Battle of Solferino
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every year the red cross's people of the world go to solferino italy,for a walk with
torchlights for 16 km to remenber the solferino's battle in 1859 between austrains
and french-sardinians..200.000 soldiers,29.000 died....
in this battle became the idea of the red cross...
this year we were 12.000.....3 km of people..3 km of lights...
torchlights for 16 km to remenber the solferino's battle in 1859 between austrains
and french-sardinians..200.000 soldiers,29.000 died....
in this battle became the idea of the red cross...
this year we were 12.000.....3 km of people..3 km of lights...
The Battle of Solferino was fought on June 24, 1859 and resulted in the victory of the allied French Army under Napoleon
III and Sardinian Army under Victor Emmanuel II (together known as the Franco-Sardinian Alliance) against the Austrian
Army under Emperor Francis-Joseph (also known as Franz Joseph). Over 200,000 soldiers fought in this important battle,
the largest since the Battle of Leipzig in 1813. There were about 100,000 Austrian troops and a combined total of
118,600 French and allied Piedmontese-Sardinian troops. After this battle, the Austrian Emperor refrained from further
direct command of the army.
The Battle of Solferino was a decisive engagement in the Second Italian War of Independence or Second Independence
War, a crucial step in the Italian Risorgimento. The geo-political context for the war was the nationalist struggle to unify
Italy, long divided between France, Austria, Spain and the Papal States. The battle took place near the village of
Solferino, Italy, a location between Milan and Verona.
The confrontation was between the Austrians, then marching across northern Italy, and the French and
Piedmontese-Sardinian forces who opposed their advance. The battle was a particularly gruelling one, lasting over nine
hours and resulting in over 3,000 Austrian troops killed with 10,807 wounded and 8,638 missing or captured. The Allied
armies also suffered a total of 2,492 killed, 12,512 wounded and 2,922 captured or missing. Reports of wounded and
dying soldiers being shot or bayoneted on both sides added to the horror. In the end, the Austrian forces were forced to
yield their positions, and the Allied French-Italian armies won a tactical, but costly, victory.
III and Sardinian Army under Victor Emmanuel II (together known as the Franco-Sardinian Alliance) against the Austrian
Army under Emperor Francis-Joseph (also known as Franz Joseph). Over 200,000 soldiers fought in this important battle,
the largest since the Battle of Leipzig in 1813. There were about 100,000 Austrian troops and a combined total of
118,600 French and allied Piedmontese-Sardinian troops. After this battle, the Austrian Emperor refrained from further
direct command of the army.
The Battle of Solferino was a decisive engagement in the Second Italian War of Independence or Second Independence
War, a crucial step in the Italian Risorgimento. The geo-political context for the war was the nationalist struggle to unify
Italy, long divided between France, Austria, Spain and the Papal States. The battle took place near the village of
Solferino, Italy, a location between Milan and Verona.
The confrontation was between the Austrians, then marching across northern Italy, and the French and
Piedmontese-Sardinian forces who opposed their advance. The battle was a particularly gruelling one, lasting over nine
hours and resulting in over 3,000 Austrian troops killed with 10,807 wounded and 8,638 missing or captured. The Allied
armies also suffered a total of 2,492 killed, 12,512 wounded and 2,922 captured or missing. Reports of wounded and
dying soldiers being shot or bayoneted on both sides added to the horror. In the end, the Austrian forces were forced to
yield their positions, and the Allied French-Italian armies won a tactical, but costly, victory.
Napoleon III was moved by the important losses – about 40,000 (this doesn't tie up with the figures given above) deaths on both sides – as he argued back
in 1852 "the French Empire is peace", and for some reasons, including the Prussian threat and domestic protests by the Roman Catholics, he decided to put
an end to the war with the Armistice of Villafranca on July 12, 1859. The Italians won the Lombardy but not the Venetia and they were deeply disapointed by
Napoleon III's behaviour, as a result Camillo Benso, conte di Cavour resigned.[3] The Kingdom of Italy was created in 1860.
This battle would have a long-term effect on the future conduct of military actions. Jean-Henri Dunant, who witnessed the battle in person, was motivated by
the horrific suffering of wounded soldiers left on the battlefield to begin a campaign that would eventually result in the Geneva Conventions and the
establishment of the International Red Cross.
in 1852 "the French Empire is peace", and for some reasons, including the Prussian threat and domestic protests by the Roman Catholics, he decided to put
an end to the war with the Armistice of Villafranca on July 12, 1859. The Italians won the Lombardy but not the Venetia and they were deeply disapointed by
Napoleon III's behaviour, as a result Camillo Benso, conte di Cavour resigned.[3] The Kingdom of Italy was created in 1860.
This battle would have a long-term effect on the future conduct of military actions. Jean-Henri Dunant, who witnessed the battle in person, was motivated by
the horrific suffering of wounded soldiers left on the battlefield to begin a campaign that would eventually result in the Geneva Conventions and the
establishment of the International Red Cross.
On 24 June 1859, during the War of Italian Unification, Franco-Sardinian forces clashed with Austrian troops near the small town of Solferino in northern Italy. On that day, a citizen of Geneva,
Switzerland, Henry Dunant, was travelling to the area to meet Napoleon III on personal matters. On the evening of the battle, Dunant arrived in the village of Castiglione, where more than 9,000
wounded had taken refuge. In the main church, the Chiesa Maggiore, where thousands were lying unattended, Dunant and the local women strove for several days and nights to give them water,
wash and dress their wounds and hand out tobacco, tea and fruit.
Dunant remained in Castiglione until 27 June and then set out again, returning to Geneva on 11 July. He was beset by financial difficulties, but could not forget what he had seen, and in 1862 he
published a work entitled A Memory of Solferino. In it he described the battle and the wounded of the Chiesa Maggiore, concluding with a question:
"Would it not be possible, in time of peace and quiet, to form relief societies for the purpose of having care given to the wounded in wartime by zealous, devoted and thoroughly qualified volunteers?"
It was this question that led to the founding of the Red Cross. He also asked the military authorities of various countries whether they could formulate "(...) some international principle, sanctioned by
a convention and inviolate in character, which, once agreed upon and ratified, might constitute the basis for societies for the relief of the wounded in the different European countries?". This second
question was the basis for the The Geneva Conventions.
Committee is formed
Henry Dunant's book was a huge success; it was translated into virtually all the European languages and read by the most influential people of his time. Among them was Gustave Moynier, citizen of
Geneva, lawyer and chairman of a local charity (the Geneva Public Welfare Society). On 9 February 1863, he presented the conclusions of Dunant's work to his society, which established a five-member
committee to study the author's proposals.
This committee, which comprised Moynier, Dunant, General Guillaume-Henri Dufour, Dr Louis Appia and Dr Théodore Maunoir, was initially called the International Committee for Relief to the
Wounded. However, it soon became known as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). It met for the first time on 17 February 1863. From the outset it saw that the volunteers envisaged
by Henry Dunant could act effectively, without risking rejection by officers and soldiers, only if they could be told apart from ordinary civilians by a distinctive emblem and were protected from the
fighting. Hence the concept of giving neutral status to medical services and volunteer nurses.
On 25 August 1863, the International Committee decided to convene an international conference in Geneva, under its own responsibility, to study ways of overcoming the inadequacy of army medical
services. It sent out invitations to all European governments and numerous leading personalities. The conference was opened by General Dufour on 26 October 1863. There were 36 participants,
including 14 government delegates, six delegates of various organizations and seven private individuals. This dual approach, both public and private, continues in International Conferences of the Red
Cross/Red Crescent, whose participants today comprise delegations of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, those of States party to the Conventions and observers (mainly from
non-governmental organizations).
The 1863 conference took as a basis for discussion a draft convention prepared by the International Committee. It ended with the adoption of ten resolutions, which provided for the establishment of
societies for relief to wounded soldiers ("committees") -- the future Red Cross, and later, Red Crescent, Societies.
Resolution 10 entrusted the exchange of information among the relief societies of the various countries to the International Committee.
The growth of national societies
The first relief societies - those in Württemburg, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, Belgium and Prussia - were set up during the next few months. Societies followed in Denmark, France, Italy,
Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Spain, Hamburg and Hesse.
Meanwhile, the International Committee was preparing for the next stage, a diplomatic conference. The purpose was to transform the resolutions adopted in 1863 into treaty rules, which would have
the force of law for the contracting parties (i.e. States).
On 1 February 1864, however, the Austrian and Prussian armies invaded Denmark, starting what became known as the The German-Danish war. The International Committee decided to send two
delegates to the field to care for the wounded and to study the possibilities of implementing some of the conclusions of the October 1863 conference.
On 6 June 1864, the Swiss government (which had agreed to organize the diplomatic conference) sent a letter of invitation to all the European governments and to the United States of America, Brazil
and Mexico.
Adoption of the Geneva Convention
The conference, attended by delegates from 16 States, met from 8 to 28 August 1864. Taking as a basis for discussion a draft convention prepared by the International Committee, on 22 August 1864
it signed the Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field. Modern international humanitarian law was born.
By the end of the year, the Convention had been ratified by France, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the Grand Duchy of Baden.
A new war, however, was soon to put the recently adopted Convention through a baptism of fire. This was the Austro-Prussian war of 1866.
Bismarck believed he had to crush France in order to achieve the unification of Germany. This led to the Franco-Prussian war, which broke out four years later, in July 1870. It was during this conflict
that the International Committee established the first Information Agency for families of wounded or captured soldiers. A series of conflicts, known as the Eastern crisis (1875-1878) , took the
delegates of the International Committee as far as the Balkans. They returned there during the Serbo-Bulgarian war (1885-1886) and again during the Balkan wars (1912-1913).
Throughout this period, the ICRC remained the chief driving force behind the development of international humanitarian law. It was able to do this mainly through the experiences of its delegates.
Switzerland, Henry Dunant, was travelling to the area to meet Napoleon III on personal matters. On the evening of the battle, Dunant arrived in the village of Castiglione, where more than 9,000
wounded had taken refuge. In the main church, the Chiesa Maggiore, where thousands were lying unattended, Dunant and the local women strove for several days and nights to give them water,
wash and dress their wounds and hand out tobacco, tea and fruit.
Dunant remained in Castiglione until 27 June and then set out again, returning to Geneva on 11 July. He was beset by financial difficulties, but could not forget what he had seen, and in 1862 he
published a work entitled A Memory of Solferino. In it he described the battle and the wounded of the Chiesa Maggiore, concluding with a question:
"Would it not be possible, in time of peace and quiet, to form relief societies for the purpose of having care given to the wounded in wartime by zealous, devoted and thoroughly qualified volunteers?"
It was this question that led to the founding of the Red Cross. He also asked the military authorities of various countries whether they could formulate "(...) some international principle, sanctioned by
a convention and inviolate in character, which, once agreed upon and ratified, might constitute the basis for societies for the relief of the wounded in the different European countries?". This second
question was the basis for the The Geneva Conventions.
Committee is formed
Henry Dunant's book was a huge success; it was translated into virtually all the European languages and read by the most influential people of his time. Among them was Gustave Moynier, citizen of
Geneva, lawyer and chairman of a local charity (the Geneva Public Welfare Society). On 9 February 1863, he presented the conclusions of Dunant's work to his society, which established a five-member
committee to study the author's proposals.
This committee, which comprised Moynier, Dunant, General Guillaume-Henri Dufour, Dr Louis Appia and Dr Théodore Maunoir, was initially called the International Committee for Relief to the
Wounded. However, it soon became known as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). It met for the first time on 17 February 1863. From the outset it saw that the volunteers envisaged
by Henry Dunant could act effectively, without risking rejection by officers and soldiers, only if they could be told apart from ordinary civilians by a distinctive emblem and were protected from the
fighting. Hence the concept of giving neutral status to medical services and volunteer nurses.
On 25 August 1863, the International Committee decided to convene an international conference in Geneva, under its own responsibility, to study ways of overcoming the inadequacy of army medical
services. It sent out invitations to all European governments and numerous leading personalities. The conference was opened by General Dufour on 26 October 1863. There were 36 participants,
including 14 government delegates, six delegates of various organizations and seven private individuals. This dual approach, both public and private, continues in International Conferences of the Red
Cross/Red Crescent, whose participants today comprise delegations of National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, those of States party to the Conventions and observers (mainly from
non-governmental organizations).
The 1863 conference took as a basis for discussion a draft convention prepared by the International Committee. It ended with the adoption of ten resolutions, which provided for the establishment of
societies for relief to wounded soldiers ("committees") -- the future Red Cross, and later, Red Crescent, Societies.
Resolution 10 entrusted the exchange of information among the relief societies of the various countries to the International Committee.
The growth of national societies
The first relief societies - those in Württemburg, the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, Belgium and Prussia - were set up during the next few months. Societies followed in Denmark, France, Italy,
Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Spain, Hamburg and Hesse.
Meanwhile, the International Committee was preparing for the next stage, a diplomatic conference. The purpose was to transform the resolutions adopted in 1863 into treaty rules, which would have
the force of law for the contracting parties (i.e. States).
On 1 February 1864, however, the Austrian and Prussian armies invaded Denmark, starting what became known as the The German-Danish war. The International Committee decided to send two
delegates to the field to care for the wounded and to study the possibilities of implementing some of the conclusions of the October 1863 conference.
On 6 June 1864, the Swiss government (which had agreed to organize the diplomatic conference) sent a letter of invitation to all the European governments and to the United States of America, Brazil
and Mexico.
Adoption of the Geneva Convention
The conference, attended by delegates from 16 States, met from 8 to 28 August 1864. Taking as a basis for discussion a draft convention prepared by the International Committee, on 22 August 1864
it signed the Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field. Modern international humanitarian law was born.
By the end of the year, the Convention had been ratified by France, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the Grand Duchy of Baden.
A new war, however, was soon to put the recently adopted Convention through a baptism of fire. This was the Austro-Prussian war of 1866.
Bismarck believed he had to crush France in order to achieve the unification of Germany. This led to the Franco-Prussian war, which broke out four years later, in July 1870. It was during this conflict
that the International Committee established the first Information Agency for families of wounded or captured soldiers. A series of conflicts, known as the Eastern crisis (1875-1878) , took the
delegates of the International Committee as far as the Balkans. They returned there during the Serbo-Bulgarian war (1885-1886) and again during the Balkan wars (1912-1913).
Throughout this period, the ICRC remained the chief driving force behind the development of international humanitarian law. It was able to do this mainly through the experiences of its delegates.
A Memory of Solferino
This is the book that prompted the creation of what is
now a worldwide movement with millions of members
and made the name of Henry Dunant known
everywhere. The account has moved many people and
still does today. "One finishes this book cursing war",
wrote the Goncourt brothers in the nineteenth century.
Since it was first published in 1862, the book has been
translated into so many languages and reprinted so
many times that it is difficult to know how many versions
exist throughout the world.
This is the book that prompted the creation of what is
now a worldwide movement with millions of members
and made the name of Henry Dunant known
everywhere. The account has moved many people and
still does today. "One finishes this book cursing war",
wrote the Goncourt brothers in the nineteenth century.
Since it was first published in 1862, the book has been
translated into so many languages and reprinted so
many times that it is difficult to know how many versions
exist throughout the world.
In 1859 a Swiss businessman Henry Dunant passed through Solerfino in Italy where a bloody
battle had been fought between the French and Italians on the one side, and the Austrians on the
other. He was appalled by the carnage and the lack of provision for the care of the wounded by
the military.
At the time, the Emperor was commanding the Franco-Sardinian troops fighting the Austrians in
northern Italy, and it was there that Henry Dunant decided to seek him out. This was how he came
to be present at the end of the battle of Solferino, in Lombardy.
On the day of the battle Dunant had arrived in the nearby town of Castiglione. He joined in the
work of relief, sent his coach to bring supplies, and wrote to his friends in Switzerland for aid. Then
he returned home, never again to be just like the young man who had set out to discuss a
business deal with an emperor. Solferino changed Dunant.
Dunant arrived in Solferino on the evening of June 24, 1859, on the same day a battle between
the two sides had occurred nearby. Thirty-eight thousand injured, dying, and dead remained on
the battlefield, and there appeared to be little attempt to provide care. Shocked, Dunant himself
took the initiative to organize the civilian population, especially the women and girls, to provide
assistance to the injured and sick soldiers. They lacked sufficient materials and supplies, and
Dunant himself organized the purchase of needed materials and helped erect makeshift hospitals.
He convinced the population to service the injured without regard to their side in the conflict as per
the slogan "Tutti fratelli" (All are brothers) coined by the women of nearby city Castiglione delle
Stiviere. He ... succeeded in gaining the release of Austrian doctors captured by the French.
In the summer of 1859, Dunant traveled to Italy. His suitcase contained a written homage to
Napoleon III who, in alliance with Sardinia, was waging a war on Austria. On June 24, the two
armies met at Solferino, a few miles west of the city of Mantua. The ensuing battle - though of
small strategic or political significance - was one of the most devastating battles fought in terms of
casualties. Nearly 40,000 wounded men begged for help on the battlefield at the fighting's end.
Dunant, known as "the man in white" because of his tropical outfit, was attempting to arrange his
meeting with Napoleon, but found himself instead witnessing the shocking scene.
Business interests brought Henry Dunant to northern Italy in 1859. He saw the aftermath of the
brutal battle of Solferino, where the French helped the Italians free themselves from Austrians
domination; he organised aid for dying and wounded soldiers.
battle had been fought between the French and Italians on the one side, and the Austrians on the
other. He was appalled by the carnage and the lack of provision for the care of the wounded by
the military.
At the time, the Emperor was commanding the Franco-Sardinian troops fighting the Austrians in
northern Italy, and it was there that Henry Dunant decided to seek him out. This was how he came
to be present at the end of the battle of Solferino, in Lombardy.
On the day of the battle Dunant had arrived in the nearby town of Castiglione. He joined in the
work of relief, sent his coach to bring supplies, and wrote to his friends in Switzerland for aid. Then
he returned home, never again to be just like the young man who had set out to discuss a
business deal with an emperor. Solferino changed Dunant.
Dunant arrived in Solferino on the evening of June 24, 1859, on the same day a battle between
the two sides had occurred nearby. Thirty-eight thousand injured, dying, and dead remained on
the battlefield, and there appeared to be little attempt to provide care. Shocked, Dunant himself
took the initiative to organize the civilian population, especially the women and girls, to provide
assistance to the injured and sick soldiers. They lacked sufficient materials and supplies, and
Dunant himself organized the purchase of needed materials and helped erect makeshift hospitals.
He convinced the population to service the injured without regard to their side in the conflict as per
the slogan "Tutti fratelli" (All are brothers) coined by the women of nearby city Castiglione delle
Stiviere. He ... succeeded in gaining the release of Austrian doctors captured by the French.
In the summer of 1859, Dunant traveled to Italy. His suitcase contained a written homage to
Napoleon III who, in alliance with Sardinia, was waging a war on Austria. On June 24, the two
armies met at Solferino, a few miles west of the city of Mantua. The ensuing battle - though of
small strategic or political significance - was one of the most devastating battles fought in terms of
casualties. Nearly 40,000 wounded men begged for help on the battlefield at the fighting's end.
Dunant, known as "the man in white" because of his tropical outfit, was attempting to arrange his
meeting with Napoleon, but found himself instead witnessing the shocking scene.
Business interests brought Henry Dunant to northern Italy in 1859. He saw the aftermath of the
brutal battle of Solferino, where the French helped the Italians free themselves from Austrians
domination; he organised aid for dying and wounded soldiers.
Dunant was born in Geneva, Switzerland as the first son of businessman
Jean-Jacques Dunant and his wife Antoinette Dunant-Colladon. His family was very
devoutly Calvinist and had significant influence in Geneva society. His parents
strongly stressed the value of social work, and his father was active helping orphans
and parolees, while his mother worked with the sick and poor. Particularly influential
for young Dunant was a visit to Toulon where he saw the suffering of prison inmates.
Dunant grew up during the period of religious awakening known as the Réveil, and at
age eighteen he joined the Geneva Society for Alms giving. In the following year,
together with friends, he founded the so-called "Thursday Association", a loose band
of young men that met to study the Bible and help the poor, and he spent much of
his free time engaged in prison visits and social work. On November 30, 1852, he
founded the Geneva chapter of the YMCA and three years later he took part in the
Paris meeting devoted to the founding of its international organization.
At age twenty-four, Dunant was forced to leave the Collège Calvin because of bad
grades, and he began an apprenticeship with the money-changing firm Lullin und
Sautter. After its successful conclusion, he remained as an employee of the bank.
Jean-Jacques Dunant and his wife Antoinette Dunant-Colladon. His family was very
devoutly Calvinist and had significant influence in Geneva society. His parents
strongly stressed the value of social work, and his father was active helping orphans
and parolees, while his mother worked with the sick and poor. Particularly influential
for young Dunant was a visit to Toulon where he saw the suffering of prison inmates.
Dunant grew up during the period of religious awakening known as the Réveil, and at
age eighteen he joined the Geneva Society for Alms giving. In the following year,
together with friends, he founded the so-called "Thursday Association", a loose band
of young men that met to study the Bible and help the poor, and he spent much of
his free time engaged in prison visits and social work. On November 30, 1852, he
founded the Geneva chapter of the YMCA and three years later he took part in the
Paris meeting devoted to the founding of its international organization.
At age twenty-four, Dunant was forced to leave the Collège Calvin because of bad
grades, and he began an apprenticeship with the money-changing firm Lullin und
Sautter. After its successful conclusion, he remained as an employee of the bank.
In 1853, Dunant visited Algeria, Tunisia, and Sicily, on assignment with a company devoted to the "colonies
of Setif" (Compagnie genevoise des Colonies de Sétif). Despite little experience, he successfully fulfilled the
assignment. Inspired by the trip, he wrote his first book with the title "An Account of the Regency in Tunis"
(Notice sur la Régence de Tunis), published in 1858.
In 1856, he created a business to operate in foreign colonies, and, after granted a land concession by
French-occupied Algeria, a corn-growing and trading company called the "Financial and Industrial Company
of Mons-Djémila Mills" (Société financière et industrielle des Moulins des Mons-Djémila). However, the land
and water rights were not clearly assigned, and the colonial authorities were not especially cooperative. As a
result, Dunant decided to appeal directly to French emperor Napoléon III, who was with his army in
Lombardy at the time. France was fighting on the side of Piedmont-Sardinia against Austria, who had
occupied much of today's Italy. Napoleon's headquarters were located in the small city of Solferino. Dunant
wrote a flattering book full of praise for Napoleon III with the intention to present it to the emperor, and
then traveled to Solferino to meet with him personally.
of Setif" (Compagnie genevoise des Colonies de Sétif). Despite little experience, he successfully fulfilled the
assignment. Inspired by the trip, he wrote his first book with the title "An Account of the Regency in Tunis"
(Notice sur la Régence de Tunis), published in 1858.
In 1856, he created a business to operate in foreign colonies, and, after granted a land concession by
French-occupied Algeria, a corn-growing and trading company called the "Financial and Industrial Company
of Mons-Djémila Mills" (Société financière et industrielle des Moulins des Mons-Djémila). However, the land
and water rights were not clearly assigned, and the colonial authorities were not especially cooperative. As a
result, Dunant decided to appeal directly to French emperor Napoléon III, who was with his army in
Lombardy at the time. France was fighting on the side of Piedmont-Sardinia against Austria, who had
occupied much of today's Italy. Napoleon's headquarters were located in the small city of Solferino. Dunant
wrote a flattering book full of praise for Napoleon III with the intention to present it to the emperor, and
then traveled to Solferino to meet with him personally.
After returning to Geneva early in July, Dunant decided to write a book about his experiences, which he titled "Un Souvenir de Solferino" (A
Memory of Solferino). It was published in 1862 in an edition of 1,600 copies and was printed at Dunant's own expense. Within the book, he
described the battle, its costs, and the chaotic circumstances afterwards. He also developed the idea that in the future a neutral organization
should exist to provide care to wounded soldiers. He distributed the book to many leading political and military figures in Europe.
Dunant also began to travel through Europe to promote his ideas. His book was largely positively received, and the President of the Geneva
Society for Public Welfare, jurist Gustave Moynier, made the book and its suggestions the topic of the February 9, 1863 meeting of the
organization. Dunant's recommendations were examined and positively assessed by the members. They created a five-person Committee to
further pursue the possibility of their implementation and made Dunant one of the members. The others were Moynier, the Swiss army
general Henri Dufour, and doctors Louis Appia and Théodore Maunoir. Their first meeting on February 17, 1863 is now considered the
founding date of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
From early on, Moynier and Dunant had increasing disagreements and conflicts regarding their respective visions and plans. Moynier
considered Dunant's idea to establish neutrality protections for care providers implausible and advised Dunant not to insist upon this concept.
However, Dunant continued to advocate this position in his travels and conversations with high-ranking political and military figures. This
intensified the personal conflict between Moynier, who took a rather pragmatic approach to the project, and Dunant who was the visionary
idealist among the five, and led to efforts by Moynier to attack Dunant and his bid for leadership.
In October 1863, fourteen states took part in a meeting in Geneva organized by the committee to discuss the improvement of care for
wounded soldiers. Dunant himself, however, was only a protocol leader because of Moynier's efforts to diminish his role. A year later, a
diplomatic conference organized by the Swiss Parliament led to the signing of the first Geneva Convention by twelve states. Dunant, again,
was only in charge of organizing accommodation for the attendees.
Forgotten period
Dunant's businesses in Algeria had suffered, partially because of his devotion to his humanistic ideals. In April 1867, the bankruptcy of the
financial firm Crédit Genevois led to a scandal involving Dunant. He was forced to declare bankruptcy and was condemned by the Geneva
Trade Court on August 17, 1868 for deceptive practices in the bankruptcies. Due to their investments in the firm, his family and many of his
friends were also heavily affected by the downfall of the company. The social outcry in Geneva, a city deeply rooted in Calvinist traditions,
also led to calls for him to separate himself from the International Committee. On August 25, 1867, he resigned as Secretary and on
September 8 he was fully removed from the Committee. Moynier, who had become President of the Committee in 1864, played a major role
in his expulsion.
In February 1868, Dunant's mother died. Later that year he was also expelled from the YMCA. In March 1867, he left his home city Geneva
and would not return for the rest of his life. In the following years, Moynier likely used his influence to attempt to ensure that Dunant would
not receive assistance from his friends and support. For example, the gold medal prize of Sciences Morales at the Paris World's Fair did not
go to Dunant as originally planned but to Moynier, Dufour, and Dunant together so that the prize money would only go to the Committee as
a whole. Napoléon III's offer to take over half of Dunant's debts if Dunant's friends would secure the other half was also thwarted by
Moynier's efforts.
Dunant moved to Paris where he lived in poor and meager conditions. However, he continued to pursue his humanitarian ideas and plans.
During the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), he founded the "Common Relief Society" (Allgemeine Fürsorgegesellschaft) and soon after the
"Common Alliance for Order and Civilization" (Allgemeine Allianz für Ordnung und Zivilisation). He argued for disarmament negotiations and
for the erection of an international court to mediate international conflicts. Later he worked for the erection of a world library, an idea which
has echoes in future projects like those of UNESCO. He also advocated the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine.
However, due to his continued pursuit and advocacy of his ideas, he further neglected his personal situation and income, falling further in
debt and being shunned by his acquaintances. Despite being appointed an honorary member of the national Red Cross societies of Austria,
the Netherlands, Sweden, Prussia and Spain, he was nearly forgotten in the official discourse of the Red Cross Movement, even as it was
rapidly expanding to new countries. He lived in poverty, moving to various places between 1874 and 1886, including Stuttgart, Rome, Corfu,
Basel, and Karlsruhe. In Stuttgart he met the Tübingen University student Rudolf Müller with whom he would have a close friendship. In 1881,
together with friends from Stuttgart, he went to the small Swiss resort village Heiden for the first time. In 1887 while living in London, he
began to receive some monthly financial support from some distant family members. This enabled him to live a somewhat more secure
existence, and he moved to Heiden in July. He spent the rest of his life there, and after April 30, 1892 he lived in a hospital and nursing
home led by Dr. Hermann Altherr.
In Heiden, he met the young teacher Wilhelm Sonderegger and his wife Susanna; they encouraged him to record his life experiences.
Sonderegger's wife founded a branch of the Red Cross in Heiden and in 1890 Dunant became its honorary president. With Sonderegger,
Dunant hoped to further promote his ideas, including publishing a new edition of his book. However, their friendship later was strained by
Dunant's unjustified accusations that Sonderegger, with Moynier in Geneva, was somehow conspiring against Dunant. Sonderegger died in
1904 at the age of only forty-two. Despite their strained relationship, Dunant was deeply moved by the unexpected death. Wilhelm and
Susanna Sonderegger's admiration for Dunant, felt by both even after Dunant's allegations, was passed on to their children. In 1935, their
son René published a compilation of letters from Dunant to his father.
Return to public memory
In September 1895, Georg Baumberger, the chief editor of the St. Gallen newspaper Die Ostschweiz, wrote an article about the Red Cross
founder, whom he had met and conversed with during a walk in Heiden a month earlier. The article entitled "Henri Dunant, the founder of the
Red Cross", appeared in the German Illustrated Magazine Über Land und Meer, and the article was soon reprinted in other publications
throughout Europe. The article struck a chord, and he received renewed attention and support. He received the Swiss Binet-Fendt Prize and a
note from Pope Leo XIII. Because of support from Russian tsarist widow Maria Feodorovna and other donations, his financial situation
improved remarkably.
In 1897, Rudolf Müller, who was now working as a teacher in Stuttgart, wrote a book about the origins of the Red Cross, altering the official
history to stress Dunant's role. The book also contained the text of "A memory of Solferino". Dunant began an exchange of correspondence
with Bertha von Suttner and wrote numerous articles and writings. He was especially active in writing about women's rights, and in 1897
facilitated the founding of a "Green Cross" women's organization.
Nobel Peace Prize
In 1901, Dunant was awarded the first-ever Nobel Peace Prize for his role in founding the International Red Cross Movement and initiating
the Geneva Convention. Norwegian military physician Hans Daae, who had received a copy of Rudolf Müller's book, advocated Dunant's case
on the Nobel committee. The award was jointly given to French pacifist Frédéric Passy, founder of the Peace League and active with Dunant in
the Alliance for Order and Civilization. The official congratulations which he received from the International Committee finally represented the
long overdue rehabilitation of Dunant's reputation:
"There is no man who more deserves this honour, for it was you, forty years ago, who set on foot the international organization for the relief
of the wounded on the battlefield. Without you, the Red Cross, the supreme humanitarian achievement of the nineteenth century would
probably have never been undertaken."
Moynier and the International Committee as a whole had also been nominated for the prize. Although Dunant was supported by a broad
spectrum in the selection process, he was still a controversial candidate. Some argued that the Red Cross and the Geneva Convention had
made war more attractive and imaginable by eliminating some of its suffering. Therefore Rudolf Müller, in a letter to the committee, argued
that the prize should be divided between Dunant and Passy, who for some time in the debate had been the leading candidate to be the sole
recipient of the prize. Müller also suggested that if a prize were to be warranted for Dunant, it should be given immediately because of his
advanced age and ill health.
By dividing the prize between strict pacifist Passy and humanitarian Dunant, the Nobel Committee set a precedent for the conditions of the
Nobel Peace Prize selection which would have significant consequences in later years. A section of Nobel's will had indicated that the prize
should go to an individual who had worked to reduce or eliminate standing armies, or directly to promote peace conferences, which made
Passy a natural choice for his peace work. On the other hand, the arguably distinct bestowal for humanitarian effort alone was seen by some
as a wide interpretation of Nobel's will. However, another part of Nobel's testament marked the prize for the individual who had best
enhanced the "brotherhood of people," which could be interpreted more generally as seeing humanitarian work like Dunant's as connected to
peacemaking as well. Many recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize in later years can be assigned to either of these two categories first roughly
established by the Nobel committee's decision in 1901.
Hans Daae succeeded in placing Dunant's part of the prize money, 104,000 Swiss Francs, in a Norwegian Bank and preventing access by his
creditors. Dunant himself never spent any of the money during his life time.
Death and Memory
Among several other awards in the following years, in 1903 Dunant was given an honorary doctorate by the medical faculty of the University
of Heidelberg. He lived in the nursing home in Heiden until his death. In the final years of his life, he suffered from depression and paranoia
about pursuit by his creditors and Moynier. There were even days when Dunant insisted that the cook of the nursing home first taste his food
before his eyes to protect him against possible poisoning. Although he continued to profess Christian beliefs, in his final years he spurned
and attacked Calvinism and organized religion generally.
According to his nurses, the final act of his life was to send a copy of Müller's book to the Italian queen with a personal dedication. He died
on October 30, 1910 at 10 at night, outliving his nemesis Moynier by just two months. Despite the ICRC's congratulations at the bestowal of
the Nobel prize, the two rivals never reached a reconciliation.
According to his wishes, he was buried without ceremony in the Sihlfeld Cemetery in Zürich. In his will, he donated funds to secure a "free
bed" in the Heiden nursing home always to be available for a poor citizen of the region and deeded some money to friends and charitable
organizations in Norway and Switzerland. The remaining funds went to his creditors partially relieving his debt; his inability to fully erase his
debts was a major burden to him until his death.
His birthday, May 8, is celebrated as the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day. The former nursing home in Heiden now houses the Henry
Dunant Museum. In Geneva and other places there are numerous streets, squares, and schools named after him. The Henry Dunant Medal,
awarded every two years by the standing commission of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is its highest decoration.
His life is represented, with some fictional elements, in the classic film D'homme à hommes (1948), starring Jean-Louis Barrault, and the
period of his life when the Red Cross was founded in the international film coproduction Henry Dunant: Red on the Cross (2006).
Memory of Solferino). It was published in 1862 in an edition of 1,600 copies and was printed at Dunant's own expense. Within the book, he
described the battle, its costs, and the chaotic circumstances afterwards. He also developed the idea that in the future a neutral organization
should exist to provide care to wounded soldiers. He distributed the book to many leading political and military figures in Europe.
Dunant also began to travel through Europe to promote his ideas. His book was largely positively received, and the President of the Geneva
Society for Public Welfare, jurist Gustave Moynier, made the book and its suggestions the topic of the February 9, 1863 meeting of the
organization. Dunant's recommendations were examined and positively assessed by the members. They created a five-person Committee to
further pursue the possibility of their implementation and made Dunant one of the members. The others were Moynier, the Swiss army
general Henri Dufour, and doctors Louis Appia and Théodore Maunoir. Their first meeting on February 17, 1863 is now considered the
founding date of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
From early on, Moynier and Dunant had increasing disagreements and conflicts regarding their respective visions and plans. Moynier
considered Dunant's idea to establish neutrality protections for care providers implausible and advised Dunant not to insist upon this concept.
However, Dunant continued to advocate this position in his travels and conversations with high-ranking political and military figures. This
intensified the personal conflict between Moynier, who took a rather pragmatic approach to the project, and Dunant who was the visionary
idealist among the five, and led to efforts by Moynier to attack Dunant and his bid for leadership.
In October 1863, fourteen states took part in a meeting in Geneva organized by the committee to discuss the improvement of care for
wounded soldiers. Dunant himself, however, was only a protocol leader because of Moynier's efforts to diminish his role. A year later, a
diplomatic conference organized by the Swiss Parliament led to the signing of the first Geneva Convention by twelve states. Dunant, again,
was only in charge of organizing accommodation for the attendees.
Forgotten period
Dunant's businesses in Algeria had suffered, partially because of his devotion to his humanistic ideals. In April 1867, the bankruptcy of the
financial firm Crédit Genevois led to a scandal involving Dunant. He was forced to declare bankruptcy and was condemned by the Geneva
Trade Court on August 17, 1868 for deceptive practices in the bankruptcies. Due to their investments in the firm, his family and many of his
friends were also heavily affected by the downfall of the company. The social outcry in Geneva, a city deeply rooted in Calvinist traditions,
also led to calls for him to separate himself from the International Committee. On August 25, 1867, he resigned as Secretary and on
September 8 he was fully removed from the Committee. Moynier, who had become President of the Committee in 1864, played a major role
in his expulsion.
In February 1868, Dunant's mother died. Later that year he was also expelled from the YMCA. In March 1867, he left his home city Geneva
and would not return for the rest of his life. In the following years, Moynier likely used his influence to attempt to ensure that Dunant would
not receive assistance from his friends and support. For example, the gold medal prize of Sciences Morales at the Paris World's Fair did not
go to Dunant as originally planned but to Moynier, Dufour, and Dunant together so that the prize money would only go to the Committee as
a whole. Napoléon III's offer to take over half of Dunant's debts if Dunant's friends would secure the other half was also thwarted by
Moynier's efforts.
Dunant moved to Paris where he lived in poor and meager conditions. However, he continued to pursue his humanitarian ideas and plans.
During the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), he founded the "Common Relief Society" (Allgemeine Fürsorgegesellschaft) and soon after the
"Common Alliance for Order and Civilization" (Allgemeine Allianz für Ordnung und Zivilisation). He argued for disarmament negotiations and
for the erection of an international court to mediate international conflicts. Later he worked for the erection of a world library, an idea which
has echoes in future projects like those of UNESCO. He also advocated the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine.
However, due to his continued pursuit and advocacy of his ideas, he further neglected his personal situation and income, falling further in
debt and being shunned by his acquaintances. Despite being appointed an honorary member of the national Red Cross societies of Austria,
the Netherlands, Sweden, Prussia and Spain, he was nearly forgotten in the official discourse of the Red Cross Movement, even as it was
rapidly expanding to new countries. He lived in poverty, moving to various places between 1874 and 1886, including Stuttgart, Rome, Corfu,
Basel, and Karlsruhe. In Stuttgart he met the Tübingen University student Rudolf Müller with whom he would have a close friendship. In 1881,
together with friends from Stuttgart, he went to the small Swiss resort village Heiden for the first time. In 1887 while living in London, he
began to receive some monthly financial support from some distant family members. This enabled him to live a somewhat more secure
existence, and he moved to Heiden in July. He spent the rest of his life there, and after April 30, 1892 he lived in a hospital and nursing
home led by Dr. Hermann Altherr.
In Heiden, he met the young teacher Wilhelm Sonderegger and his wife Susanna; they encouraged him to record his life experiences.
Sonderegger's wife founded a branch of the Red Cross in Heiden and in 1890 Dunant became its honorary president. With Sonderegger,
Dunant hoped to further promote his ideas, including publishing a new edition of his book. However, their friendship later was strained by
Dunant's unjustified accusations that Sonderegger, with Moynier in Geneva, was somehow conspiring against Dunant. Sonderegger died in
1904 at the age of only forty-two. Despite their strained relationship, Dunant was deeply moved by the unexpected death. Wilhelm and
Susanna Sonderegger's admiration for Dunant, felt by both even after Dunant's allegations, was passed on to their children. In 1935, their
son René published a compilation of letters from Dunant to his father.
Return to public memory
In September 1895, Georg Baumberger, the chief editor of the St. Gallen newspaper Die Ostschweiz, wrote an article about the Red Cross
founder, whom he had met and conversed with during a walk in Heiden a month earlier. The article entitled "Henri Dunant, the founder of the
Red Cross", appeared in the German Illustrated Magazine Über Land und Meer, and the article was soon reprinted in other publications
throughout Europe. The article struck a chord, and he received renewed attention and support. He received the Swiss Binet-Fendt Prize and a
note from Pope Leo XIII. Because of support from Russian tsarist widow Maria Feodorovna and other donations, his financial situation
improved remarkably.
In 1897, Rudolf Müller, who was now working as a teacher in Stuttgart, wrote a book about the origins of the Red Cross, altering the official
history to stress Dunant's role. The book also contained the text of "A memory of Solferino". Dunant began an exchange of correspondence
with Bertha von Suttner and wrote numerous articles and writings. He was especially active in writing about women's rights, and in 1897
facilitated the founding of a "Green Cross" women's organization.
Nobel Peace Prize
In 1901, Dunant was awarded the first-ever Nobel Peace Prize for his role in founding the International Red Cross Movement and initiating
the Geneva Convention. Norwegian military physician Hans Daae, who had received a copy of Rudolf Müller's book, advocated Dunant's case
on the Nobel committee. The award was jointly given to French pacifist Frédéric Passy, founder of the Peace League and active with Dunant in
the Alliance for Order and Civilization. The official congratulations which he received from the International Committee finally represented the
long overdue rehabilitation of Dunant's reputation:
"There is no man who more deserves this honour, for it was you, forty years ago, who set on foot the international organization for the relief
of the wounded on the battlefield. Without you, the Red Cross, the supreme humanitarian achievement of the nineteenth century would
probably have never been undertaken."
Moynier and the International Committee as a whole had also been nominated for the prize. Although Dunant was supported by a broad
spectrum in the selection process, he was still a controversial candidate. Some argued that the Red Cross and the Geneva Convention had
made war more attractive and imaginable by eliminating some of its suffering. Therefore Rudolf Müller, in a letter to the committee, argued
that the prize should be divided between Dunant and Passy, who for some time in the debate had been the leading candidate to be the sole
recipient of the prize. Müller also suggested that if a prize were to be warranted for Dunant, it should be given immediately because of his
advanced age and ill health.
By dividing the prize between strict pacifist Passy and humanitarian Dunant, the Nobel Committee set a precedent for the conditions of the
Nobel Peace Prize selection which would have significant consequences in later years. A section of Nobel's will had indicated that the prize
should go to an individual who had worked to reduce or eliminate standing armies, or directly to promote peace conferences, which made
Passy a natural choice for his peace work. On the other hand, the arguably distinct bestowal for humanitarian effort alone was seen by some
as a wide interpretation of Nobel's will. However, another part of Nobel's testament marked the prize for the individual who had best
enhanced the "brotherhood of people," which could be interpreted more generally as seeing humanitarian work like Dunant's as connected to
peacemaking as well. Many recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize in later years can be assigned to either of these two categories first roughly
established by the Nobel committee's decision in 1901.
Hans Daae succeeded in placing Dunant's part of the prize money, 104,000 Swiss Francs, in a Norwegian Bank and preventing access by his
creditors. Dunant himself never spent any of the money during his life time.
Death and Memory
Among several other awards in the following years, in 1903 Dunant was given an honorary doctorate by the medical faculty of the University
of Heidelberg. He lived in the nursing home in Heiden until his death. In the final years of his life, he suffered from depression and paranoia
about pursuit by his creditors and Moynier. There were even days when Dunant insisted that the cook of the nursing home first taste his food
before his eyes to protect him against possible poisoning. Although he continued to profess Christian beliefs, in his final years he spurned
and attacked Calvinism and organized religion generally.
According to his nurses, the final act of his life was to send a copy of Müller's book to the Italian queen with a personal dedication. He died
on October 30, 1910 at 10 at night, outliving his nemesis Moynier by just two months. Despite the ICRC's congratulations at the bestowal of
the Nobel prize, the two rivals never reached a reconciliation.
According to his wishes, he was buried without ceremony in the Sihlfeld Cemetery in Zürich. In his will, he donated funds to secure a "free
bed" in the Heiden nursing home always to be available for a poor citizen of the region and deeded some money to friends and charitable
organizations in Norway and Switzerland. The remaining funds went to his creditors partially relieving his debt; his inability to fully erase his
debts was a major burden to him until his death.
His birthday, May 8, is celebrated as the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day. The former nursing home in Heiden now houses the Henry
Dunant Museum. In Geneva and other places there are numerous streets, squares, and schools named after him. The Henry Dunant Medal,
awarded every two years by the standing commission of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is its highest decoration.
His life is represented, with some fictional elements, in the classic film D'homme à hommes (1948), starring Jean-Louis Barrault, and the
period of his life when the Red Cross was founded in the international film coproduction Henry Dunant: Red on the Cross (2006).
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