The Rotunda Hospital (Irish: Ospidéal an Rotunda; legally the Hospital for the Relief of Poor Lying-in Women, Dublin) is a maternity hospital on Parnell Street in Dublin, Ireland, now managed by RCSI Hospitals. The eponymous Rotunda in Parnell Square is no longer a part of the hospital complex.

The beautiful design of the main building was undertaken by probably the greatest architect to work in Ireland during the 18th century, Richard Cassels. Cassels was responsible for designing some of Ireland’s great houses including Leinster House, Russborough House, Westport House, and Powerscourt House. The hospital, because it was a charitable institution, had several public function rooms in which fundraising activities were held. One of these areas was the large rotunda, after which the hospital is now named.

The hospital was founded by Bartholomew Mosse, a surgeon, and midwife who was appalled at the conditions that pregnant women had to endure, in George’s Lane in March 1745. It was granted by the Royal Charter on 2 December 1756 by King George II. Lying-in is an archaic term for childbirth (referring to the month-long bed rest prescribed for postpartum confinement).

The Rotunda Hospital, as both a maternity hospital and also as a training center (affiliated with Trinity College Dublin), is notable for having provided continuous service to mothers and babies since its inception, making it the oldest continuously operating maternity hospital in the world. It is estimated that over 300,000 babies have been born there.

According to Wikipedia