As already demonstrated, what the ICRC did around the world was determined for a long time by a group of volunteer humanitarians now collectively called the Assembly. As noted in chapter 1, it was Gustave Moynier, not Henry Dunant, who interacted with the Assembly to lay the foundations for the modern ICRC during his long Presidency (1864–1910).

While the Assembly has presided over a remarkable history of expanding accomplishments, it was surely the case that particularly Max Huber and his colleagues in the Assembly did not distinguish themselves against Hitler and the Swiss governing class that had tried to accommodate the Nazis (as noted in chapters 1 and 5). This type of failure to develop a well-considered humanitarian diplomacy in the face of brutal power politics was painfully exposed again in the Nigerian affair (1967–70, covered in chapter 2). Media coverage of ICRC difficulties in the Nigerian war and competition from other relief agencies pushed the ICRC into significantly altering its process of decision making.

Progressively from about 1970, considerable influence shifted inside the organization from the Assembly to the Directorate. The top professional humanitarians, the leadership of the professional staff, came to manage the ICRC on a daily basis. The Assembly still established general policy. It and its Council, explained below, still could be a significant factor in ICRC policy making.