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Florence was given a better education than was at that time thought suitable for young ladies. To be sure, she and her sister learned all the usual female accomplishments. They were taught to use a globe, to copy out “elegant abstracts” from various writers, to embroider slippers and footstools, and to do other fancy work. They studied music, grammar, composition and modern languages. Mr. Nightingale himself added to this learning by teaching his daughters Latin, Greek, mathematics and history.

Florence was a good student and a quick one. By the time she was 17, she had read a truly formidable list of books in both modern and ancient languages. Her father had trained her to think clearly and to concentrate her mind on what she had to do. This training was to help her greatly in later years when quick, clear thinking meant the saving of lives. Florence was taught, as well, the usual manners and graces, which prepared her to take her place in the social world. She and her sister spent a season abroad and were then presented at court. Florence was not beautiful, but she possessed charm and distinction, and was a good, even a witty talker.