hospital, it now lies in the grounds of a country park overlooking Southampton Water.

At the official opening of the Normandy to Netley photo display, historian Patrick Kirkby showed an emotion-packed film about the American Army and Navy medical staff who ran the hospital during the D-Day invasion.

The first mass of casualties arrived at Netley after midnight on June 11 with the hospital admitting more than 400 patients in the first 24 hours.

Between 1944 and July 1945 the Americans treated some 68,0000 casualties, including 10,000 Germans.

And it was not unusual for the Americans to drive their jeeps along the quarter mile long corridors of the giant hospital.

The photo display gives an insight into the sheer scale of the operation at the hospital and how the casualties were evacuated back from Normandy to England.

And the county council's executive member for recreation and heritage Councillor John Waddington said: "The Royal Victoria Country Park which Hampshire residents enjoy today is such a tranquil and scenic setting it would seem a world away from the events of 60 years ago.

"This makes it all the more important for us to take time to remember the important role that Royal Victoria Hospital played, the staff who were based there and those who were treated there."

After World War 2 the main hospital fell into disuse and in 1966 it was demolished except for the Royal Chapel.

But those D-Day memories were not wiped away. The Normandy to Netley display runs until September 26.