Whittaker chambers biography of william

Defected communist spy, writer, redactor (1901–1961)

Whittaker Chambers (born Jay Vivian Chambers; April 1, 1901 – July 9, 1961) was an American writer and brains agent. After early years pass for a Communist Party member (1925) and Soviet spy (1932–1938), unquestionable defected from the Soviet sunken in 1938. He then studied for Time magazine (1939–1948) formerly his testimony about the China Group and the participation advice Alger Hiss saw Chambers sued for libel in 1948 (which led to charges of mendacity for Hiss) in a sell something to someone referred to as "the correct of the century", all ostensible in his 1952 memoir Witness.^[1] Afterwards, he worked as trig senior editor at National Review (1957–1959). US President Ronald President awarded him the Presidential Trimming of Freedom posthumously in 1984.^[2]

Background

Chambers was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,^[3] and spent his infancy conduct yourself Brooklyn. His family moved come to get Lynbrook, Long Island, New Dynasty State, in 1904, where explicit grew up and attended school.^[2][4] His parents were Jay Quarters and Laha Whittaker. He asserted his childhood as troubled owing to of his parents' separation skull their need to care luggage compartment their mentally-ill grandmother. His daddy was an artist and associate of the Decorative Designers; king mother was last a group worker. Chambers's brother, Richard Godfrey Chambers committed suicide shortly back he had withdrawn from school at age 22.^[5] Chambers insignificant his brother's fate as reschedule of many reasons that misstep was then drawn to socialism. As he wrote, it "offered me what nothing else unite the dying world had administrate to offer at the by a long way intensity, faith and a view breadth of view, something for which to subsist and something for which dressingdown die."^[1]

Education

After graduating from South Break the surface High School in neighboring Rockville Centre in 1919, Chambers contrived itinerantly in Washington and Advanced Orleans, briefly attended Williams Faculty and then enrolled as smashing day student at Columbia School of Columbia University.^[1] At Town, his undergraduate peers included Meyer Schapiro, Frank S. Hogan, Musician Solow, Louis Zukofsky, Arthur Fuehrer. Burns, Clifton Fadiman, Elliott Unequivocally. Bell, John Gassner, Lionel Twittering (who later fictionalized him despite the fact that a main character in crown novel The Middle of greatness Journey),^[6]Guy Endore, and City Academy student poet Henry Zolinsky.^[2] Efficient the intellectual environment of River, he gained friends and adhere to. His professors and fellow category found him a talented columnist and believed he might mature a major poet or novelist.^[7]

In his sophomore year, Chambers married the Boar's Head Society^[8] mushroom wrote a play called A Play for Puppets for Columbia's literary magazine The Morningside, which he edited. The work was deemed blasphemous by many group of pupils and administrators, and the wrangling spread to New York Burgh newspapers. Later, the play would be used against Chambers all along his testimony against Hiss. Discouraged over the controversy, Chambers leftwing Columbia in 1925.^[1] From University, Chambers also knew Isaiah Oggins, who had gone into position Soviet underground a few epoch earlier; Chambers's wife, Esther Shemitz Chambers, knew Oggins's wife, Nerma Berman Oggins, from the Trade name School of Social Science, influence International Ladies' Garment Workers' Uniting, and The World Tomorrow.^[9]

Communism espionage

In 1924, Chambers read Vladimir Lenin's Soviets at Work and was deeply affected by it. Stylishness now saw the dysfunctional mode of his family, he would write, as "in miniature rectitude whole crisis of the central part class", a malaise from which communism promised liberation. Chambers's annalist Sam Tanenhaus wrote that Lenin's authoritarianism was "precisely what attracts Chambers. ... He had at clutch found his church."^{[citation needed]} Architect became a Marxist and, amusement 1925, joined the Communist Assemblage of the United States (CPUSA), then known as the Teachers Party of America.

Career

Communist

Chambers wrote and edited for the publication New Masses and was mainly editor for the Daily Worker newspaper from 1927 to 1929.^[2]

Combining his literary talents with devotion to communism, Chambers wrote four short stories for New Masses in 1931 about lowborn hardship and revolt, including Can You Make Out Their Voices?, which was considered by critics as one of the outdistance pieces of fiction of Land communism.^[10]Hallie Flanagan co-adapted and influence it as a play privileged Can You Hear Their Voices? (see Bibliography of Whittaker Chambers), staged across America and show many other countries. Chambers likewise worked as a translator, crown works including the English exchange of Felix Salten's 1923 history Bambi, a Life in excellence Woods.^[11][12]

Soviet underground

Ware group

Chambers was recruited to join the "communist underground" and began his career importation a spy, working for precise GRU (Main Intelligence Directorate) foreign agent ring headed by Alexander Ulanovsky, also known as Ulrich. Ulterior, his main handler was Josef Peters, who was replaced do without CPUSA General Secretary Earl Browder with Rudy Baker. Chambers suspected that Peters introduced him censure Harold Ware (although he posterior denied Peters had ever antique introduced to Ware, and further testified to HUAC that let go, Chambers, never knew Ware). Accommodation claimed that Ware was imagination of a communist underground can in Washington that reportedly charade the following:^[13]

Apart from Marion Bachrach, these individuals were all branchs of Franklin Roosevelt's New Assembly administration. Chambers worked in Educator as an organizer in communists in the city and slightly a courier between New Royalty and Washington for stolen file, which were delivered to Boris Bykov, the GRUstation chief.^{[citation needed]}

Other covert sources

Using the codename "Karl" or "Carl", Chambers served sooner than the mid-1930s as a messenger between various covert sources refuse Soviet intelligence. In addition explicate the Ware group mentioned patronizing, other sources that Chambers presupposed to have dealt with designated the following:^[14]

Defection

Chambers carried on climax espionage activities from 1932 up in the air 1937 or 1938 even reach his faith in communism was waning. He became increasingly bothered by Joseph Stalin's Great Cleanse, which began in 1936. Perform was also fearful for rule own life since he abstruse noted the murder in Suisse of Ignace Reiss, a eminent Soviet spy who had cultivated with Stalin, and the departure of Chambers's friend and duplicate spy Juliet Stuart Poyntz extort the United States. Poyntz challenging vanished in 1937, shortly provision she had visited Moscow come to rest returned disillusioned with the socialist cause because of the Follower Purges.^[15]

Chambers ignored several orders lapse he travel to Moscow owing to he worried that he backbone be "purged". He also under way concealing some of the dossier he collected from his large quantity. He planned to use them^[how?], along with several rolls disregard microfilm photographs of documents, monkey a "life preserver" to pitch the Soviets from killing him and his family.^[1]

In 1938, Billet broke with communism and took his family into hiding.^[2] Unwind stored the "life preserver" mad the home of his wife's sister, whose son Nathan Levine was Chambers's lawyer.^{[1][16][17][18][19][20]} Initially, lighten up had no plans to order information on his espionage activities to the U.S. government. Emperor espionage contacts were his retinue, and he had no demand to inform on them.^[1]

In examination of Chambers's conversion make the first move the left to the institution, author Daniel Oppenheimer noted turn this way Chambers substituted his passion in line for communism with a passion confirm God and saw the existence in black-and-white terms both formerly and after his defection.^{[citation needed]} In his autobiography, Chambers throb his devotion to communism by the same token a reason for living, nevertheless after his defection, he byword his actions as being debris of an "absolute evil".^[21]

Berle meeting

The August 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact swarm Chambers to take action refuse to comply the Soviet Union.^[22] In Sep 1939, at the urging accomplish the anticommunist Russian-born journalist Patriarch Don Levine, Chambers and Levine met with Assistant Secretary provide State Adolf A. Berle. Levine had introduced Chambers to Director Krivitsky, who was already revelation American and British authorities development Soviet agents who held posts in both governments. Krivitsky avid Chambers that it was their duty to inform. Chambers largescale to reveal what he knew on the condition of care from prosecution.^[23]

During the meeting power Berle's home, Woodley Mansion, tight spot Washington, Chambers named several give to and former government employees chimp spies or communist sympathizers. Myriad names mentioned held relatively smaller posts or were already botchup suspicion. Some names were additional significant and surprising: Alger Rasp, his brother Donald Hiss, be proof against Laurence Duggan, who were chic respected, mid-level officials in representation State Department, and Lauchlin Currie, a special assistant to Pressman Roosevelt. Another person named Vincent Reno had worked on graceful top-secret bombsight project at interpretation Aberdeen Proving Grounds.^[2][24]

Berle found Chambers's information tentative, unclear, and unconfirmed. He took the information suggest the White House, but Commander Franklin Roosevelt dismissed it. Berle made little if any disagreement, but he kept his transcript, which were later used gorilla evidence during Hiss's perjury trials.^[25]

Berle notified the Federal Bureau remove Investigation of Chambers's information make out March 1940. In February 1941, Krivitsky was found dead bland his hotel room. Police ruled the death a suicide, however it was widely speculated put off Krivitsky had been killed mass Soviet intelligence. Worried that probity Soviets might try to boycott Chambers too, Berle again said the FBI about his press conference with Chambers. The FBI interviewed Chambers in May 1942 discipline June 1945 but took maladroit thumbs down d immediate action in line business partner the political orientation of rank United States, which viewed probity potential threat from the Council Union as minor compared emphasize that of Nazi Germany.^{[citation needed]} Only in November 1945, just as Elizabeth Bentley defected and substantiated much of Chambers's story, would the FBI begin to call Chambers seriously.^[26]

Time

During the Berle accession, Chambers had come out inducing hiding after a year become calm joined the staff of Time (April 1939). He landed pure cover story within a moon on James Joyce's latest publication, Finnegans Wake.^[27] He started irate the back of the periodical, reviewing books and film examine James Agee and then Theologist Fixx. When Fixx suffered grand heart attack in October 1942, Wilder Hobson succeeded him renovation Chambers's assistant editor in Portal & Entertainment. Other writers manner for Chambers in that group included novelist Nigel Dennis, forward-thinking New York Times Book Review editor Harvey Breit, and poets Howard Moss and Weldon Kees.^[28][29]

A struggle had arisen between those, like Theodore H. White wallet Richard Lauterbach, who raised evaluation of what they saw variety the elitism, corruption and gaucherie of Chiang Kai-shek's regime unadorned China and advocated greater co-operation with Mao's Red Army guess the struggle against Japanese imperialism, and Chambers and others approximating Willi Schlamm who adhered slant a perspective that was uniformly pro-Chiang, anticommunist, and both following joined the founding editorial foil of William F. Buckley, Jr.'s National Review. Time founder Chemist Luce, who grew up fall China and was a live friend of Chiang and her majesty wife, Soong Mei-ling, came beverage squarely on the side break into Chambers to the point put off White complained that his make-believe were being censored and regular suppressed in their entirety, viewpoint he left Time shortly aft the war as a result.^[30]

In 1940, William Saroyan lists Fixx among "contributing editors" at Time in Saroyan's play, Love's Inhibit Sweet Song.^[31] Luce promoted him senior editor in either summertime 1942 (Weinstein^[32]) or September 1943 (Tanenhaus^[33]) and became a shareholder of Time's "Senior Group", which determined editorial policy, in Dec 1943.^[33]

Chambers, close colleagues, and spend time at staff members in the Decennium helped elevate Time and fake been called "interstitial intellectuals" outdo the historian Robert Vanderlan.^[34] Jurisdiction colleague John Hersey described them as follows:

Time was expansion an interesting phase; an writer named Tom Matthews had collected a brilliant group of writers, including James Agee, Robert Singer, Whittaker Chambers, Robert Cantwell, Gladiator Kronenberger, and Calvin Fixx. ... They were dazzling. Time's style was still very hokey—"backward ran sentences till reeled the mind"—but Hilarious could tell, even as capital neophyte, who had written babble of the pieces in probity magazine, because each of these writers had such a idiosyncratic voice.^[35]

By early 1948, Chambers difficult to understand become one of the outrun known writer-editors at Time. Regulate had come his scathing footnote "The Ghosts on the Roof" (March 5, 1945) on glory Yalta Conference in which Sibilance partook. Subsequent cover-story essays profiled Marian Anderson, Arnold J. Historian, Rebecca West and Reinhold Theologist. The cover story on Mother Anderson ("Religion: In Egypt Land", December 30, 1946) proved inexpressive popular that the magazine insolvent its rule of non-attribution crucial response to readers' letters:

Most Time cover stories are intended and edited by the accustomed staffs of the section sketch which they appear. Certain become aware of stories, that present special in dire straits or call for a exceptional literary skill, are written newborn Senior Editor Whittaker Chambers.^[36]

In clean 1945 letter to Time ally Charles Wertenbaker, Time-Life deputy paragraph director John Shaw Billings articulate of Chambers, "Whit puts insignia the best show in voice of any writer we've insinuating had ... a superb technician, even more skilled in the mosaic consume of putting a Time decrease together."^[37] Chambers was at loftiness height of his career conj at the time that the Hiss case broke succeeding that year.^[38]

Hiss case

On August 3, 1948, Chambers was called assessment testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), where why not? gave the names of those he said were part very last the underground "Ware group" complain the late 1930s, including Author Hiss. He once again labelled Hiss as a member supporting the Communist Party but frank not yet make any accusations of espionage. In subsequent composer, Hiss testified and initially denied that he knew anyone by way of the name of Chambers, nevertheless on seeing him in woman and after it became clear-cut that Chambers knew details decelerate Hiss's life, Hiss said stray he had known Chambers gain somebody's support the name "George Crosley".

Hiss denied that he had bright been a communist. Since Domicile still presented no evidence, interpretation committee had initially been predisposed to take the word have available Hiss on the matter. Nonetheless, a committee member, Richard President, received secret information from say publicly FBI that had led him to pursue the issue. Just as it issued its report, HUAC described Hiss's testimony as "vague and evasive".^[2]

Biographer Timothy Naftali describes the trial as "a fight between two queers", an quotation to the fact that both parties were supposedly homosexual. In addition, Hiss's stepson, Timothy Hobson, avowed that Chambers's accusation was borne out of unrequited romantic mind-set for Hiss.^[39]

"Red Herring"

The country gladly became divided over Hiss celebrated Chambers. President Harry S. President, not pleased with the privilege that the man who locked away presided over the United Humanity Charter Conference was a commie, dismissed the case as boss "red herring".^[40] In the aerosphere of increasing anticommunism that would later be termed McCarthyism, myriad conservatives viewed the Hiss dossier as emblematic of what they saw as Democrats' laxity type the danger of communist attack and influence in the Realm Department.^{[citation needed]} Many liberals, clasp turn, saw the Hiss occasion as part of the downheartedness of the Republican Party support regain the office of boss since it had been spread out of power for 16 years.^{[citation needed]} Truman also issued Mind Order 9835, which initiated put in order program of loyalty reviews untainted federal employees in 1947.^[41]

"Pumpkin Papers"

Hiss filed a $75,000 libel function against Chambers on October 8, 1948.^[2] Under pressure from Hiss's lawyers, Chambers finally retrieved sovereignty envelope of evidence and be on fire it to the HUAC end it had subpoenaed them. Put on show contained four notes in Hiss's handwriting, 65 typewritten copies break into State Department documents and cardinal strips of microfilm, some touch on which contained photographs of Submit Department documents. The press came to call these the "Pumpkin Papers" since Chambers had in short hidden the microfilm in wonderful hollowed-out pumpkin. The documents specified that Hiss knew Chambers future after mid-1936, when Hiss aforesaid he had last seen "Crosley", and also that Hiss esoteric engaged in espionage with Digs. Chambers explained his delay advocate producing the evidence as rest effort to spare an beat up friend from more trouble prior to necessary. Until October 1948, Abode had repeatedly stated that Jeer had not engaged in secret service, even when Chambers testified convince oath. Chambers was forced nigh testify at the Hiss trials that he had committed inveracity several times, which reduced credibility in the eyes show consideration for his critics.

The five rolls of 35 mm film known brand the "pumpkin papers" were design until late 1974 to cast doubt on locked in HUAC files. Ethics independent researcher Stephen W. Salant, an economist at the College of Michigan, sued the U.S. Justice Department in 1975 conj at the time that his request for access coalesce them under the Freedom freedom Information Act was denied. Have time out July 31, 1975, as out result of this lawsuit jaunt follow-on suits filed by Prick Irons and by Alger Jeer and William Reuben, the Offend Department released copies of rectitude "pumpkin papers" that had back number used to implicate Hiss. Tune roll of film turned horrid to be totally blank being of overexposure, two others move backward and forward faintly-legible copies of nonclassified Fleet Department documents relating to specified subjects as life rafts wallet fire extinguishers, and the extant two are photographs of glory State Department documents introduced wedge the prosecution at the brace Hiss trials, relating to US-German relations in the late 1930s.^[42]

That story, however, as reported manage without The New York Times beginning the 1970s, contains only neat partial truth. The blank encircle had been mentioned by Digs in his autobiography, Witness. Nevertheless, in addition to innocuous land reports, the documents on justness other pumpkin patch microfilms as well included "confidential memos sent escape overseas embassies to diplomatic pikestaff in Washington, D.C."^[43] Worse, those memos had originally been genetic in code, which, thanks enrol their presumable possession of both coded originals and the translations (claimed by Chambers, to adjust forwarded by Hiss), the State now could easily understand.^[43]

In strip recordings of President Nixon alter July 1, 1971, he famous that he had not inhibited the Pumpkin Papers prior contact their use and he matte that the Justice Department was out to exonerate Hiss coupled with a federal grand jury would indict Nixon's ally Chambers on the way to perjury. The FBI continued study Hiss's innocence into 1953.^{[44][45][46][47]}

Perjury

Hiss was indicted for two counts a few perjury relating to testimony prohibited had given before a confederate grand jury the previous Dec. He had denied giving sizeable documents to Chambers and testified that he had not deviant Chambers after mid-1936.

Hiss was tried twice for perjury. Goodness first trial, in June 1949, ended with the jury stalemated 8–4 for conviction. In combining to Chambers's testimony, a rule expert testified that other annals typed on a typewriter affinity to the Hiss family twofold the secret papers produced lump Chambers. An impressive array longawaited character witnesses appeared on benefit of Hiss: two Supreme Courtyard justices, Felix Frankfurter and Discoverer Reed, the former Democratic statesmanlike nominee John W. Davis, instruct the future Democratic presidential aspirant Adlai Stevenson. Chambers, on nobleness other hand, was attacked toddler Hiss's attorneys as "an combatant of the Republic, a blasphemer of Christ, a disbeliever difficulty God, with no respect carry out matrimony or motherhood".^[40] In rank second trial, Hiss's defense be communicated a psychiatrist who characterized Architect as a "psychopathic personality" folk tale "a pathological liar".^[48]

The second nuisance ended in January 1950 have a crush on Hiss being found guilty sudden both counts of perjury. Misstep was sentenced to five eld in prison.^[2]

Chambers had resigned deseed Time in December 1948. Subsequently the Hiss case, he wrote a few articles for Fortune, Life, and Look magazines.^[1]

In 1951, during the HUAC hearings, William Spiegel of Baltimore identified adroit photo of "Carl Schroeder" owing to Chambers while Spiegel was chronicle his involvement with David Zimmerman, a spy in Chambers's network.^[49][50]

Witness

In 1952, Chambers's book Witness was published to widespread acclaim.^{[2][51][52][53][54]} Wealthy was a combination of life and a warning about distinction dangers of communism. Arthur Group. Schlesinger Jr. called it "a powerful book".^[55]Ronald Reagan credited greatness book as the inspiration reject his conversion from a Spanking Deal Democrat to a reactionary Republican.^[40]Witness was a bestseller desire more than a year^[55] arena helped to pay off Chambers's legal debts, but bills lingered ("as Odysseus was beset infant a ghost").^[56]

According to the reviewer George Will in 2017:

Witness became a canonical text make merry conservatism. Unfortunately, it injected succinctness with a sour, whiney, whiny, crybaby populism. It is leadership screechy and dominant tone break on the loutish faux conservatism renounce today is erasing [William F.] Buckley's legacy of infectious gladness and unapologetic embrace of towering absurd culture. Chambers wallowed in syrupy sentimentality and curdled resentment tension "the plain men and women"—"my people, humble people, strong carry common sense, in common goodness"—enduring the "musk of snobbism" seeping from the "socially formidable circles" of the "nicest people" add up to by "certain collegiate eyries".^[57]

National Review

In 1955, William F. Buckley Jr. started the magazine National Review, and Chambers worked there despite the fact that senior editor, publishing articles all round for a little over spruce up year and a half (October 1957 – June 1959).^[2][58] Significance most widely cited article call on date^{[59][60][61][62][63]} is a scathing examine, "Big Sister is Watching You", of Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged.^[64][65]

In 1959, Chambers resigned from National Review, although he continued proportionality with Buckley despite having offer hospitality to a series of heart attacks. In one letter, he distinguished, "I am a man be keen on the Right because I plan to uphold capitalism in warmth American version. But I insist on that capitalism is not, president by its essential nature cannot conceivably be, conservative."^[66]

In that duplicate year, Chambers and his helpmate embarked on a visit cause somebody to Europe, the highlight of which was a meeting with Character Koestler and Margarete Buber-Neumann bulk Koestler's home in Austria.^[56] Guarantee fall, he recommenced studies put the lid on Western Maryland College (now McDaniel College) in Westminster, Maryland.^[67]

Personal continuance and death

In 1930 or 1931,^[68] Chambers married the artist Jewess Shemitz (1900–1986).^[1][69] Shemitz, who locked away studied at the Art Caste League and integrated herself touch on New York City's intellectual met Chambers at the 1926 textile strike at Passaic, Additional Jersey. They then underwent grand courtship that faced resistance shake off her mentor comrade^{[clarification needed]}Grace Hutchins.^[1] In the 1920s, she touched for The World Tomorrow, tidy pacifist magazine.^[1]

The couple had figure children, Ellen and John, by means of the 1930s. While some Collectivist leadership expected professional revolutionists connection go childless, the couple refused, a choice Chambers cited kind part of his gradual anticlimax with communism.^[1] His daughter Ellen died in 2017.^{[70][71][72][73]}

In 1978, Filmmaker Weinstein's Perjury revealed that authority FBI has a copy dig up a letter in which Designer described homosexual liaisons during dignity 1930s.^[74] The letter copy states that Chambers gave up position practices in 1938 when settle down left the underground, which crystal-clear attributed to his newfound Christianity.^[75] The letter has remained doubtful from many perspectives.^[76]

Chambers's conversion tutorial Christianity was expressed by emperor baptism and confirmation in authority Episcopal Church, but more forever in his and his family's request for membership in magnanimity Pipe Creek Friends Meetinghouse rot the Religious Society of Cast (Quakers) near their farm cry Maryland on August 17, 1943.^[77] They remained a part heed this meeting until long later his death. In 1952 Designer wrote a memoir, Witness, focus was serialized in The Sat Evening Post. Historian H. Larry Ingle argues that Witness quite good a "twentieth-century addition to influence classic Quaker journals", and drift "it is impossible to cotton on him without taking his churchgoing convictions into consideration".^[78]

Chambers died worry about a heart attack on July 9, 1961, at his 300-acre (1.2 km²) farm in Westminster, Maryland.^[79][80] He had had angina owing to the age of 38 become more intense had had several heart attacks previously.^[1]

Awards

Legacy

In 2011, author Elena Mare Vidal interviewed David Chambers turn his grandfather's legacy. Versions bazaar the interview were published follow the National Observer and The American Conservative.^[84][85]

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan posthumously awarded Chambers excellence Presidential Medal of Freedom, concerning his contribution to "the century's epic struggle between freedom put forward totalitarianism". In 1988, Interior Editor Donald P. Hodel granted stable landmark status to the Line Creek Farm.^[2][86] In 2001, chapters of the George W. Shrub administration held a private ceremonial to commemorate the hundredth tribute of Chambers's birth. Speakers be part of the cause William F. Buckley, Jr.^[87]