Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
From left to right: Major Henry Rathbone, Clara Harris, Mary Todd Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln, and John Wilkes Booth.

The Abraham Lincoln assassination, which took place on April 14, 1865, was one of the last major events in the American Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln was shot while attending a performance of Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre with his wife and two of their friends. Lincoln died the following day in the home of William Petersen.

Secretary of State William H. Seward was attacked on the same day as Lincoln. His assailant, Lewis Powell, also attacked several other members of Seward's household. However, all of Powell's victims survived.

Lincoln’s assassin and the man who planned the attack on Seward was actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. Booth hoped to overthrow the Federal government by assassinating Lincoln, Seward, and Vice President Andrew Johnson. Despite the fact that Booth was successful in killing Lincoln, the overall plot failed. Seward was able to recover from his wounds, and Johnson was never attacked.

Original plot

John Wilkes Booth

John Wilkes Booth's original plot was to kidnap Lincoln and take him south, then to exchange Lincoln for the release of Confederate prisoners of war.

Booth had organized a circle of conspirators to help him in attempting this. He recruited Samuel Arnold, George Atzerodt, David Herold, Michael O'Laughlen, Lewis Powell a.k.a. "Lewis Paine" and John Surratt. The meetings to plan the kidnapping were held at a boarding home run by Surratt's widowed mother Mary Surratt. Louis J. Weichmann was also suspected to be part of the conspiracy. He lived at Mary Surratt's boarding house and knew all the suspects. He was later an important witness in the trial of the conspirators.

Booth attended Lincoln's second inauguration on March 4, 1865, as the invited guest of his secret fiancée Lucy Hale, the daughter of John P. Hale, the serving United States Ambassador to Spain. In a photo taken at the event, Booth can be seen in a crowd above the president. In another crowd below the president, fellow conspirators David Herold, George Atzerodt, Edmund Spangler, Lewis Powell and John Surratt can be seen. Booth remarked afterwards, "What an excellent chance I had, if I wished, to kill the President on Inauguration day!" though he had no plan to do so at the time.

On March 17, 1865, Booth learned that Lincoln would be attending a play, Still Waters Run Deep, at Campbell Military Hospital. Booth assembled his team on a stretch of road in an attempt to kidnap Lincoln as he came back from the hospital, but Booth's intelligence was wrong, and the president never came. Lincoln was instead giving a speech at the National Hotel in Washington D.C. which, ironically, was where Booth lived.

Assassination

Plot

The Confederacy began to fall apart shortly after Booth's last kidnapping attempt failed. Although many Southerners had given up hope, Booth continued to believe in his cause, writing in his diary that "something decisive and great must be done." He decided that if he could simultaneously murder the President, Vice-President Andrew Johnson, and Secretary of State William Seward, he could throw the Union government into chaos for enough time that the Confederacy could mount a resurgence. Atzerodt wanted nothing to do with it, saying he had signed up for a kidnapping, not a killing. Booth told him he was too far in to back out. He assigned Atzerodt to kill Johnson, but instead Atzerodt went out drinking. Booth suspected he would not follow through and so, on his way to Ford's Theatre, Booth stopped by Johnson's apartment leaving a note that read "Don't wish to disturb you. Are you at home? J. Wilkes Booth." This message has had been interpreted in many different ways through the years. One theory is that Booth, afraid that Atzerodt would not be successful in killing Johnson, tried to use the message to implicate Johnson in the conspiracy.

Booth then assigned Powell and Herold to kill Seward, thinking Powell, unfamiliar with the capital, would be unable to find Seward's house, and that Herold would be unwilling to carry out the murder.

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln and Mary Lincoln were going to attend Laura Keene's 1,000th performance in Our American Cousin. The Lincolns were under much stress, put on them by the both war and the death of their son Willie in 1862. President Lincoln had also been plagued by dreams which concerned his own death. The play was supposed give them a chance to enjoy themselves. Several people were invited to join them, however, only Major Henry Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris accepted the invitation.

The President and First Lady arrived at Ford's Theatre at around nine o'clock with Rathbone and Harris. They were brought to the presidential box, where Lincoln was seated in a rocking chair on the left-hand side.

Booth arrived at the back door of Ford's Theatre. There, he handed the reins of his horse over to Edman Spangler. Spangler, having work to do, asked Joseph Burroughs to hold the horse. As an actor at Ford's Theatre, Booth was well known there and he knew his way around. He entered a narrow hallway between Lincoln's box (Box 7) and the theatre's balcony, and barricaded the hallway door.

Mrs. Lincoln whispered to her husband, who was holding her hand, "What will Miss Harris think of my hanging on to you so?" The president replied, "She won't think anything about it." Those were the last words ever spoken by Abraham Lincoln.

Lincoln's bodyguard, John F. Parker, had left his post to get a better view of the show. Booth crept up to the door to the President's box and waited for the funniest line of the play, hoping the laughter would cover the noise of the gunshot. On stage, a character named Asa Trenchard (played by Harry Hawk) who has just been accused of ignorance in regards to the manners of good society, replies, "Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside out, old gal — you sockdologizing old man-trap..." When the laughter came Booth jumped into the box with the President and aimed a single-shot, round-slug .44 caliber Deringer at his head, firing at point-blank range. The bullet entered behind Lincoln's left ear and lodged behind his right eyeball. Lincoln slumped over in his rocking chair, unconscious. Rathbone jumped from his seat and tried to prevent Booth from escaping, but Booth stabbed the Major deep in the arm with a knife. Rathbone quickly recovered and tried to grab Booth as he was preparing to jump from the sill of the box. Booth again stabbed at Rathbone, and then attempted to jump down to the stage. As he jumped, his foot was caught on the American flag, and Booth fell onto the stage in a way which broke his leg. He faced the crowd and yelled, "Sic semper tyrannis,", the Virginia state motto, meaning "Thus always to tyrants." Other accounts state that he also uttered "The South is avenged!" He then hobbled off the stage, and went out the door onto the horse he had waiting outside. Some of the men in the audience chased after him, but failed to catch him. Booth rode to the navy yard to meet up with Herold and Powell.

William H. Seward

Booth assigned Lewis Powell to kill Secretary of State William H. Seward. At this time, Seward was bedridden due to a carriage accident he was in about a week before. He was at his home in Lafayette Park in Washington, not too far from the White House.

Frederick Seward and Lewis Powell

Powell and Herold went to Seward's residence on Booth's orders. Booth probably thought that Powell wouldn't be able to find the house and that Herold was too cowardly to attempt the murder himself. Powell was carrying an 1858 Whitney revolver which was a large, heavy and popular gun during the Civil War. Additionally, he carried a huge silver-mounted bowie knife.

Powell knocked at the front door of the house a little after 10:00 p.m. William Bell, Seward's butler, answered the door. Powell told Bell that he had medicine for Seward from Dr. Verdi, and that he was to personally deliver and show Seward how to take the medicine. He was let in and Powell made his way up the stairs to Seward's third floor bedroom.

At the top of the staircase, he was approached by Seward's son and Assistant Secretary of State Frederick Seward. Powell told Frederick the same alibi he that had told Bell at the front door. Seward was suspicious of the intruder and told Powell that his father was asleep.

After hearing voices in the hall, Seward's daughter Fanny opened the door to Seward's room and said, "Fred, Father is awake now," and then returned to the room. Powell now knew where Seward was. Powell started down the stairs when suddenly he jolted around again and drew his revolver, placing it upon Frederick's forehead. He pulled the trigger, but the gun misfired. Panicking, he then smashed the gun over Frederick's head continuously until he collapsed. Fanny, wondering what all the noise was, looked out the door again. She saw her brother bloody and unconscious on the floor and Powell running towards her. Powell ran to Seward's bed and stabbed him continuously in the face and neck. He missed the first time he swung his knife down, but the third blow sliced open Seward's cheek. The metal neck brace Seward was wearing was the only thing that prevented the blade from penetrating his jugular. Sergeant Robinson and Seward's son Augustus tried to drive Powell away. Augustus had been asleep in his room, but was awoken by Fanny's screams of terror. Outside, Herold also heard Fanny's screaming. He became frightened and ran away, abandoning Powell.

Secretary Seward had rolled off the bed and onto the floor where he could not be reached by his attacker. Powell fought off Robinson, Augustus and Fanny stabbing them as well. He ran down stairs and headed to the front door. Just then, a messenger named Emerick Hansell arrived with a telegram for Seward. Powell stabbed Hansell in the back, causing him to fall to the floor. Before running outside, Powell exclaimed, "I'm mad! I'm mad!" He calmly untied his horse from the tree where Herold left it and rode away.

Andrew Johnson

Booth assigned George Atzerodt to kill Vice President Andrew Johnson. Whether or not Atzerodt agreed to do this is unknown. Johnson was staying at the Kirkwood Hotel in Washington. Atzerodt was to go to the Vice President's room at 10:15 PM and shoot him.

On April 14, 1865, Atzerodt rented room 126 at the Kirkwood directly above the room where Johnson was staying. Atzerodt was hesitant. He went to the bar downstairs and asked the bartender, Michael Henry, about the Vice President's character and behavior. However, Atzerodt never attempted the assassination. After spending some time at the Hotel saloon, Atzerodt wandered away down the streets of Washington.

Aftermath

Escape attempt

Booth reunited with Herold after the assassination, but he was still injured from the jump onto the stage. Herold and Booth went to Samuel A. Mudd, a local doctor and acquaintance of Booth, and had the broken bone set. After leaving Mudd's house Booth and Herold hired a local man to guide them to Samuel Cox's house. Cox in turn led them to Thomas Jones, who hid Booth and Herold in a swamp near his house for five days until they could cross the Potomac River. They remained on the run until April 26, when Union soldiers tracked them down. They had been locked in a barn belonging to Richard Garrett and while Herold surrendered himself, Booth refused to come out. The soldiers then set fire to the barn. After that, a soldier named Boston Corbett crept up behind the barn, and fatally shot Booth.

Conspirators' trial

Execution of Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold and George Atzerodt

Eight of Booth's co-conspirators were tried by a military tribunal after his death. The fact that they were tried by a military tribunal provoked criticism from both Edward Bates and Gideon Welles, who believed that a civil court should have presided. The trial lasted for about seven weeks, with 366 witnesses testifying. The verdict was given on July 5. All of the defendants were found guilty. Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold, and George Atzerodt were sentenced to death by hanging. Samuel Mudd, Samuel Arnold, and Michael O'Laughlen were given life in prison. Edmund Spangler was sentenced to imprisonment for six years.

Surratt, Powell, Herold, and Atzerodt were hanged in the Old Arsenal Penitentiary on July 7. Mary Surratt was the first woman to be hanged by the U.S. government. Mudd, Arnold, and Spangler were pardoned in February 1869 by President Johnson.

Impact

The Lincoln Memorial

Abraham Lincoln was the first American President to be assassinated. His assassination had a long-lasting impact upon the country. He was mourned around the country. There were attacks in many cities against those who expressed support for Booth. On the Easter Sunday after Lincoln's death, clergymen around the country praised him in their sermons. Millions of people came to Lincoln's funeral procession in Washington D.C. on April 19, 1865, and as his body was transported 1,700 miles to Springfield, Illinois.

After Lincoln's death, Ulysses S. Grant called him, "Incontestably the greatest man I ever knew." Southern-born Elizabeth Blair said that, "Those of southern born sympathies know now they have lost a friend willing and more powerful to protect and serve them than they can now ever hope to find again." The Lincoln Memorial was later erected to honor Lincoln's sacrifices for his country.

Andrew Johnson was sworn in as President following Lincoln's death. Johnson has become one of the less popular presidents in American history. He was impeached by the House in 1868 but was not convicted by the Senate.

Seward recovered from his wounds and continued to serve as Secretary of State. He later negotiated the deal, known as Seward's Folly, in which the United States purchased Alaska from Russia.

Trivia

• In 1863 or 1864 Booth's brother Edwin Booth saved Abraham Lincoln's son, Robert, from serious injury or even death by pulling him up onto a train platform (in Jersey City) after Robert had fallen.

External links

• Lincoln Papers: Lincoln Assassination: Introduction
• Lincoln Assassination Conspiracy Theories
• Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
• A History of John Wilkes Booth