Dramatic and important efforts were made in World War II to protect both sites and movable artworks. Private groups in the United States (Harvard University and The Council of Learned Societies) prepared over 800 maps for the allies, designating sites not to be bombed. The United States created a special Monuments, Fine Arts, & Archives (M,FA&A) Section within the US Army, as well as a civilian commission which played an important activist role. Modern legal efforts to protect sites from war began with the Hague Convention of 1899; followed by the Roerich Pact (1935; Inter-American); then the 1954 UNESCO treaty; and finally the World Heritage Convention. At the core of legal efforts is the attempt to attribute international personality or extraterritorial/neutral status to sites. There is a need to create an international commission within ICOMOS to prompt and promote bi-and multilateral negotiations to protect specific endangered sites.