Solferino mälestus - Jean Henri Dunant

In the summer of 1859, one of the largest and most devastating battles of the 19th century took place near the small town of Solferino in northern Italy. Five and a half thousand soldiers were killed and more than twenty thousand were wounded in the nine-hour battle between the Franco-Sardinian coalition forces and the Austro-Hungarian army.

Jean Henri Dunant, a young businessman from Geneva, was a semi-accidental witness to the consequences of the fighting, especially the sad fate of the wounded soldiers. Dunant recorded his memories of the days after the Battle of Solferino in a book that was first published in 1862. Between the same covers, he called for preparations to help wounded soldiers even in peacetime.

The ideas reflected in this book gave rise to the Red Cross movement, which has spread around the world today, as well as modern international military law. In recognition of his contribution to alleviating the suffering of war, Dunant was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901.