Record

Performance TitleBritish Welcome to the First Session of The General Assembly of The United Nations Association (UN)
Performance Date17 January 1946
Performance DayThursday
Performance Time19:00
Main PerformersLord Mayor of London,
Lord Mayor of York,
Lord Mayor of Cardiff,
Lord Mayor of Bradford,
Lord Mayor of Bristol,
Lord Mayor of Leeds,
Lord Mayor of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne,
Lord Mayor of Nottingham,
Lord Mayor of Portsmouth,
Lord Mayor of Sheffield,
Mayor of Westminster,
Field Marshal Sir Harold Alexander,
Lord Archbishop of Canterbury,
Rt. Hon. Sir Walter Citrine,
Lady Megan Lloyd George,
H E Monsieur P H Spaak,
Eleanor Roosevelt,
Rt. Hon. Philip J Noel-Baker,
Edward Stettinius (American Secretary of State)
Secondary PerformersAllan Brown - organ
Orchestra or BandWestminster Training Battalion Band (Scots Guards)
ChoirsWelsh Temple of Peace Cardiff Choir
ConductorsBunford Griffiths
Set List'A Song of Heart-Easing Mirth', Purcell,
'Heraclitus', Stanford,
'Scots Wha Hae', arr. Bantock,
'Nos Gaulan', arr. Clements,
'Men of Harlech', arr. Harry Evans,
'Sons of The World', Purcell,
'These Things Shall Be', John Hughes,
'God Save the King' (The National Anthem)
Performance Notes"The United Nations Assembley was accorded a British welcome last night, when a Great meeting at the Royal Albert Hall, including over 200 of the civic heads of Great Britain, greeted the delegates. Field -Marshall Sir Harold Alexander presided over the demonstration, which was arranged by the United Nations Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Sir Walter Citrine and Lady Megan Lloyd-George were among the speakers, and Mrs Eleanor Roosevelt, Mr P J Noel Baker, Minister of State, and other delegates acknowledged the welcome. Mrs Roosevelt expressed the hope that the successes and failures of the League of Nations would be to the benefit of the United Nations Organisation. Woodrow Wilson, who had believed so wholeheartedly that an association of nations could be successfully formed and could keep the peace of the world, was being vindicated today, since they were meeting again to carry on his idea. She hoped that they would attempt to build an organisation which truly would represent the united nations of the world. They must not forget that everyone who represented the people of one nation also represented the people of all nations.
The great destructive forces which man had discovered made it imperative, for the sake of the future of mankind, that we should grow in moral conscience and social understanding as rapidly as we had grown in scientific, industrial and mechanical knowledge. We must be willing to learn that cooperation might imply compromise, but if it brought a world advance it was a gain for each individual nation. The United States had always wanted peace, and , as a people would work for the success of the United Nations Organisation."
(The Times, 18 January 1946)

Associated Press Archive hold B&W British Movietone footage of the event (BM46403).
Related Archival MaterialProgramme (RAHE/1/1946/12)
Catalogue
Reference NumberTitleDate
RAHE/1/1946/12British welcome to the first session of the general assembly of the United Nations17 January 1946
Work
Ref NoTitleNo of Performances
YsanyhiobifowpBritish Welcome to the First Session of The General Assembly of The United Nations Association (UN)1
Performers
CodeName of Performer(s)
DS/UK/6412Fisher; Geoffrey Francis (1887-1972); Fisher of Lambeth GCVO PC; English Bishop
DS/UK/6710Alexander; Field Marshal; Harold (10 December 1891-16 June 1969); 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, KG GCB OM GCMG CSI DSO MC CD PC (Can) PC; British Army officer and politician
DS/UK/1172Citrine; Walter McLennan (1887-1983); 1st Baron Citrine, GBE, PC; British trade unionist, politician
DS/UK/6711George; Lady; Megan Arfon Lloyd (1902-1966); CH; Welsh politician
DS/UK/6712Spaak; Paul Henri Charles (1899-1972); Belgian Socialist politician, statesman
DS/UK/6713Roosevelt; Anna Eleanor (1884-1962); American First Lady
DS/UK/6714Baker; Philip John Noel- (1889-1982); British politician, diplomat, academic, amateur athlete, disarmament campaigner
DS/UK/6715Stettinius; Edward Reilly (1900-1949); United States Secretary of State
DS/UK/2221Brown; Allan (fl 1916-1950s); English organist and Professor of music
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