It was founded as the Glasgow Lying-in Hospital and Dispensary in 1834 in Greyfriars Wynd, just off the city's High Street.

[3] Lying-in is an archaic term for childbirth (referring to the month-long bedrest prescribed for postpartum confinement).

[5] A West End branch opened in St. Vincent Street in 1888,[5] the same year that Murdoch Cameron performed the world's first modern Caesarean section.

[6] An extension was added in 1908[5] and the title "Glasgow Royal Maternity and Women's Hospital" was granted in 1914.

[7] The West End branch closed in 1941 after it was damaged in an air raid[5] and a new out-patients department opened in 1955.