Red Cross

The Red Cross is an organization that helps wounded and imprisoned soldiers in wartime, and during peacetime collects medical supples and trains nurses. The organization was proposes by Jean-Henri Dunant, a Swiss-business, who was deeply effected by the suffering and hardship of the wounded soldiers in the Italian war for independence. In 1862, he proposed an international association of volunteers to help the wounded and imprisoned in wartime. In 1863, he suggested an international convention to develop such an institute. In 1864, the Swiss government held a conference of international representatives who drafted the first Geneva Convention. This convention brought the Red Cross movement into existence. The organizations symbol is a red cross on a white background.