New Delhi:
Seen as a symbol and harbinger of peace, World Red Cross is an annual celebrated each year on 8 May to mark the birth of Henry Dunant, a Swiss man who came up with the Red Cross concept in 1859. History has it that the Red Cross was founded as a major contribution to the peace just after World War I by an international commission established at 14th International Conference of the Red Cross. This world's largest humanitarian network which includes the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the societies in 186 member countries did not easily come into being as we know of today.
Below are some fascinating facts about the being of the Red Cross we never knew about:
The idea of the Red Cross came into being when In 1859, Jean Henri Dunant after failing to meet up with French Emperor Napoleon III, happened to witness the Battle of Solferino, in which some 40,000 troops were killed or wounded in a single day. Since neither army had much of a medical corps, Dunant organized a group of volunteers to bring food and water to the wounded, to treat their injuries and to write letters to their families.
The idea behind the Red Cross was not approved by everyone: When the Red Cross came into being in 1859, not everyone was in favour of the idea, History has it that Dunant who praised British nurse Florence Nightingale for her “passionate devotion to suffering humanity” and for giving up “the pleasures of opulence in order to devote herself to doing good.” did not originally think highly of the Red Cross.
Dunant was the first to secure he first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901 along with leading French pacifist Frédéric Passy.
The Red Cross society which includes the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the societies in 186 member countries has more than 97 million staff, volunteers, and supporters.
