When was the red crossed formed?

        The Red Cross organization was established at a conference in Geneva in 1864. It was inspired by a Swiss, Henri Dunant, who had been horrified by the scenes of bloodshed he had witnessed on the battlefield of Solferino in northern Italy after a victory of the French over the Austrians in a war of liberation. His book, Un Souvenir de Solferino, aroused the compassion of all who read it.

      At the Geneva Convention of 1864, 26 countries were represented. The objects of the international Red Cross were outlined as follows: during wartime prisoners and wounded men were to be respected; military hospitals were to be regarded as neutral; doctors, nurses and medical equipment were to be protected; and the Red Cross was to act as a benevolent intermediary between governments, and to see that suffering was relieved.

      In honour of Henri Duant the Swiss flag with the colours reversed was chosen as the flag of the Red Cross. In 1919 the league of Red Cross societies was formed with the aim of extending Red Cross activities in times of peace. A relief division was formed to help in natural disasters, such as earthquakes and famines. An international nursing centre was set up in London, which trained hundreds of nurses every year, and Red Cross hospitals were established in countries liable to malaria and tropical diseases.