In 1953, the Department of State removed John F. Melby from the Foreign Service because of his affair with acclaimed…
Behind Embassy Walls: The Life and Times of an American Diplomat
Son of an international oilman and a Polish émigré, Grove grew up largely in prewar Europe: in Nazi Germany, Holland,…
Teachers
Welcome to our Education page for teachers. We’ve prepared sample lesson plans, suggested student projects, and a source evaluation worksheet…
The State Department Under the Red Scare: McCarthy’s Campaign
The inauspicious rise of Joseph McCarthy began in 1950, when the Wisconsin senator was asked to give a speech at…
Sputnik, The Ugly American, and the Push to Improve FSI Language Training
In the depths of the Cold War, the USSR in 1957 launched Sputnik, the first satellite to orbit the earth.…
A Russo-American Diplomat: Back in the USSR
Vladimir Toumanoff, a Foreign Service officer for 25 years, had the extraordinary experience of returning as an American diplomat to…
The “Lavender Scare”: Homosexuals at the State Department
In the 1950s and 60s, security within the U.S. government, including the State Department, was on high alert for internal…
John Foster Dulles – Master Craftsman, Man of Paradox
President Dwight Eisenhower appointed John Foster Dulles as Secretary of State in January 1953, a job he held until almost…
The Longest Day — Tales from D-Day, 1944
The June 6, 1944 invasion of Normandy marked the beginning of the end of World War II. Planning for what would…
Normalizing Ties with Franco: “I don’t have to like the son of a bitch, do I?”
For many people, Spain in the 1930s and 40s was a country of despair, where the dreams of democracy and…