Dag Hammarskjöld

By Deane Barker • •

He was the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, and is considered one of the greatest diplomats in world history. He served from 1953 to his death in 1961.

He was killed in a plane crash in Congo. There are conflicting reports of the cause, and it was still being investigated into the 21st century.

On his death, John F. Kennedy said:

I realise now that in comparison to him, I am a small man. He was the greatest statesman of our century.

Why I Looked It Up

The novel The Copper Scroll described an Israeli Biblical scholar and his many achievements in promoting cooperation between hostile factions to increase access to Holy sites:

Indiana Jones, meet Dag Hammarskjöld.

This is item #86 in a sequence of 317 items.

You can use your left/right arrow keys to navigate