England’s almshouses form a living link between the medieval past and modern social care. These charitable housing institutions, originally known as hospitals or “bede-houses” (from the Anglo-Saxon bede, meaning prayer), were established to shelter the poor, elderly and infirm, long before the welfare state. Over the centuries, almshouses have evolved under the patronage of monarchs and clergy, weathered the upheavals of the Reformation, and adapted to contemporary needs, all while preserving their core mission of providing “hospitality and shelter” to society’s most vulnerable.