William Henry Chamberlin
Encyclopedia
William Henry Chamberlin (February 17, 1897 – September 12, 1969) was an American historian and journalist. He was the author of several books about the Cold War
, Communism
and US foreign policy
, the most famous of which was The Russian Revolution 1917-1921 (1935). Chamberlin wrote the book whilst stationed in Russia between 1922-34 as the Moscow correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
.
and educated in Pennsylvania schools and later at Haverford College
. At the age of twenty five he moved to Greenwich Village
and was deeply affected by the cultural bohemianism and Bolshevik politics there. He worked for Heywood Broun
the book editor of the New York Tribune
. He also published under the pseudonym of A.C. Freeman and was a socialist pacifist, albeit one who supported the Communists in the USSR. (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
and his experiences with Nazism further convinced him of the dangers of collectivism and absolutism in general. He became more convinced of the importance of individual rights and of the value of the United States Bill of Rights
. He was posted by the Monitor to East Asia and wrote Japan Over Asia based on what he learned there about Japanese militarism. He was transferred then to France (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
After returning to the US, he lived in Washington, DC and then in Cambridge, Massachusetts
. Much of his later work was aimed at criticizing communism, socialism and collectivism in general. He continued to write both scholarly books and more popular articles. His The Confessions of an Individualist was an autography published in 1940 shortly before his collaboration with Russian Review, a connection that was to last until his death from a stroke
twenty eight years later (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
and US foreign policy
Foreign policy
A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
, the most famous of which was The Russian Revolution 1917-1921 (1935). Chamberlin wrote the book whilst stationed in Russia between 1922-34 as the Moscow correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
The Christian Science Monitor
The Christian Science Monitor is an international newspaper published daily online, Monday to Friday, and weekly in print. It was started in 1908 by Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. As of 2009, the print circulation was 67,703.The CSM is a newspaper that covers...
.
Early life and education
Chamberlin was born in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and educated in Pennsylvania schools and later at Haverford College
Haverford College
Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia...
. At the age of twenty five he moved to Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
and was deeply affected by the cultural bohemianism and Bolshevik politics there. He worked for Heywood Broun
Heywood Broun
Heywood Campbell Broun, Jr. was an American journalist. He worked as a sportswriter, newspaper columnist, and editor in New York City. He founded the American Newspaper Guild, now known as The Newspaper Guild. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he is best remembered for his writing on social issues and...
the book editor of the New York Tribune
New York Tribune
The New York Tribune was an American newspaper, first established by Horace Greeley in 1841, which was long considered one of the leading newspapers in the United States...
. He also published under the pseudonym of A.C. Freeman and was a socialist pacifist, albeit one who supported the Communists in the USSR. (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
The Soviet Union
He arrived in the Soviet Union as a young man and soon found work with the Christian Science Monitor, for which he would work until 1940. He also acted as Moscow correspondent for the Manchester Guardian. He was, initially, a Marxist and a sympathizer with the Communist revolution. During his stay, he changed to being a critic. His first book, Soviet Russia, published in 1930, detailed the policies of the New Economic Period and was, on the whole, supportive of the changes brought by the Revolution. However, even early on he had his doubts. Toward the end of his stay, he became convinced of the errors of Communist policy. He and his wife Sonya, who was Russian-born but whom he met in the US where she and her family had immigrated, visited the Ukraine and the North Caucusus during 1932-33 and witnessed the famines that were being produced by forced collectivization (von Mohrenschildt 1970).Middle and Later Career
After leaving the USSR, he went to GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and his experiences with Nazism further convinced him of the dangers of collectivism and absolutism in general. He became more convinced of the importance of individual rights and of the value of the United States Bill of Rights
United States Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. These limitations serve to protect the natural rights of liberty and property. They guarantee a number of personal freedoms, limit the government's power in judicial and other proceedings, and...
. He was posted by the Monitor to East Asia and wrote Japan Over Asia based on what he learned there about Japanese militarism. He was transferred then to France (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
After returning to the US, he lived in Washington, DC and then in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. Much of his later work was aimed at criticizing communism, socialism and collectivism in general. He continued to write both scholarly books and more popular articles. His The Confessions of an Individualist was an autography published in 1940 shortly before his collaboration with Russian Review, a connection that was to last until his death from a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
twenty eight years later (von Mohrenschildt 1970).
Books
- America's Second Crusade. Chicago: Regnery, 1962.
- Appeasement: Road to War. 1962
- Beyond Containment. Chicago: Regnery, 1983.
- Collectivism: A False Utopia (1937)
- The Confessions of an Individualist (1940).
- The German Phoenix (1965)
- Canada, Today and Tomorrow (1942).
- America: Partner in World Rule (Vanguard PressVanguard PressThe Vanguard Press was a United States publishing house established with a $100,000 grant from the left wing American Fund for Public Service, better known as the Garland Fund. Throughout the 1920s, Vanguard Press issued an array of books on radical topics, including studies of the Soviet Union,...
, 1945). - Japan Over Asia
- The Russian Revolution 1917-1921 (1935).
- Russia's Iron Age (1934)
- Soviet Planned Economic Order
- Soviet Russia: A Living Record and a History Little, Brown & Company, 1930
- World Order or Chaos
Articles
- "The Morality of Capitalism", The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty, January 1957, Vol. 7 No. 1 http://www.fee.org/publications/the-freeman/article.asp?aid=7341
- "Turgenev: The Eternal Romantic", Russian Review, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Spring, 1946), pp. 10–23.