Facing Queen Square, the central projecting portico is flanked by pilasters which support a pediment with the elaborately foliated coloured coat of arms of the Italian Royal Family above the round-arched entrance. The Italian Hospital (also known as the Ospidale Italiano) was founded in 1884 by Commendatore Giovanni Battista Ortelli, a London businessman. It was for the benefit of sick Italians living in London who were unable to pay for their own health care. The hospital was run by the Sisters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul. Most of the Italian community lived in the Clerkenwell and Holborn areas. After the First World War, the hospital was refurbished to accommodate wounded British and Belgian troops. It closed in 1990.