But Dunant's dream, to quote the title of Caroline Moorhead's finely written, thoughtful and well researched history, was a limited one.

ECONOMIST: Humanitarianism

Last December, the Henry Dunant Centre, a Swiss mediation group, brokered a ceasefire and got both sides to attend peace talks, to be chaired jointly by the European Union, Japan, America and the World Bank.

ECONOMIST: War on the separatists

With a team led by a Thai general, the Henry Dunant Centre will be responsible for running the entire peace operation, probably the first time any group other than the United Nations has taken on such a role.

ECONOMIST: A new bid to end violence in Aceh