Ethel Greenglass Rosenberg (September 25, 1915June 19, 1953) and Julius Rosenberg (May 12, 1918June 19, 1953) were Americans accused of being spies for the Soviet Union. They were convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage during a time of war. They were both executed. Their crime was related to giving information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. At that time and even later, many people in many countries thought they were innocent and had tried to convince the U.S. authorities not to kill them. After the fall of the Soviet Union, evidence came out that showed that Julius Rosenberg had been a spy but that his wife had not.