Henry Dunant birth anniversary: Why his birthday is celebrated as World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day

New Delhi: Every year on May 8, the World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day is celebrated to make us aware of the plights of people suffering from natural disasters, armed conflicts, and other crises and to highlight the humanitarian values of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The day is celebrated on the birth anniversary of Henry Dunant, who was born on May 8, 1828, in Geneva, Switzerland. He established the International Committee of the Red Cross and received the first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901. 

Who was Henry Dunant? 

Henry Dunant was a Swiss humanitarian, businessman and social activist who established the Red Cross. Born in Geneva on May 8, 1828, Dunant came from a family which was known for its charitable and humanitarian nature. In his youth, Dunant extensively took part in extensive religious activities and also worked full-time for a brief period as a representative of the Young Men’s Christian Association. 

He also worked at a Geneva bank and went to Algeria in 1853 to take charge of Sétif, a Swiss colony. He began to construct a wheat mill but did not get the land concession needed to operate it. He went to Tunisia and then returned to Geneva, where he decided to approach Napoleon III to obtain the business document he needed. But Napoleon at that time was in the field commanding the French forces who, with the Italians, were trying to drive the Austrians out of Italy. An undeterred Dunant showed his bravado and went straight to the headquarters of Napoleon near Solferino in Italy. There, he experienced and participated in the aftermath of one of the bloodiest battles of the 19th century. The struggles of soldiers and lack of infrastructure to treat their wounds on the battlefield pained him, and in 1862, Dunant published a small book ‘Un Souvenir de Solférino‘ (A Memory of Solferino). 

‘A Memory‘ tells of the despair on the battlefield and the need to care for the wounded. It proposed that countries should form relief societies to care for the wartime wounded and for that, countries have to appeal for volunteers and train them to help the wounded on the battlefield. The Geneva Society for Public Welfare formed a five-member committee including Dunant on February 7, 1863, to explore the possibility of forming such relief societies. This committee founded the Red Cross. Dunant invested all his money and travelled extensively to governments to send volunteers. On August 22, 1864, 12 nations signed the Geneva Convention when they agreed to assure neutrality to personnel engaged in sanitation, to keep the line of supplies flowing for their use, and to adopt a special emblem to identify them.

Henry Dunant and years of poverty 

During his time in the Red Cross, Dunant was famous and was received by heads of countries. He did not concentrate on his business venture as he was busy with humanitarian work. After a scandal, which involved many of his Geneva friends, the Genevan society shunned him. He resigned from the Red Cross both as its secretary and member, and both were accepted. His financial affairs became so poor that he was declared bankrupt in 1867. He lived like a beggar, dined on a crust of bread, used ink to blacken his coat and chalk to whiten his collar and slept out of doors.

From 1875 to 1895, Dunant lived in solitude and settled down in a small Swiss village named Heiden. A teacher in the village named Wilhelm Sonderegger found him in 1890 and informed the world that Dunant was alive, but he was ignored. In 1892, Dunant fell ill and was admitted to the hospice at Heiden where he lived for the remaining 18 years at Room 12. He was rediscovered in 1895 and this time, the world honoured him with prizes and awards. He passed away on October 30, 1910. 

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