David Greenglass, Ethel Rosenberg's Brother, Spy Ring Co-Conspirator dead at 92

The New York Times this week published a belated obituary for David Greenglass, 92, whose spy-trial testimony helped seal the fate of his sister and brother-in-law, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. The article reads, in part:

“For his role in the conspiracy, Mr. Greenglass, an Army sergeant whohad stolen nuclear intelligence from Los Alamos, N.M., went to prison for almost a decade, then changed his name and lived quietly until a journalist tracked him down. He admitted then, nearly a half-century later, that he had lied on the witness stand to save his wife from prosecution, giving testimony that he was never sure about but that nevertheless helped send his sister and her husband to the electric chair in 1953.”

A variety of sites provide a wealth of primary source material on the Rosenberg trial, and the Greenglass’s role in those proceedings. The Wilson Center’s Rosenberg Archive: A Historical Timeline contains a variety of digitized items, among them are the code-breaking VENONA files which provided evidence of the Rosenbergs' One Soviet intelligence cable in that collection notes that Liberal (Julius Rosenberg’s code name) “recommended the wife of his wife’s brother, Ruth Greenglass.” The National Security Archive provides access to Rosenberg Grand Jury Files, including testimony of Ruth Greenglass. The Famous Trials website from the University of Missouri Kansas City School of Law includes trial testimony, images and the text of the Rosenberg’s last letter to their children.

involvement with the Soviet spy ring.

The image show above depicts Mr. Greenglass and his late wife, Ruth. That image, along with a number of others, is available at The National Archives.

Trial(s) of the Century(ies)

On April 5, 1951, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were sentenced to death for passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. You'll find a wealth of primary source material about that case at Famous Trials . That site, compiled by Douglas O. Linder at the University of Missouri Kansas City School of Law, features a copy of the indictment handed down against the Rosenbergs, excerpts of the trial transcript, the judge's sentencing statement, and the couple's heartbreaking letter to their two young sons, written on the day of their execution - June 19, 1953. Linder's site has similarly rich collections for more than four dozen landmark criminal proceedings - from the trial of Socrates to the prosecution of Zacarias Moussaoui, the so-called 20th September 11 hijacker. Ethel Rosenberg's arrest photo (above) comes from the National Archives and Records Administration.