These two essays by authors who have undertaken long-term research on Dag Hammarskjöld offer fascinating new insights into the second UN Secretary-General through two very different relationships he cultivated.
One essay is based on the archives of George Ivan Smith, who was among Hammarskjöld’s closest companions at the United Nations. The narrative allows us an intimate look into the work and collaboration of these two men, both of whom held central positions in world politics in the 1950s and early 1960s.
The other essay highlights more cultural dimensions, which are also personal and political. It explores and documents the advocacy role Hammarskjöld was prepared to play in support of the US-American poet Ezra Pound.
In different ways this publication brings us much closer to the life and legacy of an international leader. It adds important pieces to the picture of a man who did not talk a lot about himself.