Featured moment · World history

United Nations Charter signed

26 June 1945

Delegates adopted and signed the United Nations Charter in San Francisco, establishing a new framework for international cooperation.

The United Nations Charter on display at United Nations Headquarters — Photograph: Wikimedia Commons; photograph of the Charter on display. View image, creator and licence on Wikimedia Commons.

Image note: The photograph shows the Charter in a modern exhibition, not the 1945 signing ceremony.

What happened?

Representatives of 50 countries signed the United Nations Charter at the San Francisco Conference on 26 June 1945. The organisation officially came into existence on 24 October 1945.

Why it mattered

The Charter set out the purposes, principles and institutions of the United Nations, giving global diplomacy a new permanent forum.