Exploring the Herbert Norman Incident: Canada's Cold War History

This essay delves into the Herbert Norman incident, a significant event in Canadian Cold War history. It examines the life of Herbert Norman, a Canadian diplomat, and the accusations of communist ties that plagued him. The essay explores the political climate of the time, including the influence of McCarthyism and the Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. It discusses the suspicions surrounding Norman's activities, the investigations by security agencies, and the impact on his career and personal life, ultimately leading to his tragic suicide. The essay analyzes the factors that contributed to his death, including the pressures of his job, the climate of mistrust, and the fear of being labeled a communist. It also highlights the lasting impact of the incident on Canadian society and the questions it raised about the Cold War's impact on individual lives and international relations. The essay concludes by emphasizing Norman's contributions to Canada and the injustice of the accusations that led to his demise, offering insights into the complexities of the Cold War era and its devastating consequences.

Running head: HISTORY ESSAY
History Essay
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1HISTORY ESSAY
The topic of this essay is to discuss on one of the most notorious cases in the Canadian
Cold War history. It is the incident relating to Herbert Norman. The situations that arose at
Canada during its cold war time and its impacts on the society would be discussed in this paper.
The incident that happened to Herbert Norman would be discussed in the paper since the social
reflections could also be found through this.1 He was victimized in the Cold war and this is
considered as one of the worst incidents in the Canadian history. Norman had actually committed
suicide and this is portrayed as a huge loss for Canada due to many reasons. The complications
of his job might have led him to death. The actual reasons for his death as reflected from the
investigations would be focused on in this essay so readers can have an idea of the social
conditions that was there during Canadian Cold War.
It has been recorded that on that fateful day of April 4 in 1957, Herbert Norman was at
Cairo. He worked in the Department of External Affairs under the Federal Government of
Canada. He had represented Canada in various countries like Egypt, New Zealand, Japan, United
States and Lebanon. On that mentioned date, he was at Cairo. He went up to the top of the nine-
story building there at jumped off. This was probably the only place in the city where could
commit the suicide without letting other pedestrians fall in danger. The exact reasons for this
suicide are still unknown and it is entirely mysterious.2
1 Anastakis, Dimitry. Death in the Peaceable Kingdom: Canadian History since 1867 through Murder, Execution,
Assassination, and Suicide. University of Toronto Press, 2015.
2 Feis, Herbert. Road to Pearl Harbor: The Coming of the War between the United States and Japan. Princeton
University Press, 2015.

2HISTORY ESSAY
However, it can be said that Herbert Norman The concept of the ‘black madness to the
witch hunt’ has been one of the major things Canadians were proud of. The prime minister of
Canada Lester Pearson had described the situation in that way. However, the Cold war during
that time was a reflection of the time and it did not leave Canada unaffected. Various outlooks of
the Cold war came from the distinctions regarding north and south conflicts during that time.
Through the Cold War, it was inevitable that most countries had become the part of this incident
named Cold War.3
It has been found through the historical records that the loyalty of Herbert Norman for his
country and patriotism could not be questioned at any point of time. However, there were many
security agencies of Canada and their allied countries that showed deep suspicion regarding his
activities of Norman when he was abroad representing the country. The soldiers of the Cold war
had showed the doubt on his activities and questioned his allegiance to his motherland, The role
of the US Senator named Joseph McCarthy has been criticized all over the United States. It has
also been stated that “McCarthyism is McCarthyiwasm”.4 This statement had been given by USA
President Dwight Eisenhower when McCarthy was on his death bed. Still, Eisenhower concluded
the scenario by saying that this ‘wasm’ of McCarthy had completely wasted the mental peace of
Herbert Norman.5
3 Anastakis, Dimitry. Death in the Peaceable Kingdom: Canadian History since 1867 through Murder, Execution,
Assassination, and Suicide. University of Toronto Press, 2015.
4 Feis, Herbert. Road to Pearl Harbor: The Coming of the War between the United States and Japan. Princeton
University Press, 2015.

3HISTORY ESSAY
In this scenario, the legacy of Herbert Norman has been kept alive through his deeds. It
should be remembered that Norman did a great work for his country and his passionate activities
for his country should be remembered forever. It had been tagged to his name that Herbert
Norman was a communist in his young age. So, historians went on to speculate what kind of
communist he actually was. The historian critics believe that he might either be an intellectual
Marxist or a dedicated personnel of the Communist Party. They have also questioned the issue
that Herbert Norman was sure to show allegiance to the most powerful communist regime of the
time, Soviet Union. The reason might have been Norman was no more able to hide his allegiance
and secret services for the United States of Soviet Russia. He might have been forced to conceal
all the truth of the time.
Various types of rumors went through the air. The situation was quite critical during
those times. If any person was charged of being a communist, all their careers were ruined and
they were sent to jails. Some of them were killed in jail also. Amidst all these issues, it must be
said that the allegiance and support of Herbert Norman has gone through hot debates over the
time. The occurrence of the Cold War took place all around the globe. The authorities of Canada
and United States were in great danger since they believed the free world could be overrun
completely. On the life story of Herbert Norman, the political thriller of The Man Who Might
Have Been was made.6
5 McHugh, James T. "Paradiplomacy, protodiplomacy and the foreign policy aspirations of Quebec and other
Canadian provinces." Canadian Foreign Policy Journal 21, no. 3 (2015): 238-256.
6 Shulman, Marshall D. Beyond the Cold War. Routledge, 2019.

4HISTORY ESSAY
It has been found out through the various historical records that Herbert Norman was one
of the most brilliant scholars who always showed his class in all the works that were appointed to
him. When the Japanese forces had bombed on the Pearl Harbor, he was there at Tokyo only as
part of the Canadian delegates.7 Through the course of events, Norman had been taken into the
custody by the Japanese forces and he was released one year later. After that he returned to his
homeland in Canada so he could work with the Department of the External Affairs. There are
some critics who believed that Norman might have done the right thing by committing suicide/.
It is because there might have been many other political figures in Canada and USA who
sympathized for communism. It would be a disaster if their names were revealed.8
The conflicts in his mind might have been going through over the years to choose
between the Capitalist approach of the West and the social security of the Soviet Union. As he
was born in Japan, he had very little closeness or idea about the Western society. He was
completely startled to see the conditions in the Canadian society and their lifestyles.9 He studied
in the Cambridge University in the 1930s and he became very closely associated with the
communist ideologies practiced within the university, He began to have likeness for this sort of
7 Price, David H. Cold War anthropology: The CIA, the Pentagon, and the growth of dual use anthropology. Duke
University Press, 2016.
8 Maddox, Robert James. The new left and the origins of the cold war. Princeton University Press, 2015.
9 McHugh, James T. "Paradiplomacy, protodiplomacy and the foreign policy aspirations of Quebec and other
Canadian provinces." Canadian Foreign Policy Journal 21, no. 3 (2015): 238-256.

5HISTORY ESSAY
ideology but he had to work in the Department of External Affairs in Canada that was
completely run by the Western capitalists of Canada.10
After the death of Herbert Norman, his case file had been opened by the FBI. The process
of the communist witch-hunt continued through the era and it completely gave birth of many
new views and ideas of the time. After the death of Norman, the investigators also went to
Cambridge so they could unfold the mysteries of the communist contacts of Norman at that
place. The FBI was pretty sure that he was working in the uniform of Canada but he actually
favored the communists of Soviet Union through his works.11 The entire background of Herbert
Norman had been checked by the team of investigators. Therefore, it is quite clear from the
scenario that Norman did many mistakes if he really worked for the Soviet Union in the disguise
of a Canadian.12 Still, the doubts were still to be cleared and this indeed needed a thorough
investigation into the matter. However, the contemporary Prime Minister of Canada, Lester
Pearson had full faith and trust on his old friend. Still, the stint of doubt on the Canadian Prime
Minister from the American Senate and FBI was indeed very much. This strongly proved how
desparte America was top establish Herbert Norman as a traitor to his own country.
10 Davis, Lynn Etheridge. The Cold War Begins: Soviet-American Conflict Over East Europe. Princeton University
Press, 2015.
11 Payne, Keith B. The fallacies of Cold War deterrence and a new direction. University Press of Kentucky, 2015.
12 Mingst, Karen, and Margaret P. Karns. The United Nations in the post-cold war era. Routledge, 2019.

6HISTORY ESSAY
After all these incidents, Herbert Norman fairly understood that the Government of the
United States and its Senate would never leave him and follow on with the investigations.
Therefore, he found no other choice to end his life.13 The act of suicide was not the way through
which his life should have ended. He also left a note behind him that supported his innocence
about the false claims made by the United States and his love and loyalty for Canada. This life
and death story of Herbert Norman evidently shows how pathetic was the impact of the Cold
War on the common people of both the countries. The fears, doubts and other factors had
completely created an environment of mistrust. This unsolved mystery of this Canadian diplomat
brings in front several questions regarding the needlessness of the Cold War. This Cold War had
taken away lives of numerous people. Some people lost their lives on the battleground where
some lost it like that of Norman. It is indeed a very tragic story that underlines the futility of
conflicts between the countries.
The harm of the cold war was done both through physical and psychological manner.
This cenario has been compared to that of the post 9/11 society when the people were very much
afraid of terrorism.14 This is why the condition was completely out of hand and Herbert Norman
was literally becoming much distressed about the issues. The climate of the countries was such
when every person was very much nervous and any random person could be suspected about
their activities within the vicinity. This knew no bounds since everyone from common person to
13 McCauley, Martin. Origins of the Cold War 1941-1949. Routledge, 2015.
14 Hammond, Philip. "Framing post-Cold War conflicts: The media and international intervention." (2018).

7HISTORY ESSAY
the highly designated government official could be suspected of providing the assistance to their
enemies.
This was the similar case for both the countries. Both United States and Soviet Union
were in a stage where they were so much desperate to get the victory on their side. If it was
found that any person had any kind of sympathy for the communism, his or her life and career
would have in so much distress. This affirmed the fact that people were so much frightened that a
highly designated government delegate had to commit suicide. It was very clear from the
scenario of Herbert Norman’s death that Cold War had completely devastated the global political
climate and people had to live in fears. Norman was completely depressed with the situation and
he believd that allegations on him would never stop so it as better for him to commit the
suicide.15
In the concluding section of the paper, it should be outlined that Herbert Norman was one
of the most educated and highly qualified statesmen of Canada who represented the country on
different occasions. This small suspicion about his past contacts with communism had
completely ruined his life. Both the American Senate and FBI came up to suspect that he was
working for Soviet Union secretly and he ws a traitor. Finally, he had no other way than to
commit suicide because it was impossible for him to continue with his life amidst all these false
allegations.
15 Legvold, Robert. Return to cold war. John Wiley & Sons, 2016.

8HISTORY ESSAY
References
Anastakis, Dimitry. Death in the Peaceable Kingdom: Canadian History since 1867 through
Murder, Execution, Assassination, and Suicide. University of Toronto Press, 2015.
Davis, Lynn Etheridge. The Cold War Begins: Soviet-American Conflict Over East Europe.
Princeton University Press, 2015.
Feis, Herbert. Road to Pearl Harbor: The Coming of the War between the United States and
Japan. Princeton University Press, 2015.
Hammond, Philip. "Framing post-Cold War conflicts: The media and international intervention."
(2018).
Legvold, Robert. Return to cold war. John Wiley & Sons, 2016.
Maddox, Robert James. The new left and the origins of the cold war. Princeton University Press,
2015.
McCauley, Martin. Origins of the Cold War 1941-1949. Routledge, 2015.
McHugh, James T. "Paradiplomacy, protodiplomacy and the foreign policy aspirations of
Quebec and other Canadian provinces." Canadian Foreign Policy Journal 21, no. 3 (2015): 238-
256.
Mingst, Karen, and Margaret P. Karns. The United Nations in the post-cold war era. Routledge,
2019.
Payne, Keith B. The fallacies of Cold War deterrence and a new direction. University Press of
Kentucky, 2015.

9HISTORY ESSAY
Price, David H. Cold War anthropology: The CIA, the Pentagon, and the growth of dual use
anthropology. Duke University Press, 2016.
Shulman, Marshall D. Beyond the Cold War. Routledge, 2019.