SOLFERINO 2025

IMPORTANT UPDATE for SOLFERINO 2026

June 27, 2026 will be the day for the 2026 traditional torchlight processional known as the Fiaccolata! Once again we will celebrate the spirit of the Red Cross and Red Crescent with volunteers from all over the world! This is an annual event not to be missed! 2026 details to follow as they become available from the Italian Red Cross who are the official organizers! In the meantime, there is a lot of information from last year on this website that may help you plan your trip!

Solferino

The Birthplace of the Red Cross

Every year, thousands of Red Cross and Red Crescent members gather together and converge on the scene of the Battle of Solferino in northern Italy, to celebrate the Red Cross movement that Henry Dunant imagined 167 years ago. It is an emotional few days of friendship, history, reflection and learning that ends with a signature event called the “Fiaccolata”, a torchlight processional that commemorates the birth of the idea of the Red Cross following that historic battle on June 24, 1859.

Swiss businessman Henry Dunant, inspired by the people he met in Solferino and Castiglione, sought to transform the devastation of the battlefield of Solferino into something positive and innovative – a global humanitarian network with the goal of helping those in need during times of conflict, and to change the nature of warfare. Having witnessed the horrific aftermath of the Battle of Solferino in 1859, he was inspired to write a Memory of Solferino and later set about a process that led to the Geneva Conventions and the establishment of the International Red Cross (ICRC) in 1863. “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?! (Henry also was awarded the first ever Nobel Peace Prize as founder of the Red Cross.)

The festivities include special speakers, a learning academy, entertainment, group events and guided tours which then culminate in the Fiaccolata, a torch lit march at dusk of all participating National Society members resplendent in their country’s Red Cross or Red Crescent uniform. Their route retraces the steps of the women from the town of Castiglione delle Stiviere in the aftermath of the bloody Battle of Solferino, as they transported 600 soldiers from Solferino to the Chiesa Maggiore a nearby church in Castiglione delle Stiviere . Henry Dunant organized these women to provide first aid and care to the many wounded left laying on that battlefield. They paid no attention to a soldier’s nationality, and thus laid the foundation for neutral and impartial humanitarian action.

This incredible celebration of the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement in Solferino has been held every year since 1992! In 2019, an unofficial delegation of American Red Cross volunteers and staff decided to make the pilgrimage from the United States to Solferino. Historically speaking, 2019 was a special year because it coincided with the 100th anniversary of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies! The United States was proud to be one of the five founding national societies that formed the IFRC and our unofficial delegation was proud to represent the American Red Cross. The founder of the IFRC, Henry Davison actually lived in the Greater New York region! If you want to see firsthand how you are an integral part of a global family of humanitarians then consider attending Solferino 2024! You will leave northern Italy inspired, recommitted and rejuvenated!

As always, the festivities will always be held closest to June 24th, the anniversary of the Battle of Solferino.

T E S T I M O N I A L S

Inspired People

"Find the Henri Dunant that is in you" ~ Francesco Rocca, President of the Italian Red Cross and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

“The Solferino torchlight procession is a moment of reunion for the entire Red Cross at every level and gives a chance to express themselves to those who are the main architects, the Volunteers. There is in volunteering a unique drive to act, to be part of a project that wants to bring to life the reasons for a choice. This is why the Red Cross every year does not fail to give a voice to the Volunteers, to those who believe in solid principles and give them life. An appointment that is theirs and for them. And for this it does not need anything else ”, declares Rosario Valastro, President of the Italian Red Cross.

"The torchlight of Solferino is breathtaking Seeing the unconditional love for volunteering in the eyes of thousands of people is an incredible emotion, as well as it is extraordinary to understand, speaking with colleagues from all over the world, the global power of the International Red Cross and Crescent movement." ~ Luca Gentilini - Presidente comitato CRI di Luino e Valli (Lago Maggiore - Italia)

"The square of Solferino crowded with choirs and colors. The church where the women of Solferino treated the wounded whatever their origin, with water (little) and love bindings. The torches with its acrid smell. The fields and streets where they consummated a slaughter become the largest party of the Movement in the world. If the souls of the fallen could speak, they would have sung with us ... bitterly partakers of having contributed to all this. "Cristian Bacci - Trieste

Chris Spalding, Former Division Partner - American Red Cross, Service to the Armed Forces (Read the full story here)
"I have been part of some pretty remarkable experiences in my life. World shaping, humanizing, dehumanizing, intimate, global, outrageous, precious, important and life altering events. However, I was not prepared for how deeply effected I was by Solferino and the Fiaccolata.
To be among thousands of selfless humanitarians from 60 different countries and share an historic occasion left me electrified. To walk shoulder to shoulder with people who have not only given of themselves but have had to receive aid and support in troubled times was immensely moving. To stand in the place where Henry Dunant so bravely and adamantly inserted his values and regard for human life 159 years ago was inspiring. To feel the love, respect, devotion, courage, determination and warmth from total strangers who are actually family nearly crushed my heart with joy."

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