logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2025
51m 23s

American Traitors: The Rosenbergs

History Hit
About this episode

This week we’re stepping heart of Cold War America with the story of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Accused of espionage and executed at the height of anti-communist paranoia, their trial gripped the nation due to the controversy, family betrayal, and questions of justice that still echo today. 


Join host Don Wildman and historian Professor Lori Clune as they unravel the secrets, the courtroom drama, and the enduring legacy of a case that changed history forever.


You can find out more about Professor Clune's work here.


Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.  


You can take part in our listener survey here.


All music from Epidemic Sounds.


American History Hit is a History Hit podcast.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Yesterday
What Really Happened At Waco?
76 people died on 19th April 1993 when the compound of a religious sect, the Branch Davidians, went up in flames. It had been under siege by government agencies for 51 days, but no one knows what started the fire.Don is joined by Jeff Guinn, investigative reporter and author of ‘ ... Show More
53m 43s
Sep 10
Sherman's March: Invading the South
General William Tecumseh Sherman's famous invasion of the Confederacy in 1864 has become American legend... but what did Union troops do along their route and how consequential was it to the final defeat of the Confederates?Our guest today is Anne Sarah Rubin, professor of histor ... Show More
55m 31s
Sep 7
America's Worst President
What makes a bad President? Who was the worst of all time? In this episode from the archive, Don is joined by Professor Jeremi Suri, author of The Impossible Presidency and co-host of This Is Democracy.Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer was Charlotte ... Show More
32m 28s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2025
Was Ethel Rosenberg A Spy?
March 29, 1951. The world is waiting for the jury’s verdict. Ethel and Julius Rosenberg have been accused of spying for the Soviet Union, conspiring to send atomic secrets to America’s enemy in the Cold War. Ethel and Julius are tried in court together, and after the jury finds b ... Show More
36m 37s
May 2025
The Rosenbergs
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for espionage in 1953. Whether or not they were both guilty remains unclear, though most historians believe that at least Ethel was innocent. Learn all about this historical stain in today's episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy ... Show More
49m 30s
May 2021
Rosenbergs
In 1953, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were sentenced to death by electrocution and died side-by-side: Julius after one shot of electricity, Ethel after three. They left behind two small children. Their crime? Conspiracy to spy for the Soviet Union. UCL's Dr Josh Hollands joins Kati ... Show More
41 m
Feb 2024
Introducing: History on Trial
<p>From the Salem Witch Trials to O.J. Simpson, trials have always revealed hidden truths about our society. <em>History on Trial </em>will dig into these cases, focusing on the real people behind the headlines, and the powerful cultural contexts that shaped the verdicts. We’ll d ... Show More
2m 41s
Apr 2019
The Rosenbergs Pt. 1: Atomic Treason
Starting in the early 1940s, Julius Rosenberg and his wife Ethel orchestrated a top-secret operation to steal atomic bomb secrets from right under the nose of the FBI. While living in New York City, they then sold those secrets to the Soviet Union and turned the tide of the Cold ... Show More
45m 15s
Apr 2022
Soviet Espionage: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg Pt. 2
After the Rosenbergs’ death sentence is announced, protests erupt around the world. Famous figures, including Einstein and the Pope, weigh in. But Julius and Ethel’s conviction would never be overturned. They would die by electric chair in 1953. The questions and controversies ar ... Show More
45m 31s
Jul 2022
Ethel Rosenberg
Ep 85: In the summer of 1949, the FBI learned that secrets regarding the construction of the atomic bomb had been shared with soviet spies. An immediate investigation led to an arrest of several people, including a young mother of two. Was this woman part of a communist plot to s ... Show More
44m 54s
Oct 2025
The Cold War
For decades after the Second World War, the Soviet Union and the United States of America were locked in a conflict of ideology that took the planet to the brink of catastrophe. Known as the Cold War, it was an era of paranoia, fear and mutual suspicion, where the contest for sup ... Show More
57m 50s