Jean-Henri Dunant, more popularly known as Henri Dunant (May 8, 1828 - October 30, 1910), was a Swiss humanitarian, founder of the Red Cross (now called Red Cross and Red Crescent). He also received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1901 for “supreme humanitarian achievement of the 19th century”. He founded the International Committee for the Relief of the Wounded (now International Committee of the Red Cross) in 1863 with the first Geneva Convention being introduced in 1864.

While Dunant was in present-day Italy, he witnessed the Battle of Solferino, in which around 40,000 troops were killed or wounded in a single day. This battle was fought for the unification of Italy. Lack of medical corps made Dunant organize a group of volunteers to treat the injured, to bring food and water to the wounded and to write letters to their families. He cared for the wounded and the dying with the help of local people, in a local church for three days and three nights.

In 1862, he wrote “A Memory of Solferino”, a book in which he described his experience of seeing horrifying sights of men amputated without anaesthetics, men who had been left for dead, disfigured men and men with infected, gaping wounds. At the end of his book, Dunant talked about having “permanent societies of volunteers who in time of war would give help to the wounded without regard for their nationality”. This led to the birth of the Red Cross in 1863.

In 1864, the source of IHL, that is, the Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field was adopted. After the Second World War, the four Geneva Conventions on the protection of victims of armed conflicts were adopted on 22 August 1949. Therefore, the Battle of Solferino can be said to be the origins of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and the Geneva Conventions.

At present, the ICRC is known for responding to victims of armed conflict and disasters in conflict zones worldwide. It responds to matters such as sexual violence, climate change and conflict, economic security, cooperating with national societies, migrants, restoring family links, humanitarian diplomacy and much more. The ICRC is thus an important organisation which caters to the Geneva Conventions and its working is based on the principles of IHL.