She Was Called “The Creole With The Tea Mug” and Was Voted The Greatest Black Briton

Seacole offered cuisine for the fight spectators in addition to her hotel services. She once dislocated her right thumb while caring to wounded soldiers while under fire. According to a Times correspondent, Seacole was regularly present close to the fighting to assist the injured. Her nursing work was highly praised. She received similar praise for being "The Mother of the Army" to Florence Nightingale. Mary Seacole was referred to as "The Creole with the Tea Mug," whereas Nightingale was "The Lady with the Lamp."

Few women of her era dared to do what Mary Seacole did. She traveled, operated a business, and risked her life in battle to achieve her goal. In the Caribbean, she is revered and regarded as an icon. She has had several sites named after her, and in 1991 she received the Jamaican Order of Merit posthumously. In a 2004 online poll of 100 Great Black Britons, Seacole received the most votes. Her autobiography is also significant because it was one of the first to be written by a lady of mixed ethnicity.