SOLFERINO : THE OSSUARY

From a « heroic butchery » to the Red Cross

One of the bloodiest battles ever took place in 1859 on June 24, 25 and 26, in Solferino, Lombardy, province of Montova, Italy. During those three days, Henry Dunant attempted to organize the rescue and asked the doctors and nurses to treat the wounded without caring about their nationality, this created a new sense of humanity.
From the book  A memory of Solferino  by H Dunant : « Men of all nations lay side by side on the flagstone floors of the churches of Castiglione-Frenchmen and Arabs, Germans and Slavs. Ranged for the time being close together inside the chapels, they no longer had the strength to move, or if they had there was no room for them to do so. Oaths, curses and cries such as no words can describe resounded from the vaulting of the sacred buildings. »
Though he received the highest italian title from king Victor Emmanuele, he could not accept so many men died because they could not be taken care of: 2 months after the battle, the number of deads had almost doubled!
Even though he does not believe one can stop armed conflicts, it is his belief that it is possible- and even a duty- to better the conditions of the wounded. The framework of his project has a universal vision and by claiming neutrality for the medical teams as well as equality of treatment for all wounded, Henry Dunant establishes the basic principles of the Red Cross.
The ossuary: Just after the battle, many corpses were buried right on the place where they died. It will only be ten years after that they were given a decent burial.
Inside the church San Pietro in Vincoli are kept, whithout any distinction of nationality or rank 1413 skulls and the bones of about 7 000 dead men. Some skeletons - most of them French soldiers’ - are exhibited on the right and on the left of the apse, below which, in a deep well, are the remains of about 200 men.