We the Peoples of the United Nations

 DETERMINED

to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and 

to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and

to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and

to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom

Delegates of fifty nations attend the United Nations Conference on International Organization, known as the San Francisco Conference, held between 25 April and 26 June 1945. Here a technical expert (left), T. V. Soong (centre), Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation of China, and Harry S. Truman (right), President of the United States, arrive in San Francisco to attend the Conference, in April 1945.

Flags wave in the courtyard of San Francisco City Hall.

Delegates come from near and far. Left to right: Jan Masaryk, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Czechoslovakia; Bitwodded Makonnen Endalkachau, Prime Minister of Ethiopia; Amir Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia; and Gerard E. Lescot, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation from Haiti.

The Conference is one of the largest international gatherings up to that time. Here, delegates gather for a plenary meeting at the War Memorial Opera House, one of the main venues of the Conference. 

Veterans and journalists attend, at right above Chairman of the Liberian delegation C. L. Simpson is interviewed. Calls are handled on the international switchboard in the basement of the Veterans Building. At rush periods operators handle as many as 2000 calls an hour. (below)

...

AND FOR THESE ENDS

to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and

to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and

to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and

to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples,

HAVE RESOLVED TO COMBINE OUR EFFORTS TO ACCOMPLISH THESE AIMS.

Accordingly, our respective Governments, through representatives assembled in the city of San Francisco, who have exhibited their full powers found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the present Charter of the United Nations and do hereby establish an international organization to be known as the United Nations.

 - Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations

Germany surrenders on Tuesday, 8 May 1945

Human rights, decolonization and women's rights are on the agenda. Educator and activist Mary McLeod Bethune (left) addresses a banquet hosted by the "Society for the Advancement of Colored People". Minerva Bernardino (centre) from Dominican Republic and Bertha Lutz (right) from Brazil lead the fight to explicitly include women's rights and gender equality in the Charter of the UN. 

Receptions and barbeques are held. A Turkish reception (centre) is held at the St. Francis Hotel on 25 May. Left to right: Huseyin Ragip Baydur, Ambassador to the United States from Turkey; Lana Turner and Turhan Bey, screen stars.

V.M. Molotov, Peoples Commissar for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation of the USSR, and members of the USSR Delegation, meet the press after Molotov's speech to the Soviet Union, celebrating the victory in Europe on 8 May 1945. E.R. Stettinius Jr. Chairman of the delegation of the United States, attends a meeting.

Victor Andres Belaunde from Peru speaks during a plenary session (left). Minerva Bernardino, Member of the Delegation from Dominican Republic, signs the Charter at the ceremony held at the Veterans' War Memorial Building on 26 June (centre). Abdel Hamid Pasha Badawi, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation of Egypt, signs the Charter; a facsimile copy of the Charter is superimposed on the photo (right). 

A view of the plenary meeting, held on 26 June 1945. 

Working on the Dumbarton Oaks proposals, the Yalta Agreement, and amendments proposed by various governments, the San Francisco Conference agrees upon the Charter of the United Nations and the Statute of the new International Court of Justice. The Charter was adopted unanimously on 25 June 1945 at the San Francisco Opera House, and was signed the following day at the Herbst Theatre auditorium of the Veterans War Memorial Building. It entered into force on 24 October 1945, following the deposit of the instruments of ratification of the five permanent members of the Security Council and a majority of all other signatories.

The UN Photo Library holds an extensive collection of images documenting the work of the United Nations. For detailed information on the images in this photo essay, follow the links below. Images are listed in order of appearance.

UN Photo/Rosenberg: UN7702919, UN Photo: UN7683415, UN Photo: UN7647191, UN Photo/Lundquist: UN7669327, UN Photo: UN7683196, UN Photo/Lundquist: UN7683200, UN Photo: UN7686745, UN Photo: UN7684204, UN Photo: UN7707369, UN Photo/Lundquist: UN7687836, UN Photo/Rommel: UN7695612, UN Photo/McLain: UN7695615, UN Photo: UN7659842, UN Photo: UN7667327, UN Photo: UN7742449, UN Photo: UN7661586, UN Photo: UN7659849,  UN Photo/Rosenberg: UN7772199, UN Photo/Greene: UN7669215, UN Photo/Rosenberg: UN7669299, UN Photo/Mili: UN7661585, UN Photo: UN7659812, UN Photo/Eastman: UN7686728, UN Photo/Rommel: UN7692575, UN Photo/Rosenberg: UN7696380, UN Photo: UN7703608, UN Photo/Rosenberg: UN7683789, UN Photo/McLain: UN7629492, UN Photo: UN7779226, UN Photo/McCreary: UN7685933