Jean Henri was born in Geneva, the first son of businessman Jean-Jacques Dunant and his wife Antoinette. His parents were never very social and educated her son within the meaning of charity. Dunant's mother cared for the poor and sick, her son often accompanied it. Later he organized with friends evenings for the needy and supported in 1855 the creation of the World Alliance of Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA). In 1849 he ended prematurely his schooling at Calvin College and begins a banker in Geneva. His business led him to the French occupied Algeria, where he intended to build a Swiss colony. He received a land concession and founded with a friend a colonial society, in 1858 a mill company. However, the competent French colonial authorities behaved uncooperative and Dunant was thus the French ruler Napoleon III. self talk, which was with his army in Lombardy. There France fought for Italy against the Austrians. In Italy, he came in 1859 shortly after the confrontation on the battlefield of Solferino. There were 38,000 wounded, dying and dead without them rendered someone help. Under the impact of these events, he returned back to Geneva, wrote and published at his own expense his book "Un Souvenir de Solferino" ( "A Memory of Solferino"). In it, he advocated the establishment of an international network of voluntary organizations. The Geneva lawyer Gustave Moynier and the Swiss General Guillaume-Henri Dufour were quickly convinced of his idea and support it decisively. Together with the doctors Dr. Louis Appia and Dr Théodore Maunoir they founded the Committee of Five, from which today's International Committee was the Red Cross (ICRC). In October 1863 came the first Geneva conference. Sixteen countries drafted a document that was the basis for the international committee of the Red Cross and the first Geneva conference. 1864 this first Geneva Convention of twelve countries was signed. Here it was agreed also on the common symbol that easily and widely recognizable red cross in a white field. In 1867, Dunant joined after its economic collapse as secretary of the "International Committee of the Red Cross" back and moved to Paris, where he lived in poverty. During the Franco-German war 1870/1871 Dunant founded a "General care society" and shortly thereafter a "General Alliance for order and civilization". Dunant called for disarmament measures and the establishment of an international court to mediate international conflicts. He also proposed the creation of a world library, an idea that was picked up about 100 years later by UNESCO again. By Engagegement for his ideas he neglected his personal affairs, debt further and fell into poverty. Because of its debts, he was shunned by the surroundings and forget the distinguished Red Cross organization almost. He leads a lonely life in material misery, 1874-1886 including Stuttgart, Rome, Corfu, Basel and Karlsruhe. In 1887 he received, now living in London, of his family, a monthly financial support. In the Swiss town of Heiden, he spent from 1887 of his life (from 1892 in the local hospital). Jean Henri Dunant was awarded in 1901 the first Nobel Peace Prize for the creation of the Red Cross and the initiation of the Geneva Convention, together with Frédéric Passy, ​​a French pacifists (founder of the first league of peace in Paris in 1867, with Dunant in the "Alliance for order and civilization" active) ,

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Dunant