Historians Disagree Regarding John Wilkes Booth's Broken Leg

How Did John Wilkes Booth Break His Leg? It Happened the Night of Abraham Lincoln's Assassination

John Wilkes Booth used his standing as an actor to sneak into Ford's Theatre so he may kill the president. Then he broke his leg.

Mar. 18 2024, Published 7:11 p.m. ET

On April 21, 1865, The New York Times published a letter given to them by John Wilkes Booth's brother-in-law, John S. Clarke. It have been exactly every week since the well-known actor shot and killed President Abraham Lincoln whilst he and his spouse have been looking at a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. Clarke had gained this letter along with a package deal in November 1864, 5 months ahead of the assassination. It was once further evidence that Booth have been making plans to kill the president for relatively some time.

The letter itself is primarily thinking about Booth's disdain for the battle and for Lincoln, who, in his opinion, was once the only real cause of the bloodshed. He writes fondly of the Union and claims the South is simply fighting for states' rights whilst suggesting enslaved other folks will have to be grateful to white Americans for elevating them.

It's this hate, bigotry, and rage that introduced Booth to Ford's Theatre the night he killed Lincoln on April 14, 1865. That night time did not pass easily. Booth ended up breaking his leg, regardless that experts don't agree on the way it came about. Let's take a look at their theories.

John Wilkes Booth broke his leg after capturing President Abraham Lincon.

The Civil War formally ended April 9, 1865, with the give up of General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Courthouse. All over the country, individuals who defended and fought for the Union have been celebrating. Lincoln had been working tirelessly and made up our minds to treat himself to one among his favorite actions, a night on the theater. The comedy Our American Cousin was once taking part in up the road at Ford's Theatre and he had a price tag for himself, in addition to his spouse Mary Todd Lincoln and two visitors.

Not everyone used to be in this type of excellent mood. Booth used to be angry at the loss and have been ingesting all day. When Booth found out Lincoln can be at the theater he knew just like the again of his hand, the actor learned this was once his only probability to kill him. There have been also co-conspirators involved who had their very own targets, however Booth was once made up our minds to assassinate the president himself.

On that evening, he waited until the efficiency began and rode his horse into the alley behind the theater. Because he used to be a well-known actor, no person puzzled his appearance and nobody spotted when he crept up the steps to the president's balcony. Booth knew the play neatly and was waiting for a particular line that all the time got a big laugh. When that moment arrived, he took out the Deringer pistol and shot the president behind his head. He additionally stabbed Major Henry Rathbone, who was making an attempt to grasp Booth.

As a long way as he could inform, there used to be just one option to escape and that used to be to jump from the balcony onto the degree. That's exactly what Booth did, and as he landed, he turned to the stunned crowd and screamed "Sic semper tyrannis," which is written at the Virginia state flag. It manner "Thus always to tyrants." This is when maximum historians imagine Booth broke his leg.

According to the National Park Service, some professionals believe Booth hurt himself while using his horse clear of the crime scene. Based on his accidents, they theorize that his horse would possibly have fallen and landed on the determined actor. One thing that helps this idea is the fact that Booth's horse was injured on its left side. All we know evidently is that Booth wrote in his diary that "in jumping broke my leg."

John Wilkes Booth used to be treated through Dr. Samuel Mudd.

Six hours after taking pictures Lincoln, Booth and co-conspirator David Herold arrived on the space of Dr. Samuel Mudd in what is now Waldorf, Md. He treated the actor's leg and gave each males a place to sleep for the evening, per Ford's Theatre. Mudd would later inform police that he did not recognize Booth even though they spent time together both in D.C. and his house in Maryland.

Mudd would later be arrested and convicted as a conspirator along side seven people. Four would cross directly to receive the dying penalty whilst Mudd and two others were sentenced to existence imprisonment. In 1869, Mudd was once pardoned via Lincoln's successor, President Andrew Johnson, and lived out the rest of his life on his farm in Maryland till he died of pneumonia in 1883.

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