This is the epic origin story told of Henry Dunant’s humanitarian mission. After witnessing the aftermath of the Battle of Solferino, Dunant could not let the memory of what he had seen be lost to time. He published Un Souvenir de Solferino (A Memory of Solferino) in 1862.6 In the book, he asks a question that began a movement: “Would it not be possible, in time of peace and quiet, to form relief societies for the purpose of having care given to the wounded in wartime by zealous, devoted and thoroughly qualified volunteers?”7

