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A person or group unfairly blamed for problems caused by others or by wider circumstances.

A person made to bear blame for wrongdoing that also involved others. John D. Lee claimed that other Mormon leaders had made him a scapegoat for the massacre.

Lee was convicted in 1876 and executed by firing squad at Mountain Meadows on 23 March 1877, nearly twenty years after the massacre. He maintained that he had been made a scapegoat to protect more powerful Mormon leaders. This claim did not erase his own involvement, but it highlighted the limits of a prosecution concentrated on one participant.

Distinguish Lee’s proven involvement from the disputed question of whether Brigham Young directly ordered the massacre. Lee’s claim that he was a scapegoat was his interpretation.

An individual or group blamed for problems they did not cause.

Poor harvests or the death of livestock threatened people’s livelihoods, and suspected witches could become scapegoats for these losses. Distrust of outsiders also mattered: vagabonds were among those vulnerable to accusations. Witch-hunts increased further between 1645 and 1647.

The Nazis exploited existing prejudice and made Jewish people scapegoats for Germany’s problems. They falsely associated Jews with Germany’s defeat in the First World War, communism and economic crises. Propaganda turned these accusations into an argument for excluding Jewish people from German life.

A person or group unfairly blamed for problems or misfortunes experienced by others.

The accused became a scapegoat: someone blamed for other people's misfortunes. Distrusted outsiders, including wandering poor people, could become targets.

Someone unfairly blamed for problems caused by other people or circumstances.

Scapegoat

Definition

How each exam board covers it

AQA GCSE History · 8145

Edexcel GCSE History · 1HI0

Exam tips

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OCR GCSE History A · J410

OCR GCSE History B · J411