United Nations
![Map showing the member states of the United Nations](/Images/godic/202502/18/United_Nations_Members.svg1527.png")
![1943 sketch by Franklin Roosevelt of the United Nations' original three branches: The Four Policemen, an executive branch, and an international assembly of forty UN member states.](/Images/godic/202502/18/United_Nations_organization_sketch_by_Franklin_Roosevelt_with_the_Four_Policemen_in_19431527.jpg")
![The UN in 1945. In light blue, the founding members. In dark blue, protectorates and territories of the founding members.](/Images/godic/202502/18/United_Nations_Member_States-19451527.png")
![Dag Hammarskjöld was a particularly active Secretary-General from 1953 until his death in 1961.](/Images/godic/202502/18/Dag-hammarskjold_21527.jpg")
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization to promote international co-operation. A replacement for the ineffective League of Nations, the organization was established on 24 October 1945 after World War II in order to prevent another such conflict. At its founding, the UN had 51 member states; there are now 193. The headquarters of the United Nations is in Manhattan, New York City, and experiences extraterritoriality. Further main offices are situated in Geneva, Nairobi and Vienna. The organization is financed by assessed and voluntary contributions from its member states. Its objectives include maintaining international peace and security, promoting human rights, fostering social and economic development, protecting the environment, and providing humanitarian aid in cases of famine, natural disaster, and armed conflict.