Dag Hammarskjöld
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Dag Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat, economist, and author who served as Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1953 until his death in 1961. He is remembered as an influential international leader who worked to resolve Cold War conflicts and expand the UN's role in peacekeeping during a critical period in global history.
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Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld (/ˈhæmərʃʊld/ HAM-ər-shuuld; Swedish: [ˈdɑːɡ ˈhâmːarˌɧœld] ; 29 July 1905 – 18 September 1961) was a Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the second Secretary-General of the United Nations from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961. As of 2026, 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 Egypt (the UNEF) and 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.