Belgium

2014

Commemorative coin

150 years of the Belgian Red Cross

Official Journal of the European Union

The inner part of the coin features a cross with the number ‘150’ in its centre. The vertical and horizontal bars of the cross bear the words ‘Rode Kruis’ and ‘Croix-Rouge’ respectively. The cross is surrounded by the mark of the Brussels mint (a helmeted profile of the archangel Michael), the signature mark of the Master of the Mint, the year 2014, and the country code ‘BE’. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

Henry Dunant, a Swiss businessman, witnessed the Battle of Solferino on 24 June 1859, during which some 6,000 soldiers were killed and 25,000 wounded in a single day. The totally inadequate medical care of the wounded horrified him so much that he devoted himself to organizing relief efforts. His memoirs, published in book form in 1862, led in 1863 to the foundation of the "Committee of the Relief Societies for the Care of the Wounded", which since 1876 has borne the name "International Committee of the Red Cross". On 4 February 1864, a committee for the care of wounded soldiers was set up in Brussels, and on 22 August 1864, Belgium and 12 other states signed the first Geneva Convention, which enshrined the protective provisions suggested by Henry Dunant in international law. There are coins that have instead of the normal Belgian edge writing ( 2 ★ ★ " in six-fold repetition, alternately read from one side and the other ) the Roman coin ( 2 ★ " in six-fold repetition, alternately read from one side and the other ) or the Dutch version ( GOD ★ ZIJ ★ MET ★ ONS ★ ).

Edge lettering

Designer