Humanitarian principles have been part of human existence since the beginning of recorded history. The idea that it is good to protect and provide for the most vulnerable members of society—the widows and orphans, disabled and sick, foreigners and paupers is central to all religious traditions. Long before the development of international humanitarian law, social institutions were established in different parts of the world to care for and protect vulnerable people.
Modern humanitarianism is generally dated to the mid-nineteenth century, when a remarkable reform movement grew up in Europe and North America, largely out of the Christian evangelical tradition of service. At that time civil society actors were challenging the institution of slavery and undertaking the reform of hospitals, mental institutions, and prisons. Nursing made its appearance as a profession with Florence Nightingale, who set …show more content…
Civil War. At the height of the colonial period, thousands of missionaries and evangelists set off for distant lands, bringing the Gospel but also education and health care with them.
The Industrial Revolution also was in full swing during the nineteenth century, permitting the production of new weapons that made wars more deadly, and mass conscription increased the proportion of the population at risk in war.(Thomas W.Smith, 2002) Wars between European states and the U.S. Civil War produced millions of casualties. Battlefield medical treatment was primitive, and most wounded in battle simply died. Prisoners of war were treated poorly. The U.S. Civil War produced more than 400,000 Union and Confederate prisoners, many of whom died in appalling conditions.(U.S. Department of the Interior,
Modern humanitarianism is generally dated to the mid-nineteenth century, when a remarkable reform movement grew up in Europe and North America, largely out of the Christian evangelical tradition of service. At that time civil society actors were challenging the institution of slavery and undertaking the reform of hospitals, mental institutions, and prisons. Nursing made its appearance as a profession with Florence Nightingale, who set …show more content…
Civil War. At the height of the colonial period, thousands of missionaries and evangelists set off for distant lands, bringing the Gospel but also education and health care with them.
The Industrial Revolution also was in full swing during the nineteenth century, permitting the production of new weapons that made wars more deadly, and mass conscription increased the proportion of the population at risk in war.(Thomas W.Smith, 2002) Wars between European states and the U.S. Civil War produced millions of casualties. Battlefield medical treatment was primitive, and most wounded in battle simply died. Prisoners of war were treated poorly. The U.S. Civil War produced more than 400,000 Union and Confederate prisoners, many of whom died in appalling conditions.(U.S. Department of the Interior,