John Paul II was one of the most charismatic popes in recent history, a rock star who attracted millions during…
James A. Baker III — The Velvet Hammer
James A. Baker served as the Secretary of State during the Presidency of George H.W. Bush from 1989 to 1992,…
Oral Histories: Search Our Collection
Welcome! It’s easy to search our collection: For an Advanced Search of transcripts of over 2600 oral histories, see below.…
John S. Service – The Man Who “Lost China,” Part II
John Service, the son of missionaries who grew up in China, was one of the Department’s “China hands,” an expert…
Life at Embassy Tokyo After Pearl Harbor
Despite getting extremely close to agreeing to negotiations to avert hostilities, the U.S. and Japan failed to make peace and…
Today in History
Find articles about diplomatic events from each day of the year Here’s a handy calendar of events linked to Moments…
The Shot Felt ‘Round the World — Reactions to the JFK Assassination
On November 22nd, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas while traveling with his wife in a…
Radio Free Europe: An Insider’s View
Back to Diplomats and Diplomacy Radio Free Europe: An Insider’s View Veteran RFE insider J. F. Brown’s story of the…
The Hungarian Revolution of 1956
The early 1950s witnessed a thaw in the Communist monolith. Stalin’s death in 1953 led to Khrushchev’s “secret speech” in…
A Cold End to the Prague Spring
In 1968, growing opposition to the failing sociopolitical and economic policies of hard-line Communist regime in Czechoslovakia, led by Antonín…