The head of the Army has defended the hospital treatment of soldiers who are injured in Iraq and Afghanistan.
General Sir Richard Dannatt said the authorities were "working hard" to create excellent facilities at Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham, where many troops are treated.
His comments come after the hospital was criticised at the weekend by the family of a soldier injured in Iraq.
Sir Richard said advances in medical treatment on the battlefield meant more people were surviving and needed specialist care back in the UK.
He told BBC News 24: "Warfare is not a nice thing. Warfare is violent and people get injured.
"The nature of the injuries that some of our people have been experiencing are such that the very best attention has been given to them in the field.
"It is a fact of life that some of the people who are now going to Selly Oak probably in years gone by would have died on the battlefield."
He said the "complications" of wounds received in places like Iraq and Afghanistan meant specialist treatment was needed at Selly Oak.
"That is why we are working really hard to make it as good as possible," he said.
He added that he was happy that there had now been changes at the hospital in the last year to ensure that soldiers were not on "mixed wards" with civilians.
