Dumbarton Oaks. This is the house where the United Nations was invented. Well — invented might be strong. Argued about in a living room? That's closer.
In the summer of nineteen forty-four, thirty-nine delegates from four countries came to this Georgetown mansion to design a new world order. They met in the Music Room — which was temporarily renamed "the Assembly Room." Because apparently "Music Room" was too whimsical for preventing the next world war.
The State Department chose this location partly because it sits at the highest point in Georgetown. One of the coolest spots in Washington. In nineteen forty-four, air conditioning was rare. The United Nations exists, in part, because of a nice breeze.
The Soviets refused to sit in the same room as the Chinese. So the conference happened in two phases. Phase one — August to September — was the United States, Britain, and the Soviet Union. Phase two was the United States, Britain, and China. The Soviets literally left before the Chine
se arrived.
During phase one, someone noticed a signed photograph of the Polish pianist Ignacy Paderewski sitting on top of the Steinway concert grand. They removed it before the Soviet delegation could see it — because Paderewski was too closely associated with the Polish government that Stalin had helped overthrow. The grand piano stayed. The Polish pianist vanished.
The Soviets also demanded
