Dag Hammarskjöld: Difference between revisions

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Latest revision as of 18:59, 14 August 2025

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{{Short description|UN Secretary-General from 1953 to 1961}}

{{Infobox_Person | name = Dag Hammarskjöld

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2025}}

| image = Dag Hammarskjöld june 1959.jpg

{{Infobox officeholder

| caption = 2nd UN Secretary-General

| image = Dag Hammarskjöld.jpg

| term = [[April 10]], [[1953]] – [[September 18]], [[1961]]

| caption = Hammarskjöld in the 1950s

| predecessor = [[Trygve Lie]]

| birthname = Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld

| successor = [[U Thant]]

| office = 2nd [[Secretary-General of the United Nations]]

| birth_date = [[July 29]], [[1905]]

| term_start = 10 April 1953

| birth_place = [[Jönköping]], [[Sweden]]

| death_dateterm_end = [[September = 18]], [[September 1961]]

| predecessor = [[Trygve Lie]]

| death_place = [[Ndola]], [[Zambia|Northern Rhodesia]]

| successor = [[U Thant|Thant]]

| spouse =

| birth_date = {{birth date|1905|7|29|df=y}}

| birth_place = [[Jönköping]], Sweden

| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1961|9|18|1905|7|29}}

| death_place = [[Ndola]], [[Northern Rhodesia]]

| death_cause = [[1961 Ndola United Nations DC-6 crash|Aeroplane crash]]

| father = [[Hjalmar Hammarskjöld]]

| mother = [[Agnes Hammarskjöld]]

| party = [[Independent politician|Independent]]

| alma_mater = {{ubl|[[Uppsala University]]|[[Stockholm University]]}}

| signature = Dag Hammarskjöld signature.svg

}}

'''Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld''' ({{IPAc-en|lang|ˈ|h|æ|m|ər|ʃ|ʊ|l|d}} {{respell|HAM|ər|shuuld}},<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/hammarskjold|title=Hammarskjöld|work=[[Collins English Dictionary]]|publisher=[[HarperCollins]]|accessdate=22 July 2025}}</ref> {{IPA|sv|ˈdɑːɡ ˈhâmːarˌɧœld|lang|sv-Dag_Hammarskjöld.ogg}}; 29 July 1905<ref name="years"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/sg/en/formersg/dag-hammarskj%C3%B6ld|title=Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld|work=UN.org |publisher=United Nations|accessdate=23 July 2025}}</ref> – 18 September 1961) was a Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the second [[Secretary-General of the United Nations|secretary-general of the United Nations]] from April 1953 until his death in [[1961 Ndola Transair Sweden DC-6 crash|a plane crash]] in September 1961. As of 2025, he remains the youngest person to have held the post, having been only 47 years old when he was elected. He was a son of [[Hjalmar Hammarskjöld]], who served as [[Prime Minister of Sweden]] from 1914 to 1917.

Hammarskjöld's tenure was characterized by efforts to strengthen the newly-formed UN both internally and externally. He led initiatives to improve morale and organizational efficiency while seeking to make the UN more responsive to global issues. He presided over the creation of the first UN peacekeeping forces in [[United Nations Emergency Force|Egypt (the UNEF)]] and [[United Nations Operation in the Congo|the Congo (the ONUC)]] and personally intervened to defuse or resolve diplomatic crises. Hammarskjöld's second term was cut short when he died in a plane crash while en route to [[cease-fire]] negotiations during the [[Congo Crisis]].

'''Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld''' ({{Audio|sv-Dag_Hammarskjöld.ogg|''Dag Hammarskjöld''}}) ([[July 29]], [[1905]] &ndash; [[September 18]], [[1961]]) was a [[Sweden|Swedish]] [[diplomat]] and the second [[United Nations Secretary-General|Secretary-General]] of the [[United Nations]]. He served from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961.

Hammarskjöld was and remains well regarded internationally as a capable diplomat and administrator, and his efforts to resolve various global crises led to him being the only [[Posthumous award|posthumous recipient]] of the [[Nobel Peace Prize]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Nobel Prize facts|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/nobel-prize-facts/|access-date=13 May 2020|publisher=Nobel Foundation}}</ref> In the Western world, his appointment and tenure were hailed as one of the most notable and successful in UN leadership.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alvaro-de-soto-/how-not-to-select-the-bes_b_8403780.html|title=How Not to Select the Best UN Secretary-General|website=[[HuffPost]]|date=28 October 2015}}</ref> U.S. president [[John F. Kennedy]] called Hammarskjöld "the greatest statesman of our century".<ref name="Linnér">{{cite book

==Early life==

|author-first1=Sture

Dag Hammarskjöld was born in [[Jönköping]], in [[Sweden]], although he lived most of his childhood in [[Uppsala]]. He was the fourth and youngest son of [[Hjalmar Hammarskjöld]], [[Prime Minister of Sweden]] (1914&ndash;1917), and [[Agnes Almquist]]. His ancestors had served the Swedish [[The Crown|Crown]] since the 17th century. He studied at [[Uppsala University]] where he graduated with a [[Master's degree]] in [[political economy]] and a [[Bachelor of Law]] degree. He then moved to [[Stockholm]].

|author-last1=Linnér

|author-first2=Sverker

|author-last2=Åström

|year=2008

|isbn=978-91-85214-51-8

|url=http://www.daghammarskjold.se/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/Dh_lecture_2007.pdf

|title=UN Secretary-General Hammarskjöld: Reflections and Personal Experiences (The 2007 Dag Hammarskjöld Lecture)

|page=28

|publisher=Uppsala University}} [https://archive.today/20190723011606/https://www.daghammarskjold.se/publication/dag-hammarskjold-lecture-2007/ Catalog record archived] from [https://www.daghammarskjold.se/publication/dag-hammarskjold-lecture-2007/ the original] on 22 July 2019. "This is the translated text of the 2007 Dag Hammarskjöld Lecture given by Sture Linnér and Sverker Åström at Uppsala University on 15 October 2007".</ref> In the third world, however, his legacy is extremely controversial, given his erratic performance in the Congo Crisis, with consequences to this day.<ref name="Knudsen 2023">{{cite web|url=https://africasacountry.com/2024/07/not-an-obvious-hero|title=Not an obvious hero|author=Dino Knudsen|publisher=Africa Is a Country|date=2023}}</ref><ref name="De Vos et al. 2004">{{cite book|author=Luc De Vos, Emmanuel Gerard, Jules Gérard-Libois en Philippe Raxhon|title=Lumumba. De complotten? |publisher=De moord|date=2004|isbn=9058262286}}</ref><ref name="Melber 2017">{{cite web|url=https://newafricanmagazine.com/14857/ |author=Henning Melber|title=Lumumba, Hammarskjöld and the Cold War in the Congo|publisher=African Magazine|date=17 January 2017}}</ref>

==Early life and education==

From 1930 to 1934 he was a secretary of a governmental committee on [[unemployment]]. He also wrote his economics thesis ''Konjunkturspridningen'' (''The Spread of the Business Cycle'') and received his [[Doctorate]] from [[Stockholm University]] in 1933. In 1936 Hammarskjöld became a secretary in the [[Sveriges Riksbank|Bank of Sweden]] and soon he was an undersecretary of finance. From 1941 to 1948 he served as a chairman of the Bank of Sweden.

[[File:Östra Storgatan 91.jpg|thumb|left|Hammarskjöld's birthplace in [[Jönköping]]]]

Dag Hammarskjöld was born in [[Jönköping]] to the [[Hammarskjöld family|noble family Hammarskjöld]] (also spelled ''Hammarskiöld'' or ''Hammarsköld''). He spent most of his childhood in [[Uppsala]]. His home there, which he considered his childhood home, was [[Uppsala Castle]]. He was the fourth and youngest son of [[Hjalmar Hammarskjöld]], [[Prime Minister of Sweden]] from 1914 to 1917.<ref name="Sze memoir">{{cite book|last1=Sze|first1=Szeming|title=Working for the United Nations: 1948–1968|date=December 1986|publisher=University of Pittsburgh|___location=Pittsburgh|page=20|edition=Digital|url=http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/t/text/text-idx?idno=31735066261623;view=toc;c=ulstext|access-date=7 November 2014}}</ref>

Hammarskjöld studied first at [[Katedralskolan, Uppsala|Katedralskolan]] and then at [[Uppsala University]]. By 1930, he had obtained [[Licentiate (degree)|Licentiate]] of Philosophy and Master of Laws degrees. Before he finished his law degree he had already obtained a job as Assistant Secretary of the Unemployment Committee.<ref name=dag>{{cite web |url=http://www.daghammarskjold.se/biography/#early-life |title=Biography, at Dag Hammerskjoldse |publisher=Daghammarskjold.se|access-date=10 September 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002221559/http://www.daghammarskjold.se/biography/#early-life |archive-date=2 October 2013}}</ref>

Early in 1945, he was appointed an adviser to the cabinet on financial and economic problems, and coordinated government plans to alleviate the economic problems of the post-war period.

==Career==

In 1947 Hammarskjöld was appointed to [[Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)|Sweden's Ministry for Foreign Affairs]], and in 1949 he became the [[State Secretary for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)|State Secretary for Foreign Affairs]]. He was a delegate in the Paris conference that established the [[Marshall Plan]]. In 1948 he was again in Paris to attend conference for the [[Organization for European Economic Cooperation]]. In 1950 he became a head of Sweden delegation to [[UNISCAN]]. In 1951, he became a cabinet [[minister without portfolio]] and in effect Deputy Foreign Minister. Although Hammarskjöld served with a cabinet dominated by the [[Socialdemokratiska arbetarpartiet|Social Democrats]], he never officially joined any political party. On December 20, 1954, he was elected to take his father's vacated seat in the [[Swedish Academy]]. In 1951 Hammarskjöld became vice chairman of Swedish delegation to the [[United Nations General Assembly]] in Paris. He became the chairman of the Swedish delegation to the General Assembly in New York in 1952.

From 1930 to 1934, Hammarskjöld was Secretary of a governmental committee on unemployment. During this time he wrote his economics thesis, {{lang|sv|italic=no|"Konjunkturspridningen"}} ("The Spread of the Business Cycle"), and received a [[doctorate]] from [[Stockholm University]]. In 1936, he became a secretary in Sweden's central bank, the [[Sveriges Riksbank|Riksbank]]. From 1941 to 1948, he served as chairman of the Riksbank's General Council.<ref name=nobel>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1961/hammarskjold/biographical/|title=The Nobel Peace Prize 1961|website=NobelPrize.org}}</ref>

Hammarskjöld quickly developed a successful career as a Swedish public servant. He was state secretary in the [[Ministry of Finance (Sweden)|Ministry of Finance]] (1936–1945), Swedish delegate to the [[OECD|Organization for European Economic Cooperation]] (1947–1953), cabinet secretary for the [[Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] (1949–1951), and [[minister without portfolio]] in [[Tage Erlander]]'s government (1951–1953).<ref name=nobel/>

==UN Secretary General==

[[Image:Dag Hammarskjold.jpg|thumb|Dag Hammarskjöld]]

When [[Trygve Lie]] resigned from his post as [[United Nations Secretary-General|UN Secretary General]] in 1953, the [[Security Council]] decided to recommend Hammarskjöld to the post. It came as a surprise to him. He was selected on March 31 with the majority of 10 out of eleven states. The UN General Assembly elected him in the April 7&ndash;10 session, by 57 votes out of 60. In 1957 he was re-elected.

He helped coordinate government plans to alleviate the economic problems of the post-[[World War II]] period and was a delegate to the Paris conference that established the [[Marshall Plan]]. In 1950, he became head of the Swedish delegation to [[UNISCAN]], a forum to promote economic cooperation between the United Kingdom and the Scandinavian countries.<ref name="years"/> Although Hammarskjöld served in a cabinet dominated by the [[Swedish Social Democratic Party|Social Democrats]], he never officially joined any political party.<ref name=nobel/>

Hammarskjöld started his term by establishing his own secretariat of 4,000 administrators. He set up regulations that defined their responsibilities. He insisted that the secretary-general should be able to take emergency action without the prior approval of the Security Council or the General Assembly.

In 1951, Hammarskjöld was vice chairman of the Swedish delegation to the [[United Nations General Assembly]] in Paris. He became the chairman of the Swedish delegation to the [[General Assembly of UN|General Assembly]] in New York in 1952. On 20 December 1954, he was elected to take his father's vacated seat in the [[Swedish Academy]].<ref name="years">{{Cite web|work=UN.org |url=https://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/dag/bio.htm|title=Dag Hammarskjöld: The UN years ...|publisher=[[United Nations]]|access-date=25 December 2019}}</ref>

During his terms, Hammarskjöld tried to soothe relations between [[Israel]] and the Arab states. In 1955 he went to [[mainland China]] to negotiate the release of 15 US pilots who had served in the [[Korean War]] and been captured by the Chinese. In [[1956]] he established the [[UNEF|United Nations Emergency Force]] (UNEF). In 1957 he intervened in the [[Suez Crisis]].

==United Nations Secretary-General==

In 1960 the former Belgian colony and now newly-independent [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|Congo]] asked for UN aid in defusing the escalating civil strife. Hammarskjöld made four trips to the Congo republic. However, his efforts towards the decolonisation of [[Africa]] were considered insufficient by the [[USSR]]. In September 1960 the [[Soviet Union]] denounced his decision to send a UN emergency force to keep the peace. They demanded his resignation, and the replacement of the office of secretary general by a three-man directorate with a built-in [[veto]], the "troika". The objective was, citing the memoirs of the Soviet leader [[Nikita Khrushchev]], to "equally represent interests of three groups of countries: capitalist, socialist and recently independent" [http://www.un.org/russian/av/radio/history60/11history60.htm].

=== Nomination and election ===

{{see also|1953 United Nations Secretary-General selection}}

On 10 November 1952, [[Trygve Lie]] announced his resignation as [[Secretary-General of the United Nations]]. Several months of negotiations ensued between the Western powers and the Soviet Union without reaching an agreement on his successor. On 13 and 19 March 1953, the [[Security Council]] voted on four candidates. [[Lester B. Pearson]] of Canada was the only candidate to receive the required majority, but he was vetoed by the Soviet Union.<ref name=nyt1>{{cite news |last1=Hamilton |first1=Thomas J. |title=Soviet Veto Blocks Pearson U.N. Boom; Romulo Also Fails |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=1 |date=13 March 1953}}</ref><ref name="nytimes19530320">{{cite news|last1=Hamilton|first1=Thomas J.|title=Mme. Pandit Loses in Vote for Lie Post |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=4 |date=20 March 1953}}</ref> At a consultation of the permanent members on 30 March 1953,<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Barry|editor1-first=Donald|title=Documents on Canadian External Relations|date=1953|volume=19|page=322}}</ref> [[Permanent Representative of France to the United Nations|French permanent representative]] [[Henri Hoppenot]] suggested four candidates, including Hammarskjöld, whom he had met at the [[OECD|Organisation for European Economic Cooperation]].<ref name="froehlich2007">{{cite book|last1=Fröhlich |first1=Manuel|title=Political Ethics and The United Nations: Dag Hammarskjöld as Secretary-General|date=2007|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781134065561|page=59}}</ref>

The superpowers hoped to seat a Secretary-General who would focus on administrative issues and refrain from participating in political discussion. Hammarskjöld's reputation at the time was, in the words of biographer [[Emery Kelèn]], "that of a brilliant economist, an unobtrusive technician, and an aristo-bureaucrat". As a result, there was little to no controversy in his selection;{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=117}} the [[Soviet Permanent Representative to the United Nations|Soviet permanent representative]], [[Valerian Zorin]], found Hammarskjöld "harmless".{{sfn|Heller|2001|p=14}} Zorin declared that he would be voting for Hammarskjöld, surprising the Western powers.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hamilton | first1=Thomas J.|title=U.N. Chief is Picked | work=The New York Times | page=1 | date=1 April 1953}}</ref> The announcement set off a flurry of diplomatic activity. [[Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom|British Foreign Secretary]] [[Anthony Eden]] was strongly in favor of Hammarskjöld and asked the United States to "take any appropriate action to induce the [Nationalist] Chinese to abstain".<ref name="frus1952-213">{{harvnb|FRUS 1952–1954 III|loc=[https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1952-54v03/d213 Document 213]}}: Memorandum of Telephone Conversation, by the Deputy Director of the Office of United Nations Political and Security Affairs (Popper), 31 March 1953.</ref> (Sweden recognized the People's Republic of China and faced a potential veto from the Republic of China.) At the [[U.S. State Department]], the nomination "came as a complete surprise to everyone here and we started scrambling around to find out who Mr. Hammarskjold was and what his qualifications were".<ref name="frus1952-216">{{harvnb|FRUS 1952–1954 III|loc=[https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1952-54v03/d216 Document 216]}}: Memorandum of Conversation, by the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for United Nations Affairs (Sandifer), 30 April 1953.</ref> The State Department authorized [[Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.]], the [[US ambassador to the UN|US Ambassador]], to vote in favor after he told them that Hammarskjöld "may be as good as we can get".<ref name="frus1952-211">{{harvnb|FRUS 1952–1954 III|loc=[https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1952-54v03/d211 Document 211]}}: The United States Representative at the United Nations (Lodge) to the Department of State, 30 March 1953—1:38 p.m.</ref><ref name="frus1952-212">{{harvnb|FRUS 1952–1954 III|loc=[https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1952-54v03/d212 Document 212]}}: Memorandum for the Files by the Assistant Secretary of State for United Nations Affairs (Hickerson), 30 March 1953.</ref>

{{Quote box

| quote = ''Journalist'': "We understand you've been designated Secretary-General of the United Nations."<br />''Hammarskjöld'': "This April Fool's Day joke is in extremely bad taste: it's nonsense!"

| source = –Exchange between a Stockholm journalist and Hammarskjöld, 1 April 1953{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=117}}

| width = 35%

| align = right}}

On 31 March 1953, the [[Security Council]] voted 10–0–1 to recommend Hammarskjöld to the General Assembly, with an abstention from Nationalist China.{{sfn|Heller|2001|p=15}} The vote was conducted in secret, and Hammarskjöld was unaware his name had been put forward for the position.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dag Hammarskjöld: The UN years ... |url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/dag/time1953.htm |publisher=United Nations |access-date=7 September 2023}}</ref> Shortly after midnight on 1 April 1953, Hammarskjöld was awakened by a telephone call from a journalist with the news, which he dismissed as an [[April Fools' Day|April Fool's Day joke]].{{efn|The nomination was leaked early by a delegate of the Security Council, who informed a correspondent of the vote as they left the council chamber to go to the restroom.{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|pp=117–118}} Earlier in March, Hammarskjöld had discussed the succession problem of the UN Secretariat with artist {{interlanguage link|Bo Beskow|de||no||sv}}. When Beskow suggested that Hammarskjöld would be suitable for the office, the latter replied, "Nobody is crazy enough to propose me—and I would be crazy to accept."{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=118}}}} He finally believed the news after the third phone call.<ref name="froehlich2007"/> The [[Consulate General of Sweden, New York City|Swedish mission in New York]] confirmed the nomination at 03:00 and a communique from the Security Council was soon thereafter delivered to him.{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|pp=117–118}} After consulting with the Swedish cabinet and his father, Hammarskjöld decided to accept the nomination.{{sfn|Heller|2001|p=15}} He sent a wire to the Security Council:{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=118}}

<blockquote>With strong feeling personal insufficiency I hesitate to accept candidature but I do not feel I could refuse to assume the task imposed on me should the [UN General] Assembly follow the recommendation of the Security Council by which I feel deeply honoured.

</blockquote>

Later in the day, Hammarskjöld held a press conference at the Swedish Foreign Ministry. According to diplomat [[Sverker Åström]], he displayed an intense interest and knowledge in the affairs of the UN, which he had never shown any indication of before.{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=118}}

The UN General Assembly voted 57–1–1 on 7 April 1953 to appoint Dag Hammarskjöld as Secretary-General of the United Nations. Hammarskjöld was sworn in as Secretary-General on 10 April 1953.{{sfn|Heller|2001|p=15}} He was unanimously reelected on 26 September 1957 for another term, taking effect on 10 April 1958.{{sfn|Heller|2001|p=21}}

=== Tenure ===

[[File:Dag Hammarskjold outside the UN building.jpg|thumb|upright|Hammarskjöld (age 48) outside the [[United Nations headquarters|UN headquarters]] in [[New York City]], 1953]]

Immediately following the assumption of the Secretariat, Hammarskjöld attempted to establish a good rapport with his staff. He made a point of visiting every UN department to shake hands with as many workers as possible, eating in the cafeteria as often as possible, and relinquishing the Secretary-General's private elevator for general use.{{sfn|Lipsey|2013|p=135}} He began his term by establishing his own secretariat of 4,000 administrators and setting up regulations that defined their responsibilities. He was also actively engaged in smaller projects relating to the UN working environment; for example, he spearheaded the building of a [[Headquarters of the United Nations meditation room|meditation room]] at the [[UN headquarters]], where people can withdraw into themselves in silence, regardless of their faith, creed, or religion.<ref>{{cite web |first1=Mary |last1=Cherif |first2=Nathalie |last2=Leroy |first3=Anna |last3=Banchieri |first4=Armando |last4=Da Silva |url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/dag/meditationroom.htm |title=The Meditation Room in the UN Headquarters |publisher=United Nations |access-date=10 September 2013 }}</ref>

During his term, Hammarskjöld tried to improve relations between Israel and the [[Arab states]], frequently playing the role of a mediator between [[David Ben-Gurion]] and [[Gamal Abdel Nasser]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Oren |first=Michael B. |date=January 1992 |title=Ambivalent Adversaries: David Ben-Gurion and Israel vs. the United Nations and Dag Hammarskjöld, 1956–57 |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/002200949202700105 |journal=[[Journal of Contemporary History]] |volume=27 |issue=1 |pages=89–127 |doi=10.1177/002200949202700105 |s2cid=159548543 |issn=0022-0094 |access-date=13 October 2023 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Other highlights include a 1955 visit to [[China]] to negotiate the release of 11 captured US pilots who had served in the [[Korean War]],<ref name="Sze memoir" /> the 1956 establishment of the [[United Nations Emergency Force]], and his intervention in the 1956 [[Suez Crisis]]. He is given credit by some historians for allowing participation of the [[Holy See and the United Nations|Holy See within the UN]] that year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/secretariat_state/documents/rc_seg-st_doc_20020422_tauran_en.html |title=Holy See's Presence in the International Organizations|publisher=Vatican.va |date=22 April 2002 |access-date=10 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215051159/https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/secretariat_state/documents/rc_seg-st_doc_20020422_tauran_en.html |archive-date=15 February 2014 }}</ref>

In 1960, the newly independent [[Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)|Congo]] asked for UN aid in defusing the [[Congo Crisis]]. Hammarskjöld made four trips to Congo, but his efforts toward the [[decolonisation of Africa]] were considered insufficient by the [[Soviet Union]]; in September 1960, the Soviet government denounced his decision to send a UN emergency force to keep the peace. They demanded his resignation and the replacement of the office of Secretary-General by a three-man directorate with a built-in veto, the "[[Triumvirate|troika]]". The objective was, citing the memoirs of Soviet leader [[Nikita Khrushchev]], to "equally represent interests of three groups of countries: capitalist, socialist and recently independent".<ref name="un-history60">[https://www.un.org/russian/av/radio/history60/11history60.htm] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061022115139/http://www.un.org/russian/av/radio/history60/11history60.htm|date=22 October 2006}}</ref><ref name="dag" />

The UN sent a nearly 20,000-strong peacekeeping force to restore order in [[Congo-Kinshasa]]. Hammarskjöld's refusal to place peacekeepers in the service of [[Patrice Lumumba|Lumumba's]] constitutionally elected government provoked a strong reaction of disapproval from the Soviets. The situation would become more scandalous with the assassination of Lumumba by [[Moïse Tshombe|Tshombe's]] troops. In February 1961, the UN authorized the Peacekeeping Forces to use military force to prevent civil war. The Blue Helmets' attack on Katanga caused Tshombe to flee to Zambia. Hammarskjöld's erratic attitude in not providing support to Lumumba's government, which had been elected by popular vote, drew severe criticism among non-aligned countries and communist and socialist countries.<ref name="Knudsen 2023"/> Hammarskjöld knew that the Belgian Government, allegedly supported by the United States, arranged for the assassination of Patrice Lumumba. In the end, his actions were supported only by the United States and [[Belgium]].<ref name="De Vos et al. 2004"/><ref name="Melber 2017"/>

His final report to the United Nations was some 6,000 words and is considered to be one of his most important. The report was dictated in a single afternoon to his assistant, Hannah Platz.<ref>{{cite web |date=13 February 2019 |title=Character Sketches: Dag Hammarskjöld by Brian Urquhart {{!}} UN News |url=https://news.un.org/en/spotlight/character-sketches-dag-hammarskjold-brian-urquhart |access-date=21 February 2023 |publisher=United Nations }}</ref>

==Death==

{{Main|1961 Ndola Transair Sweden DC-6 crash}}

In September 1961 he found out about the fighting between non-combatant UN forces and [[Katanga]] troops of [[Moise Tshombe]]. He was en route to negotiate a cease-fire on the night of September 17-18 when his plane crashed near [[Ndola]], Northern Rhodesia (now [[Zambia]]). He and fifteen others perished. There is still speculation as to the cause of the crash.

[[File:Dag Hammaskölds gravsten.jpg|thumb|Hammarskjöld's grave in [[Uppsala]]]]

On 18 September 1961, Hammarskjöld was en route to negotiate a [[cease-fire]] between [[United Nations Operation in the Congo]] forces and [[State of Katanga|Katangese]] troops under [[Moise Tshombe]]. His [[Douglas DC-6]] airliner [[1961 Ndola United Nations DC-6 crash|SE-BDY crashed]] near [[Ndola]], [[Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland|Northern Rhodesia]] (now [[Zambia]]). Hammarskjöld perished as a result of the crash, as did all of the 15 other passengers.<ref name=tg1>{{Cite web|title=RAF veteran 'admitted 1961 killing of UN secretary general'|last1=Graham-Harrison|first1=Emma|last2=Rocksen|first2=Andreas |last3=Brügger|first3=Mads|work=The Guardian|date=12 January 2019 |access-date=17 September 2021 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/12/raf-veteran-admitted-killing-un-secretary-general-dag-hammarskjold-in-1961}}</ref> Hammarskjöld's death set off a succession crisis at the United Nations, because there was no line of succession and as a result, the Security Council had to [[1961 United Nations Secretary-General selection|vote on a successor]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hamilton|first1=Thomas J.|title=Interim U.N. Head is Urged by Rusk; His Timing Scored|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/09/23/archives/interim-un-head-is-urged-by-rusk-his-timing-scored-delegates-fear.html|work=The New York Times|date=23 September 1961|page=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Halberstam|first1=David|title=Hammarskjold Dies in African Air Crash; Kennedy Going To U.N. In Succession Crisis|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/09/19/archives/hammarskjold-dies-in-african-air-crash-kennedy-going-to-un-in.html|work=The New York Times|date=19 September 1961|page=1}}</ref>

The explanation of investigators at the time is that Hammarskjold's aircraft descended too low on its approach to Ndola's airport at night. The crew had filed no [[flight plan]] for security reasons. No evidence of a bomb, surface-to-air missile or hijacking has ever been presented. It has been speculated that the crew of the DC-6 incorrectly used altitude data for [[Ndolo]], which is in the Congo and at lower altitude, rather than [[Ndola]] in Northern Rhodesia.

The circumstances of the crash are still unclear. A 1962 Rhodesian inquiry concluded that pilot error was to blame, while a later UN investigation could not determine the cause of the crash.<ref name="foreignpolicy">{{cite news |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/08/01/u-n-to-probe-whether-iconic-secretary-general-was-assassinated/|title=U.N. to Probe Whether Iconic Secretary-General Was Assassinated|work=Foreign Policy |date=1 August 2016 |access-date=17 December 2017|first=Colum|last=Lynch}}</ref> There is evidence suggesting the plane was shot down.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dag Hammarskjöld: Evidence Suggests UN Chief's Plane Was Shot Down |work= The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/17/dag-hammarskjold-un-secretary-general-crash |date=17 August 2011 |access-date=2 August 2014 |first=Julian |last=Borger }}</ref><ref name="theguardian042014">{{cite web |title=Dag Hammarskjöld's Plane May Have Been Shot Down, Ambassador Warned |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/04/dag-hammarskjold-plane-shot-down-mercenary-cable |date=4 April 2014 |access-date=2 August 2014 |first=Julian |last=Borger }}</ref><ref>Susan Williams, ''Who Killed Hammarskjold?'' 2011, Hurst Publishers, 2014, Oxford University Press</ref> A [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] report claimed the KGB was responsible.<ref name="theguardian2014">Jamie Doward, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/13/spy-messages-solve-mystery-un-chief-death-crash "Spy messages could finally solve mystery of UN chief’s death crash"], ''[[The Guardian]]'' 13 December 2014.</ref>

On [[August 19]], [[1998]], Archbishop [[Desmond Tutu]], chairman of South Africa's [[Truth and Reconciliation Commission]] (TRC), revealed that recently-uncovered letters had implicated South African agents in the 1961 crash of Dag Hammarskjöld's plane. One TRC letter said that a bomb in the aircraft's wheel-bay was set to detonate when the wheels came down for landing.[http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:_fpmEK14n1AJ:www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/5260/haseldine.html+%22Dag+Hammarskjold%22&hl=en]

The day after the crash, former U.S. President [[Harry Truman]] commented that Hammarskjöld "was on the point of getting something done when they killed him. Notice that I said 'when they killed him'."<ref name="theguardian2014" />

On [[July 29]], [[2005]], exactly 100 years after Hammarskjöld's birth, the [[Norway|Norwegian]] [[Major General]] [[Bjørn Egge]] gave an interview to the newspaper ''[[Aftenposten]]'' on the events surrounding his death. According to Egge, who was the first UN officer to see the body, Hammarskjöld had a hole in his forehead, and this hole was subsequently airbrushed from photos taken of the body. It appeared to Egge that Hammarskjöld had been thrown from the plane, and grass and leaves in his hands might indicate that he survived the crash, and had tried to scramble away from the wreckage. Egge's statement does not, however, align with Archbishop Tutu's information.[http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/article1087787.ece]

In 1998, documents were discovered that detailed an alleged plot, named Operation Celeste, to assassinate Hammarskjöld. The alleged plot was backed by the [[CIA]], [[Secret Intelligence Service|MI6]] and a Belgian mining interest and the assassination was to be carried out by the [[South African Institute for Maritime Research]], a South African paramilitary organisation. One of the documents stated that CIA director [[Allen Dulles]] agreed that "Dag is becoming troublesome ... and should be removed" and pledged local CIA support for the alleged plot. The information was contained in a file that the [[National Intelligence Agency (South Africa)|South African National Intelligence Agency]] turned over to the [[South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission]] in relation to the 1993 assassination of [[Chris Hani]], leader of the [[South African Communist Party]]. The authenticity of the documents could not be substantiated because they were copies instead of originals. More documents related to the alleged plot were discovered by the South African government in 2016.<ref name="foreignpolicy" />

Hammarskjöld posthumously received the [[Nobel Peace Prize]] in 1961. His only book ''Vägmärken'' (''Markings'') was published in 1963. A collection of his diary reflections, the book starts in 1925, when he was 20 years old, and ends at his death in 1961.[http://www.buzzflash.com/hartmann/05/03/har05003.html] In the book Hammarskjöld reveals himself as a Christian Mysticist and describes his diplomat deed in the way of a ”inner journey”; the book became popular with, for example, U.S. students and also with the now resigned Swedish archbishop [[K.G. Hammar]].

In 2011, Göran Björkdahl, a Swedish aid worker whose father worked for the UN in Zambia, wrote that in part, he believed that Hammarskjöld's death was a murder that was committed to benefit mining companies like [[Union Minière du Haut Katanga|Union Minière]], after Hammarskjöld had made the UN intervene in the Katanga crisis. Björkdahl based his assertion on interviews with witnesses of the plane crash near the border of the DRC with Zambia and on archival documents.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dag Hammarskjöld: I have no doubt Dag Hammarskjöld's plane was brought down |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/17/dag-hammarskjold-crash-goran-bjorkdahl |date=17 August 2011 |access-date=2 August 2014 |first=Goran |last=Bjorkdahl }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Eyewitnesses: The Hammarskjold Plane Crash |journal=International Peacekeeping |volume=20 |pages=98–115 |date=February 2013 |first=Goran|last=Bjorkdahl |issue=1 |doi=10.1080/13533312.2013.763681 |s2cid=144859006 }}</ref>

In 2013, accident investigator Sven Hammarberg was asked by the [[International Commission of Jurists]] to investigate Hammarskjöld's death.<ref>{{cite news | last1=Hammarberg | first1=Sven | title=Accident Investigator's Report to the Hammarskjöld Commission |url=http://www.hammarskjoldcommission.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Accident-Investigators-report-to-the-Hammarskold-Commission1.pdf | work=Hammarskjöld Commission | date=15 August 2013}}</ref>

In 2014, newly declassified documents revealed that the American ambassador to the Congo sent a cable to Washington D.C. and in it, he wrote his suspicion that the plane could have been shot down by Belgian mercenary pilot Jan Van Risseghem, commander of the small Katanga Air Force. Van Risseghem died in 2007.<ref name="theguardian042014" />

On 16 March 2015, United Nations Secretary-General [[Ban Ki-moon]] appointed members to an Independent Panel of Experts that was established for the purpose of examining new information that was related to Hammarskjöld's death. The three-member panel was led by [[Mohamed Chande Othman]], the [[Chief Justice of Tanzania]], and it included Kerryn Macaulay (Australia's representative to the [[International Civil Aviation Organization]]) and Henrik Larsen (a ballistics expert from the [[Danish National Police]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=50337 |title=UN announces members of panel probing new information on Dag Hammarskjöld death |date=16 March 2015 |publisher=UN News Centre |access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref> The panel's 99-page report, released 6 July 2015, assigned moderate value to nine new eyewitness accounts and transcripts of radio transmissions. Those accounts suggested that Hammarskjöld's plane was already on fire as it was landing and they also suggested that other jet aircraft and other intelligence agents were nearby.<ref name=NYT06July2015>{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|title=Panel: Possible Aerial Attack on Hammarskjold Plane in 1961|url=https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2015/07/06/world/ap-un-united-nations-hammarskjold-review.html|access-date=6 July 2015|work=The New York Times|date=6 July 2015}}</ref>

In 2016, the original documents from the 1998 South African investigation surfaced. Those who were familiar with the investigation cautioned that even if they were authentic, the documents could have initially been authored as part of a disinformation campaign.<ref name="foreignpolicy" />

In 2019, the documentary film ''[[Cold Case Hammarskjöld]]'' by Danish filmmaker [[Mads Brügger]] claimed that Jan van Risseghem had told a friend that he shot down Hammarskjöld's aircraft. This went against the official stance maintained by van Risseghem's family that he was not involved in the death of Hammarskjöld. According to an interview with van Risseghem's wife, he was in Rhodesia negotiating the purchase of a plane for the Katanga Air Force, with the logbooks proving that he was not flying for Katanga at the time. The documentary crew interviewed colleagues of van Risseghem's for the film, all of whom supported their theory.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/17/world/africa/hammarskjold-crash-mystery.html|title=More Clues, and Questions, in 1961 Crash That Killed Dag Hammarskjöld|work=The New York Times|date=17 February 2019|access-date=30 December 2019|last1=Gladstone|first1=Rick|last2=Cowell|first2=Alan}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/utrikes/nya-uppgifter-legoknekt-ska-ha-erkant-att-han-dodade-dag-hammarskjold|title=Mercenary admits to murder of Dag Hammarskjöld|newspaper=SVT Nyheter|date=13 January 2019|publisher=SVT|access-date=13 January 2019|last1=Ripås|first1=Johan}}</ref><ref name="theguardian2019">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/12/raf-veteran-admitted-killing-un-secretary-general-dag-hammarskjold-in-1961|title=RAF veteran 'admitted 1961 killing of UN secretary general'|work=The Guardian|date=12 January 2019|access-date=13 January 2019}}</ref> In an interview with Swedish historian Leif Hellström, van Risseghem claimed that he was not in southern Africa at the time the crash happened, and dismissed the idea of his involvement.<ref name="theguardian2019" />

A document that was found in France amidst the Fonds [[Jacques Foccart|Foccart]] (National Archives in Pierrefitte) in November 2021 is a death warrant for Hammarskjöld that contained the acronym [[Organisation armée secrète|OAS]], the secret organization that was nestled in the French army at the time of [[Algerian War|Algeria's war for independence]]. The document reads: "It is high time to put an end to his harmful intrusion ... this sentence common to justice and fairness to be carried out, as soon as possible". The unsigned document is a facsimile that appeared to be a transcription of an original letter.<ref>{{cite web |title=A new Hypothesis on Hammarskjöld's death: OAS |date=21 April 2022 |url=https://consortiumnews.com/2022/04/21/missing-link-in-a-un-cold-case/ |access-date=18 September 2022 }}</ref>

Hammarskjöld's 1959 will left his personal archive to the [[National Library of Sweden]].<ref>{{cite web |title=L179 The Dag Hammarskjöld Collection |url=https://arken.kb.se/SE-S-HS-L179 |publisher=National Library of Sweden |access-date=16 June 2018 }}</ref>

== Personal life ==

[[File:Dag Hammarskjöld quote cropped.jpg|thumb|A spiritual quote by Dag Hammarskjöld engraved in the stone wall within the Peace Chapel of the [[International Peace Garden]]]]

In 1953, soon after his appointment as United Nations Secretary-General, Hammarskjöld was interviewed on radio by [[Edward R. Murrow]]. In the talk, Hammarskjöld declared:

<blockquote>But the explanation of how a man should live a life of active social service in full harmony with himself as a member of the community of spirit, I found in the writings of those great medieval mystics <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Meister Eckhart]] and [[Jan van Ruysbroek (scholar)|Jan van Ruysbroek]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> for whom 'self-surrender' had been the way to self-realization, and who in 'singleness of mind' and 'inwardness' had found the strength to say yes to every demand which the needs of their neighbours made them face, and to say yes also to every fate life had in store for them when they followed the call of duty as they understood it.<ref>Henry P Van Dusen. ''Dag Hammarskjöld: A Biographical Interpretation of Markings'' Faber and Faber London 1967 p. 47.</ref></blockquote>

Hammarskjöld's only book, ''[[Vägmärken]]'' (''Markings'', or more literally ''Waymarks''), was published in 1963. A collection of his diary reflections, the book starts in 1925, when he was 20 years old, and ends the month before his death in 1961.<ref name="har05003">Hartman, Thom (3 March 2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20051019231821/http://www.buzzflash.com/hartmann/05/03/har05003.html ''Markings – the spiritual diary of Dag Hammarskjöld'']. BuzzFlash.</ref> This diary was found in his New York house, after his death, along with an undated letter addressed to then Swedish Permanent [[State Secretary for Foreign Affairs (Sweden)|Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs]], {{interlanguage link|Leif Belfrage|sv}}. In this letter, Hammarskjöld wrote:

<blockquote>These entries provide the only true 'profile' that can be drawn ... If you find them worth publishing, you have my permission to do so.</blockquote>

The foreword is written by the English poet [[W. H. Auden]], a friend of Hammarskjöld.<ref>Auden, with Leif Sjoberg, translated the book into English. {{cite book|last=Hammarskjold|first=Dag|title=Markings|year=1964|publisher=Ballantine Books|___location=New York}}</ref>

''Markings'' was described by the late theologian Henry P. Van Dusen as "the noblest self-disclosure of spiritual struggle and triumph, perhaps the greatest testament of personal faith written ... in the heat of professional life and amidst the most exacting responsibilities for [[world peace]] and order".<ref>Henry P Van Dusen. ''Dag Hammarskjöld: A Biographical Interpretation of Markings'' Faber and Faber London 1967 p. 5</ref> Hammarskjöld wrote, for example:

<blockquote>We are not permitted to choose the frame of our destiny. But what we put into it is ours. He who wills adventure will experience it – according to the measure of his courage. He who wills sacrifice will be sacrificed – according to the measure of his purity of heart.<ref>''Dag Hammarskjöld: Markings'' Leif Sjoberg and WH Auden (trans) Faber and Faber London 1964 p. 63.</ref></blockquote>

''Markings'' is characterised by Hammarskjöld's intermingling of prose and [[haiku]] poetry in a manner exemplified by the 17th-century Japanese poet [[Matsuo Bashō|Basho]] in his ''[[Narrow Roads to the Deep North]]''.<ref>''Dag Hammarskjöld: Markings'' Leif Sjoberg and WH Auden (trans) Faber and Faber London 1964 p149</ref> In his foreword to ''Markings'', W. H. Auden quotes Hammarskjöld as stating:

<blockquote>In our age, the road to holiness necessarily passes through the world of action.<ref>WH Auden Foreword to ''Dag Hammarskjöld: Markings'' Leif Sjoberg and WH Auden (trans) Faber and Faber London 1964 p. 23.</ref></blockquote>

Hammarskjöld's interest in philosophical and spiritual matters is also proven by the finding of [[Martin Buber]]'s main work ''[[I and Thou]]'', which he was translating into Swedish, in the wreckage after the plane crash.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Sage Who Inspired Hammarskjöld; He is Martin Buber |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1961/12/03/archives/sage-who-inspired-hammarskjold-he-is-marlin-buber-scholar.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=3 December 1961 |author=Meyer Levin Jerusalem |access-date=18 September 2022 }}</ref>

The [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in America]] commemorates the life of Hammarskjöld as a renewer of society on the anniversary of his death, 18 September.<ref>Gail Ramshaw, ''More Days for Praise: Festivals and Commemorations in Evangelical Lutheran Worship'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, the publishing arm of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 2016), p. 220.</ref>

[[Brian Urquhart]]'s biography of Hammarskjöld addressed what [[Israel Shenker]] described in his ''[[The New York Times]]'' review as "the oft-discussed question of Hammaskjöld's sexuality".<ref name="NYT 1972-12-04">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/12/04/archives/-hammarskjold-a-biography-based-on-private-papers-tells-of-rifts.html |title=''Hammarskjold'', a Biography Based on Private Papers, Tells of Rifts With Big Powers |first=Israel |last=Shenker |author-link=Israel Shenker |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=18 |date=4 December 1972 |access-date=5 July 2023 }}</ref> Urquhart reports that [[Trygve Lie]] spread rumours of Hammarskjöld's homosexuality but, having interviewed Hammarskjöld's close friends, Urquhart concludes that "no one who knew him well or worked closely with him thought he was a homosexual".<ref name="NYT 1972-12-04"/> Shenker infers from Urquhart's work "that Hammarskjöld was an example, not unique in contemporary politics, of an [[asexuality|asexual]], somewhat [[narcissism|narcissistic]] individual" and quoted private papers where Hammarskjöld had written that "the Secretary General of the UN should have an iron constitution and should not be married".<ref name="NYT 1972-12-04"/> Despite Urquhart concluding the rumours were inaccurate, [[Larry Kramer]] included Hammarskjöld in the "I belong to a culture" speech in his 1985 play ''[[The Normal Heart]]''.<ref name="Kramer">{{cite book |title=The Normal Heart |title-link=The Normal Heart |first=Larry |last=Kramer |author-link=Larry Kramer |date=21 April 1985 |at=Scene 13 }}</ref><ref name="Royal National Theatre">{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-vIBq2lTn0 |title=Ben Daniels performs "I belong to a culture" speech from Larry Kramer's ''The Normal Heart'' |date=9 September 2021 |access-date=5 July 2023 |publisher=[[Royal National Theatre]] |via=[[YouTube]] }}</ref>

==Legacy==

[[File:United Nations Media Global.11.JPG|thumb|Memorial at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City]]

===Honors===

* Honorary degrees: [[Carleton University]] in Ottawa (then called Carleton College)<ref>[http://admissions.carleton.ca/cu9798uc/aboutcu/Carleton_Through_the_Years.html Carleton Through the Years] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110512035215/http://admissions.carleton.ca/cu9798uc/aboutcu/Carleton_Through_the_Years.html|date=12 May 2011}} Retrieved 31 March 2011</ref> awarded its first-ever [[honorary degree]] to Hammarskjöld in 1954, when it presented him with a [[Legum Doctor]], ''honoris causa''. The university has continued this tradition by conferring an honorary doctorate upon every subsequent Secretary-General of the United Nations. He also held honorary degrees from [[Oxford University]], United Kingdom; in the United States from [[Harvard]], [[Yale]], [[Princeton University|Princeton]], [[Columbia University|Columbia]], the [[University of Pennsylvania]], [[Amherst College|Amherst]], [[Johns Hopkins University|Johns Hopkins]], the [[University of California]], and [[Ohio University]]; in Sweden, Uppsala University; and in Canada from [[McGill University]] as well as Carleton University, in Ottawa.<ref name="years"/>

===People's views===

* [[John F. Kennedy]]: After Hammarskjöld's death, U.S. president John F. Kennedy regretted that he had opposed the UN policy in the Congo and said: "I realise now that in comparison to him, I am a small man. He was the greatest statesman of our century."<ref name="Linnér"/>

* In 2011, ''[[The Financial Times]]'' wrote that Hammarskjöld has remained the benchmark against which later UN Secretaries-General have been judged.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/6ba2edc0-7c3a-11e0-a386-00144feabdc0.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/6ba2edc0-7c3a-11e0-a386-00144feabdc0.html |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription|title=The road to redemption|work=Financial Times|author=Alec Russell|date=13 May 2011|access-date=14 May 2011}}</ref>

* His legacy in the third world is extremely controversial, especially due to his statements to the British representative at the UN, [[Patrick Dean (diplomat)|Patrick Dean]], that Lumumba was "a communist puppet".<ref name="Knudsen 2023"/><ref name="De Vos et al. 2004"/> For the [[Democratic Republic of Congo]], its erratic performance in the crisis of the 1960s has had disastrous consequences for the country to this day.<ref name="Melber 2017"/>

===Structures named in honor of Dag Hammarskjöld===

[[File:Regnellianum_side.jpg|thumb|[[Uppsala University Library|Uppsala University's Dag Hammarskjöld Law Library]]]]

[[File:DagHammarskjoldCentre II.jpg|thumb|The Dag Hammarskjöld centre in Uppsala]]

* Buildings and rooms:

**[[Dag Hammarskjöld Library]]: On 16 November 1961, shortly after his death, the newly completed Library building at United Nations Headquarters in New York was named the Dag Hammarskjöld Library.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.un.org/en/library|title=Library|first=United|last=Nations|publisher=United Nations}}</ref>

**[[Stanford University]]: Dag Hammarskjöld House, on the Stanford University campus, is a residence cooperative for undergraduate and graduate students with international backgrounds and interests at Stanford.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stanford.edu/group/resed/row/hammarskjold/about.html|title=Hammarskjold House|publisher=Stanford.edu|access-date=19 September 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110808225935/http://www.stanford.edu/group/resed/row/hammarskjold/about.html|archive-date=8 August 2011}}</ref>

**[[Hammarskjold High School]]: Public high school located in the town of [[Thunder Bay]], Ontario, Canada.

**Hammarskjold Middle School: Public middle school located in the town of [[East Brunswick, New Jersey|East Brunswick]], New Jersey.

**[[Dag Hammarskjold Middle School]]: Public middle school located in the town of [[Wallingford, Connecticut]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Dag Hammarskjöld Middle School – Wallingford Public Schools|url=https://www.wallingford.k12.ct.us/our-schools/dag-hammarskjold-school|access-date=23 October 2020|website=wallingford.k12.ct.us|archive-date=26 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026035651/https://www.wallingford.k12.ct.us/our-schools/dag-hammarskjold-school|url-status=dead}}</ref>

**Dag Hammarskjöld Elementary School: Public elementary school located in Sheepshead Bay, [[Brooklyn]], New York.

**Dag Hammarskjöld Memorial Primary School: Government School located in Ndola, Zambia (adjacent to the Dag Hammarskjöld Memorial Crash Site). This School contains the Karl Eriksson Computer Lab (Hammarskjöld and Eriksson knew each other).

**Dag Hammarskjöld "Hammar" Residence: Waterloo Co-operative Residence (WCRI) building located in the town of [[Waterloo, Ontario]], Canada.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--not stated--> |date=30 September 1976 |title=Co-op living in Waterloo |url=https://scholars.wlu.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1320&context=thecord |work=The Cord |___location=Waterloo, Ontario |access-date=15 December 2023}}</ref>

* Streets:

** [[:de:Hammarskjöldplatz]] is the wide square to the north entrance of the [[Messe Berlin]] fairgrounds in [[Berlin]], Germany.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.messe-berlin.de/media/mb/mb_media/mb_pdf/gelaende_1/mb_weitere_locations/mb_eventbereich_nord_1/Flyer_Event_Area_North.pdf|title=Event Area North|publisher=Messe Berlin|access-date=19 September 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140218214103/http://www.messe-berlin.de/media/mb/mb_media/mb_pdf/gelaende_1/mb_weitere_locations/mb_eventbereich_nord_1/Flyer_Event_Area_North.pdf|archive-date=18 February 2014}}</ref>

** Hammarskjöldring is a street in [[Frankfurt]], Germany, connecting the boroughs Mertonviertel and Niederursel.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Hammarskjöldring|url=https://onlinestreet.de/strassen/HammarskjC3%B6ldring.Frankfurt+am+Main.93279.html|access-date=18 September 2021|website=onlinestreet.de|language=de}}</ref>

** Dag Hammarskjölds Alle is a street in Copenhagen, Denmark that connects the inner city with the affluent suburb of Østerbro.

** Dag Hammarskjølds Gade is a street in Aalborg, Denmark. Headquarters for the regional police, Nordjyllands Politi, are located here.

** {{interlanguage link|Dag Hammarskjöldsleden|sv}} is a traffic route in Gothenburg, Sweden between Linnéplatsen and Västerleden/Söderleden (E6.20). With a length of 5&nbsp;km, it also connects to Högsboleden .

** Hammarskjöldsingel is a street in [[Amstelveen]], Netherlands.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Straten: straten, Amstelveen|url=https://www.amstelveenweb.com/straten&straatnum=3690|language=nl}}</ref>

* [[Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza]] is a [[public park]] near the [[headquarters of the United Nations]] in [[New York City]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/neighborhoodwatch/neighborhood-news-2011-3-14/|title=Neighborhood News|date=14 March 2011|work=New York}}</ref>

===Other commemorations===

[[File:Dag Hammarskjöld Medallion 1962 by Harald Salomon.jpg|thumb|1962 Medal Dag Hammarskjöld by the Danish sculptor [[Harald Salomon]]]]

[[File:Unstamp un ny 5.jpg|thumb|UN flag at half-mast]]

* [[Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation]]: In 1962, the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation was created as Sweden's national memorial to Dag Hammarskjöld.<ref name="dhf">{{cite web|url=http://www.interenvironment.org/cipa/dhf.htm|title=Convening thinkers and doers: Sweden's Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation|publisher=Interenvironment.org|date=25 November 1975|access-date=19 September 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001054108/http://www.interenvironment.org/cipa/dhf.htm|archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref>

* Memorial awards:

** Nobel Peace Prize: The [[Nobel Foundation]] posthumously awarded Dag Hammarskjöld the 1961 [[Nobel Peace Prize]] for developing the UN according to the [[Charter of the United Nations|UN Charter]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Nobel Peace Prize 1961 |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1961/summary/ |access-date=18 August 2023 |website=NobelPrize.org}}</ref>

** Medal: On 22 July 1997, the [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1121|UN Security Council Resolution 1121]] established the [[Dag Hammarskjöld Medal]] in recognition and commemoration of those who have lost their lives as a result of [[UN peacekeeping]] operations.<ref name="UN_SPV3802_1997">{{UN document|docid=S-PV-3802|date=22 July 1997|type=Verbatim Report|body=Security Council|meeting=3802|accessdate=21 August 2007}}</ref>

** Prize in Peace and Conflict Studies: [[Colgate University]] annually awards a student the Dag Hammarskjöld Prize in Peace and Conflict Studies based on outstanding work in the program.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.colgate.edu/academics/departments-and-programs/peace-and-conflict-studies/fellowships-and-awards|title=Colgate University : P-CON Fellowships and Awards|publisher=Colgate.edu|access-date=19 September 2011}}</ref>

* [[Commemorative stamp|Postage stamps]]: Many countries issued postage stamps commemorating Hammarskjöld.<ref>{{cite web|author=Mary Cherif|author2=Nathalie Leroy|author3=Anna Banchieri|author4=Armando Da Silva|url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/dag/stamps.htm|title=Selection of stamps commemorating the life of Dag Hammarskjöld|publisher=United Nations|access-date=10 September 2013}}</ref>

* On 6 April 2011, Sweden's central bank, the [[Sveriges Riksbank|Riksbank]], announced that Hammarskjöld's image would be used on the 1000-[[Swedish krona|kronor]] banknote, the highest-denomination banknote in Sweden.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.riksbank.com/templates/Page.aspx?id=46685 |title=Sveriges Riksbank/Riksbanken – Sweden's new banknotes and coins |publisher=Riksbank.com |access-date=19 September 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927172146/http://www.riksbank.com/templates/Page.aspx?id=46685 |archive-date=27 September 2011 }}</ref> The new currency was introduced in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thelocal.se/galleries/news/2374/6|title=Sweden's New Bank Notes|date=24 April 2012 |publisher=unknown|access-date=8 January 2015}}</ref>

==Depictions in music and popular culture==

In 1974, the Australian-British composer [[Malcolm Williamson]], [[Master of the Queen's Music]], wrote his ''Hammarskjöld Portrait'' for soprano and string orchestra. The text was taken from ''[[Vägmärken]]'', and the work's first performance took place on 30 July 1974, at a [[Royal Albert Hall]] [[Proms]] Concert, with the soprano [[Elisabeth Söderström]], and the [[BBC Symphony Orchestra]] conducted by [[John Pritchard (conductor)|John Pritchard]].

In 1985, Hammerskjöld was one of the names mentioned in the "I Belong to a Culture" speech in [[Larry Kramer]]'s play ''[[The Normal Heart]]'', where the protagonist includes him in a list of 24 historical gay figures.<ref name="Kramer"/><ref name="Royal National Theatre"/>

In the 2016 film ''[[The Siege of Jadotville (film)|The Siege of Jadotville]]'', depicting the events of the [[Congo Crisis]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/index.php/project/the-siege-of-jadotville/ |publisher=[[Galway Film Fleadh]] |access-date=11 September 2016 |title= 28th Galway Film Fleadh – July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123180253/http://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/index.php/project/the-siege-of-jadotville/ |archive-date=23 November 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Hammarskjöld's plane (incorrectly a [[Douglas DC-4|DC-4]]) is purposely shot down by a [[McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II|fighter jet only used by American forces at the time]] (it's likely this was for production reasons, just as a DC-4 stood in for the DC-6). Hammarskjöld is played by fellow [[Swedish people|Swede]], [[Mikael Persbrandt]].

Also in 2016, the [[1961 Ndola Transair Sweden DC-6 crash]] was featured in Canadian TV series ''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Mayday]]'' [[List of Mayday episodes#Season 15 (2016)|(S15, E5)]], "Deadly Mission" and ''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Air Crash Investigation Special Report]]'' [[List of Mayday episodes#The Accident Files#Season 3 (2020)|(S3, E3)]], "VIP on Board". Peter James Howarth portrayed Hammarskjöld.<ref>{{Citation |title="Air Crash Investigation" Deadly Mission (TV Episode 2016) |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4831048/ |access-date=20 January 2024}}</ref>

In 2023, Persbrandt again played the eponymous politician, in the film ''[[Hammarskjöld (film)|

Hammarskjöld]]'', directed by [[Per Fly]].<ref name="Knudsen 2023"/> The film received negative reviews for glossing over its Congo Crisis controversies.<ref name="Knudsen 2023"/>

==See also==

{{Portal|Politics|Biography}}

*[[Olof Palme]]

*[[List of unsolved deaths]]

*[[Bernt Carlsson]]

*[[List of heads of state and government who died in aviation accidents and incidents]]

== Notes ==

{{notelist}}

==References==

{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==

* Durel, Bernard, op, (2002), «Au jardin secret d'un diplomate suédois: ''Jalons'' de Dag Hammarskjöld, un itinéraire spirituel», ''La Vie Spirituelle'' (Paris). T. 82, pp.&nbsp;901–922.

* {{citation|title=United Nations Affairs |url=https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1952-54v03 | series=Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954 | volume=3 | editor-last=Goodwin | editor-first=Ralph R. | year=1979 | ___location=[[Washington D.C.]] | publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |ref=CITEREFFRUS 1952–1954 III}}.

* {{cite book| last = Heller| first = Peter B.| title = The United Nations under Dag Hammarskjöld, 1953–1961| publisher = Scarecrow Press| date = 2001|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Qj-AAAAQBAJ| isbn = 9781461702092}}

* Kelen, Emery (1966) ''Hammarskjold''. Putnam.

* Lichello, Robert (1972) "Dag Hammarskjöld: A Giant in Diplomacy." Samhar Press, Charlotteville, N.Y. {{ISBN|978-0-87157-501-2}}.

* {{cite book| last = Lipsey| first = Roger| title = Hammarskjöld: A Life| publisher = University of Michigan Press| edition = illustrated| date = 2013|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q5li4S0bpAwC| isbn = 9780472118908}}

* Urquhart, Brian, (1972), ''Hammarskjold''. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.

* Velocci, Giovanni, cssr, (1998), «Hammarskjold Dag», in Luigi Borriello, ocd – Edmondo Caruana, ocarm – Maria Rosaria Del Genio – N. Suffi (dirs.), ''Dizionario di mistica''. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Città del Vaticano, pp.&nbsp;624–626.

==Further reading ==

* {{cite book |last=Melber |first=Henning |title=Dag Hammarskjöld, the United Nations and the Decolonisation of Africa |year=2019 |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. |___location=London |isbn=978-1787380042}}

==External links==

{{wikiquotecommons}}

{{Wikiquote}}

*[http://www.dhf.uu.se/pdffiler/Kofi%20Annan.pdf Kofi Annan, ''Dag Hammarskjöld and the 21st century'', The Fourth Dag Hammarskjöld Lecture 6th September 2001, Uppsala University (pdf)]

* [https://search.archives.un.org/secretary-general-dag-hammarskjold-1953-1961 Dag Hammarskjöld papers] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610121243/https://search.archives.un.org/secretary-general-dag-hammarskjold-1953-1961 |date=10 June 2022 }} at the United Nations Archives

*[http://www.un.org/depts/dhl/dag/index.html Dag Hammarskjöld, Secretary-General: the official website of the UN]

*[https://archives.un.org/content/death-dag-hammarskjöld Death of Dag Hammarskjöld] on [https://archives.un.org/ UN Archives website]

*[http://www.buzzflash.com/hartmann/05/03/har05003.html Markings - "the spiritual diary of Dag Hammarskjöld"]

* [http://www.unmultimedia.org/photo/detail/416/0416742.html UNSG Ban Ki-Moon Lays Wreath Honouring Dag Hammarskjold of 1 October 2009] and [http://www.unmultimedia.org/photo/detail/416/0416741.html UNSG] with King [[Carl XVI Gustaf]] of Sweden

*[http://www.sweden.se/templates/cs/Print_BasicFactsheet.aspx?id=4327 Biography]

* [https://www.un.org/sg/formersgs.shtml United Nations Secretaries-General]

*[http://nobelprize.org/peace/laureates/1961 The Nobel Prize]

* [httphttps://www.globalpolicyun.org/secgendepts/pastsgdhl/murderdag/index.htmhtml Letters sayDag Hammarskjöld's, deathSecretary-General] Westernat plot]the official website of the UN

* {{Nobelprize}}

*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/154384.stm UN assassination plot denied]

* [http://www.geocitiesglobalpolicy.comorg/sauforsecgen/unsortedpastsg/allegedcoverup1961murder.htmlhtm PlotLetters to killsay Hammarskjöld's death Western plot]

* [http://www.upi.com/Audio/Year_in_Review/Events-of-1961/Death-of-Dag-Hammarskj/12295509433760-4/ Audio of Dag Hammarskjöld's response to Russian pressure] From UPI Audio Archives

*[http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/1998/98820_0x1539810364.htm Media briefing by Archbishop Desmond Tutu]

* [https://archive.org/details/foia_Hammarskjold_Dag-HQ-1 Dag Hammarskjöld's FBI files] hosted at the [[Internet Archive]]

*[http://home.intekom.com/southafricanhistoryonline/pages/chronology/thisday/1961-09-18.htm 18 September 1961 UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld is killed]

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