Appointment of Lord Ismay

Date: March 12, 1952 • Location: London, United Kingdom

British diplomat Lord Ismay was appointed the first secretary general of NATO.

General Hastings Lionel "Pug" Ismay, 1st Baron Ismay was a British politician, diplomat and general in the British Indian Army who was the first secretary general of NATO. He also was Winston Churchill's chief military assistant during the Second World War.