This Week in History: First meeting of the United Nations

10 January 2022 marks a grand seventy-six years since the UN (then comprising of just fifty-one member states) convened for the very first General Assembly at Westminster Central Hall, in the heart of London. But what exactly had led to this historic moment? In June 1941, twenty-two months of war had already elapsed, with the great British capital becoming all too familiar to the constant wailing of air-raid sirens and upsurge of civilian casualties. A devastating 40,000 civilians had died in the seven-month period between September 1940 and May 1941- with nearly half of these being within the capital. Despite this tragedy, in both London and among other allied governments and their people, hope remained for victory and more importantly a pathway to a brighter post-war future. It was this common strive for recovery from which the roots of the UN soon emerged and so on 12 June 1941, representatives of Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Union of South Africa as well as several exiled governments within Europe met at St. James’ Palace and signed a declaration to voice support for a new and improved post-war world.

An extract from the declaration gives us a key insight into the aims that any future international collaborative body should adopt:

‘That the only true basis of enduring peace is the willing co-operation of free peoples in a world in which, relieved of the menace of aggression, all may enjoy economic and social security; and that it is their intention to work together, and with other free peoples, both in war and peace to this end.’

It is evident that this new body would be unlike any other, certainly in no way similar to the prior League of Nations (agreed upon within the Treaty of Versailles) which had been wholly unsuccessful in the long-term in preservation of ‘peace’ and prevention of ‘war’.

In August of that year, further developments were made towards this body, namely the signing of the Atlantic Charter between Franklin D. Roosevelt (US President 1933-45) and Winston Churchill (Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1940-45). The document directly referred to the need for ‘certain common principles in the national policies of their respective countries on which they [would] base their hopes for a better future of the world.’

The purposes and principles outlined here in the Atlantic Charter were further agreed upon by twenty-six states at war within the 1 January 1942, Declaration of the United Nations. This was the first direct naming of the body as the UN, coined by US president Roosevelt.

Notable members included the United States, United Kingdom, China and the USSR.  The number of states adhering to the declaration would later rise.

<![if !vml]><![endif]>In the years to follow, as WWII drew to a close, much deliberation occurred on par with the influence each global power held. This was seen out in the Tehran conference in 1943, where the ‘Big Three’ (Leaders of the US, UK and USSR) delved into how the UN would play out in the real world. They expressed clear determination to pursue the Atlantic Charter as well as recognising ‘the supreme responsibility resting upon [them] and all the United Nations to make a peace which [would] command the goodwill of the overwhelming mass of the peoples of the world and banish the scourge and terror of war for many generations’.

They further announced their intention to ‘seek the cooperation and active participation of all nations, large and small, whose peoples in heart and mind [were] dedicated, as [were their] own peoples, to the elimination of tyranny and slavery, oppression and intolerance’ within a ‘world family of Democratic Nations’.

Today, the UN still highlights disarmament, peace and security as well as international law and justice as global challenges, suggesting the assembly is still very much involved within the parameters of which it was founded- in a post-war Britain.

However, the 21^st century has brought new items of discussion to the table- for example, dealing with the major humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan which has ironically escalated further since the de-escalation of US forces in August 2021.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi asked the European Union to take in more than 40,000 Afghan refugees over the next five years, but the plea failed to receive the backing of EU countries. This touches on how the nature of decision-making in the UN has changed from the voting systems present when it comprised only of 51 member states, in contrast to the current 193 states- requiring resolutions to be reached by consensus for the large majority of items.

Though the UN has retained its general aim of keeping peace, the 21^st century has brought an array of new challenges for the body to discuss and resolve- whereby possible.

TS

Bibliography [All accessed 10/01/2022]

https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un

https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un/preparatory-years

https://www.un.org/en/about-us/history-of-the-un/predecessor

https://www.un.org/en/global-issues

https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/09/1099112

https://www.euronews.com/2021/10/07/un-chief-asked-eu-states-to-take-in-more-than-40-000-afghan-refugees

https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/atlantic-charter?tmpl=component&print=1

https://www.un.org/en/model-united-nations/how-decisions-are-made-un

 

This Week in Word War II - Italy Declares War on France and Britain

This Week’s Historical Theme: World War II 

10 June 1940 

A significant event throughout the history of World War II that occurred in June was Italy's declaration of war against France and Great Britain. After withholding formal allegiance to either Germany or the Allies, Benito Mussolini, dictator of Italy, allied with the former, perhaps due to German occupation in Paris. While Hitler was sceptical of this sudden break from neutrality, stating “First they were too cowardly to take part. Now they are in a hurry so that they can share in the spoils,” Mussolini claims he wanted in before the German occupation in Paris. In actuality, Mussolini was wary of waging an all-out war against Britain and France due to Italy's limited supply of raw materials.

 

While this was a hindrance for the Allies who had been attempting to ensure Italy's neutrality with promises of land in Africa, the Italian troops, who were mobilized in France on 20 June 1940, were easily held at bay by French forces. All Italians between the ages of 16 and 70 who had lived in Britain less than 20 years were immediately interned and President Roosevelt publicly promised his support for France and Britain. By September 1943, Italy had surrendered to the Allies and Mussolini was deposed from power.

Want to find out more about the role of Italy in WWII? Click here for more information, or here for more about Benito Mussolini’s motives. 

 

This Week in Crime - The Queen of Poison

This Week's Historical Theme: Crime

11 May 1949

A significant event throughout the history of crime that occurred in May is the evidence found against French serial killer, Marie Besnard. On this day, the body of Leon Besnard was exhumed by the French authorities searching for evidence of poison. Marie had married Leon Besnard in 1928 and the couple resented that they lived modest lives compared to their rich relatives. When Leon's great aunts passed away, all their money was left to Leon's parents. The couple hatched a plan, inviting Leon's parents to live with them and shortly after, Leon's father died from eating a bad mushroom, followed by his mother's death 3 months later. The inheritance was split between Leon and his sister, Lucie, who shortly died after having supposedly taken her own life.

The Besnards then began looking outside their immediate family, targeting their cousins as well as boarders they had taken in. For years, the locals were suspicious of the couple as nearly their whole family mysteriously died around them. After Marie fell in love with another man in 1947, Leon was found dead. Early in 1949, law enforcement began to investigate Marie after the death of her mother and on 11 May Leon's body was exhumed by the authorities searching for evidence of poison. Traces of arsenic were found in his body. Arsenic was also found in the rest of her family's corpses but she managed to escape prison as trace evidence was lost. On December 12 1961, she was acquitted and "The Queen of Poison", as the French call her, got away with 13 murders.

Want to find out more information about the history of murder by poison? Click here for more information, or here to find out about 17th century professional poisoner, Giulia Tofana.

This Week in Germany - The Leaders of the White Rose are Arrested

This Week's Historical Theme: Germany

 

18 January 1943

 

A significant event throughout the history of Germany that occurred in February was the arrest of the White Rose resistance leaders, Hans Scholl and his sister Sophie. They had left a suitcase filled with copies of anti-Nazi leaflets in their main university building. This leaflet stated that "the day of reckoning has come, the reckoning of our German youth with the most abominable tyranny our people has ever endured." The pair were, however, spotted by a janitor, who reported them to the Gestapo. Turned over to Hitler's 'People's Court', a kangaroo court for dispatching dissidents quickly, the Scholls, along with another White Rose member, were sentenced to death, and beheaded on February 23.

 

The White Rose was composed of university students who spoke out against Adolf Hitler's regime. Hans Scholl was the founder and was a former member of the Hitler Youth who grew disenchanted with Nazi ideology once its real aims were evident. During the summer of 1942, Scholl and a friend had composed four leaflets, which exposed and denounced Nazi and SS atrocities, including the extermination of Jews and Polish nobility. The risks involved were enormous, as the lives of average civilians were monitored for any deviation from loyalty to the state. Even a casual remark critical of Hitler or the Nazis could result in arrest by the Gestapo, yet the students of the White Rose risked all.

 

Want to find out more about the White Rose? Click here for more information, or here for a film about the resistance group.

November 29 - The UN Votes to Partition Palestine

This Day in History: 29 November 2020

 

29 November 1947

 

73 years ago, today, the UN voted for the partition of Palestine, and the creation of an independent Jewish state, despite strong Arab opposition. This plan proposed that the Jews were to possess more than half of Palestine, even though they made up less than half of Palestine's population. The Palestinian Arabs, aided by volunteers from other countries, fought against the Zionist forces. Despite this, the Jews secured full control of their allocated area of Palestine and also some Arab territory. In May 1948, the State of Israel was proclaimed by Jewish Agency Chairman David Ben-Gurion, and the next day, forces from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq invaded.

 

The modern conflict between Jews and Arabs in Palestine had dated back to the 1910s, when both groups laid claim to the territory, controlled by the British at the time. These Jews mainly consisted of Zionists, recent emigrants from Europe and Russia who came to the Jews' ancient homeland to establish a Jewish national state. The native Palestinian Arabs, on the other hand, sought to prevent Jewish immigration and set up a secular Palestinian state. The British also attempted to limit Jewish immigration as a means of appeasing the Arabs. However, many Jews illegally entered Palestine during World War II, as a result of the Holocaust in Europe.

 

Want to find out more about the UN partition of Palestine? Click here for more information, or here for more about the Arab-Israeli conflict.

November 26 - Thanksgiving Day is Officially Established by FDR

This Day in History: 26 November 2020

 

26 November 1941

 

79 years ago, today, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill that officially declared the fourth Thursday in November to be Thanksgiving Day. The tradition of celebrating the holiday on Thursday dates back to the colonies of Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay, when a famous Thanksgiving observance occurred in 1621. Plymouth governor William Bradford had invited local members of the Wampanoag tribe to join the Pilgrims in a festival held in gratitude for the bounty of the season. Throughout the 17^th century, this became an annual custom in New England. However, it was not until 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving to officially fall on the last Thursday of November, that the modern holiday was celebrated nationally.

 

With a few exceptions, Lincoln's action was followed annually by every subsequent president, until 1939. In this year, Franklin D. Roosevelt departed from tradition by declaring November 23 as Thanksgiving Day, the next to last Thursday. Controversy surrounded this deviation, and some Americans even refused to honour this declaration. Over the next two years, Roosevelt repeated the unpopular proclamation. However, on this day, he admitted his mistake and signed a bill into law that officially cemented the fourth Thursday of November as the national holiday of Thanksgiving.

 

Want to find out more about the history of Thanksgiving Day? Click here for more information, or here for more about Roosevelt's declaration. 

November 7 - FDR is Elected to Serve His Fourth Term in Office

This Day in History: 7 November 2020

 

7 November 1944

 

76 years ago, today, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected to an unprecedented fourth term in office and remains the only president to have served more than two terms. He had rose above personal and political challenges to ultimately emerge as one of the most influential presidents, presiding over two of the biggest crises in US history after contracting polio in 1921: the Great Depression in the 1930s and World War II. As president, he implemented the legislation necessary to help boost America out of the Great Depression. Although he initially delayed US involvement in the war, the bombing of Pearl Harbour in 1941 thrust America into the conflict.

 

When Roosevelt was elected to his fourth term, the war was looking to be in favour of the Allied victory, but the president's health was in serious decline. His arteriosclerosis had been worsened by the stress of managing the war, and in April 1945, seven months before the war's end, Roosevelt died of a stroke. Harry Truman, Roosevelt's vice president, came into office, while Congress proposed the 22^nd Amendment. This would mean that presidents would be limited to two consecutive terms. Prior to this, they had either followed George Washington's example in serving a maximum of two years or were unsuccessful in winning a third. The Amendment was passed in 1951.

 

Want to find out more about the life of Franklin Roosevelt? Click here for more information, or here for more firsts in US presidential history.

October 24 - The United Nations is Established

This Day in History: 24 October 2020

 

24 October 1945

 

75 years ago, today, the United Nations Charter was born. The principles had been first formulated in April, at the San Francisco Conference, presided over by American President Franklin Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. This conference laid out a structure for a new international organisation that was to prevent another war from occurring, after both World Wars had decimated Europe and many other nations. Since the old League of Nations had not prevented the outbreak of World War II, the need for an organisation to prevent international conflict and stimulate peace was of a high necessity.

 

Two other important objectives described in the Charter were respecting the principles of equal rights and self-determination of all peoples. This was originally directed at smaller nations now vulnerable to invasion by the communist nations emerging from the war. International cooperation in solving economic, social, cultural and humanitarian problems around the world was also aimed for. The new UN Security Council was made up of the United States, Great Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and China. However, the initiatives proposed by the countries were easier said than done.

 

Want to find out more about the history of the United Nations? Click here for more information, or here for more about the failure of the League of Nations.

October 20 - The Red Scare Begins in Hollywood

This Day in History: 20 October 2020

 

20 October 1947

 

73 years ago, today, Congress began to investigate communists in Hollywood, initiating the Red Scare. After World War II ended, the Cold War intensified matters between the world's two superpowers, the capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union. In Washington, conservatives worked to expose communists in the government before focusing on alleged 'reds' in the liberal film industry. The House Un-American Activities Committee was tasked to lead the investigation. They grilled many prominent witnesses, asking bluntly if they had ever been a member of the Communist Party. Some witnesses, including director Elia Kazan and studio managers like Walt Disney and Jack Warner, gave the committee names of colleagues they suspected of being communists. Whether this was out of patriotism or fear is unknown.

 

When interrogated, a small group known as the 'Hollywood Ten' resisted, complaining the hearings were illegal and violated their First Amendment rights. They were all convicted of obstructing the investigation and were given jail terms. Due to Congress' pressure, Hollywood began a blacklist policy, banning works by people who had not been cleared by the committee. This list included playwright Arthur Miller and actor Orson Welles. Some of these blacklisted writers used pseudonyms to stay writing, while others wrote scripts that were credited to other writers. In 1997, the Writers' Guild of America changed the writing credits of 23 films made during this period, reversing some of the Red Scare's damage.

 

Want to find out more about the Red Scare? Click here for more information, or here for more about the House Un-American Activities Committee.

October 15 - Pierre Laval is Executed

This Day in History: 15 October 2020

 

15 October 1945

 

75 years ago, today, the leader of Nazi-occupied Vichy France, Pierre Laval, was executed by the firing squad for treason against France. Laval had originally been a deputy and senator of pacifist tendencies but shifted to the right in in the 1930s when he was acting as minister of foreign affairs. He had delayed the Soviet-Franco pact of 1935 due to his anti-communist views and wanted to align France instead with Fascist Italy. In 1940, with the German invasion, he used his influence to force an armistice. In the new Vichy state, Laval was dismissed as the minister of state after negotiating privately with Germany.

 

By 1942, Laval won the trust of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. As the premier of Vichy France, Laval collaborated with the Nazi programs of oppression and genocide, transforming into Hitler's puppet. After France was liberated by the Allies, he was forced to flee east for German protection. Once Germany was defeated in May 1945, he fled to many countries but finally surrendered to American authorities in late July. Laval was convicted of treason by the High Court of Justice and condemned to death. He attempted suicide by poison but was nursed back to health for his execution.

 

Want to find out more about Pierre Laval? Click here for more information, or here for a video about his execution.

October 7 - East Germany is Created

This Day in History: 7 October 2020

 

7 October 1949

 

71 years ago, today, East Germany was created. This occurred less than five months after Great Britain, the United States, and France established the Federal Republic of Germany in West Germany. The Democratic Republic of Germany was proclaimed in retaliation within the Soviet occupation zone. The West criticised this as an un-autonomous Soviet creation, and Wilhelm Pieck was named as East Germany's president, with Otto Grotewohl as Prime Minister. Although the state was under the responsibility of German communist leaders, Soviet forces remained in the country throughout the Cold War. Berlin remained divided between West and East German authorities, even though it was situated within communist Germany.

 

In East Germany, the economy was centrally planned and increasingly became state-owned. Prices of housing, basic goods and services were heavily subsided and set by central government planners. It became the most successful economy in the Eastern Bloc. Emigration to the West was a significant problem as well, as many of the emigrants were educated young people and weakened the state economically. The government fortified its western borders and built the Berlin Wall to prevent this. Many people attempting to flee were killed by border guards or booby traps such as land mines. East Germany ceased to exist in 1990, when its land and people were absorbed into the democratic Federal Republic of Germany.

 

Want to find out more about the creation of East German? Click here for more information, or here for more about East Germany throughout the Cold War.

October 5 - First Televised Presidential Address

This Day in History: 5 October 2020

 

5 October 1947

 

73 years ago, today, President Harry Truman delivered the first-ever televised presidential address from the White House, where he asked Americans to cut back on their use of grain in order to help starving Europeans. At the time, Europe was still recovering from World War Two and suffering from famine. Truman worried that if the US did not provide food aid, his Marshall Plan for European economic recovery would fail. So, he asked farmers and distillers to reduce their grain use and asked the public to give up meat on Tuesdays, eggs and poultry on Thursdays and a slice of bread each day. This program was short-lived, however, as the Marshall Plan succeeded in spurring economic growth in Europe.

 

Television was still in its infancy in 1947, as most people listened to the radio for news and entertainment, so the majority of Americans missed Truman's TV debut. Nevertheless, his speech signalled the start of a powerful and complex relationship between the White House and a medium that would have a large impact on American presidency. Each of Truman's subsequent White House speeches were televised. In 1948, he became the first presidential candidate to broadcast a paid political advertisement. Although Truman pioneered the White house telecast, it was President Franklin Roosevelt who became the first president to appear on television. However, this again had an extremely limited audience.

 

Want to find out more about how US presidents have communicated with the public over the years? Click here for more information, or here for more about the Marshall Plan.

September 29 - The Babi Yar Massacre

This Day in History: 29 September 2020 

 

29 September 1941 

 

79 years ago, today, the Babi Yar massacre began in Nazi-occupied Ukraine, on the outskirts of Kiev. The city had been taken ten days prior by the German army, and special SS forces began to prepare to carry out Adolf Hitler's orders to exterminate all Jews and Soviet officials found in the area. More than 30,000 Jews were marched in small groups to the Babi Yar ravine in the north of the city, were ordered to strip naked, then machine-gunned into the ravine. The next day, the massacre ended, and the dead and wounded were covered over with dirt and rock. The massacre has been called the 'largest single massacre in the history of the Holocaust'.  

 

Between 1941 and 1943, thousands more Jews, Russian prisoners of war and Soviet officials were executed at the Babi Yar ravine in a similar manner. It is estimated that during the German occupation, between 100,000 and 150,000 people were killed at Babi Yar. As the German army retreated from the USSR, the Nazis attempted to hide the evidence of the massacres by exhuming the bodies and burning them in pyres. However, many eyewitnesses and other evidence verified the atrocities committed at Babi Yar, and thus became a symbol of Jewish suffering in the Holocaust.  

 

Want to find out more about the Babi Yar massacre? Click here for more information, or here for more about the Nazi occupation of Ukraine.

September 27 - The Tripartite Pact

This Day in History: 27 September 2020

 

27 September 1940

 

80 years ago, today, the Tripartite Pact was signed in Berlin between Germany, Italy, and Japan, officially forming the Axis powers. The Pact would provide for mutual assistance should any of the signatories suffer attack by any nation not already involved in the Second World War. This formalising of an alliance was aimed directly at the 'neutral' America, as it was designed to force them to think twice before drifting towards the side of the Allies. Additionally, the Pact recognised the two spheres of influence. Japan officially acknowledged 'the leadership of Germany and Italy in the establishment of a new order in Europe' while Japan was granted lordship over 'Greater East Asia'.

 

The pact was later joined by Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, and Croatia, as well as some countries under Japanese control. Yugoslavia's accession initiated a coup d'état in Belgrade two days later, which Germany, Italy and Hungary responded with by invading. Those countries that signed the pact agreed to give ten years of political, economic and military help to each other. However, in 1943, the pact began to fall apart. Many countries had ended their role in the war or joined the Allies. Although the Pact remained in effect until Japan's surrender in August 1945, Germany's surrender three months prior rendered the pact meaningless.

 

Want to find out more about the Tripartite Pact? Click here for more information, or here to view the text of the Pact.

September 16 - The First Peacetime Draft in the United States

This Day in History: 16 September 2020

 

16 September 1940

 

80 years ago, today, the Burke-Wadsworth Act was passed by Congress, marking it as the first peacetime draft in the United States. Exactly one month later, the registration of men between the ages of 21 and 36 began. This occurred as Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson, began drawing draft numbers out of a glass bowl. Stimson had been a key player in moving the Roosevelt administration away from a foreign policy of strict neutrality. There were around 20 million eligible men, but 50% were rejected in the first year for health reasons or illiteracy.

 

Two years later, when the United States was now participating in the war, the draft ages expanded from 18 to 37. African-Americans were passed over for the draft due to racist assumptions about their abilities and the viability of a mixed-race army. In 1943, this changed when a 'quota', meant to limit the number of black people drafted, was imposed. Initially black people were restricted to 'labour units', but as the war progressed, this ended, and they were finally used in combat. Around 5,000-6,000 men were imprisoned for failing to register to serve their nation, and these were comprised mostly of Jehovah's Witnesses. By the end of the war, around 34 million men had registered, with 10 million serving in the military.

 

Want to find out more about the United States draft? Click here for more information, or here for more about Henry L. Stimson.

September 7 - The Blitz Begins

This Day in History: 7 September 2020

 

7 September 1940

 

80 years ago, today, the Blitz began as 300 German bombers raided London. This would continue until May 1941. After Germany's successful occupation of France, it was only a matter of time before they set their sights to England. Hitler wanted Britain to be submissive and neutralised so that he could concentrate on the East, more specifically, the invasion of the Soviet Union. Since June, England and Germany had been fighting in aerial battles, in an attempt from Germany to wear down the Royal Air Force. However, this was failing, so instead of perusing an unrealistic land invasion, he instead chose terror as his weapon.

 

By the end of the first day of the Blitz, 337 tons of bombs had been dropped by German planes on London. Even though civilians were not the primary target that day, the poorest area of London, the East, felt the fallout heavily, as they faced direct hits from bombs and fires that broke out and quickly spread. That afternoon and evening, 448 civilians were killed. A state of emergency was declared in England once British military units were alerted that the invasion had begun, and home defence units were put to the ready. A key strategy of Hitler's was to underestimate the will and courage of the British people, but instead they did not run or submit to his tyranny and fought hard.

 

Want to find out more about the Blitz? Click here for more information, or here for a video about life during the Blitz.

Skateboarding

One of my favourite hobbies when I’m not locked in my study doing homework is going skateboarding. If you are one of my nearest and dearest and you are reading this, please do NOT ask me to show you as I will probably fall flat on my face and end up in A&E. Moving swiftly on, I decided that I am going to combine two of my favourite things so that you will hopefully have an interesting article to read. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, today I am going to bore you with the history of skateboarding (I’m joking, you better find this interesting)!

Skateboarding is quite vintage considering that it originated in the late 1940s/early 1950s. It came about because Californian surfers wanted something to ‘surf’ when the waves were flat. Apparently, no specific person invented the skateboard, it was created by many individuals at around the same time. Originally, skateboards were boxes on wheels which gradually evolved into a board on wheels. The first proper skateboard sold from a shop was in Los Angeles, California. By the 1960s, the number of shops had grown substantially and there were many skateboarding shops in South California. In the coming years, the design of the skateboards were improved and in the 1970s skateparks were constructed from skaters to practice tricks. Then, in the 1980s, the main focus was on doing tricks on these ramps. After that, during the 1990s, street skateboarding came about. It gained popularity and that’s about it. 

So now I hope you know a little bit more about skateboarding which is actually a lot harder than it looks!

JG