Swiss businessman Jean Henri Dunant witnessed the sufferings of the thousands of wounded left on the battlefield in the heavy thunderstorms that followed the Battle of Solferino. He organized local volunteers to help but more importantly became determined to ensure that such sufferings be mollified in the future. From his efforts grew both the Geneva Conventions and the foundation of the International Red Cross at a meeting on February 17, 1863, also in Geneva. In 1901, Dunant received the first Nobel Peace Prize awarded. (By John Osborne)
Source Citation
Henry Dunant, Anna B. Heylin Wright, The Origin of the Red Cross: "Un Souvenir de Solferino" (Philadelphia: John C. Winston Co., 1911), v-vii.
Record Data
Date Certainty
Exact
Type
Battles/Soldiers
