What Makes Abraham Lincoln Assassinate President In American History?

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Abraham Lincoln is widely considered one of the most revered presidents in American history. He was known for ending slavery and his determination in the civil war. On April 14th, Lincoln was assassinated at Ford’s theater in Washington by John Wilkes Booth. A question emerges from this tragedy of why did Booth kill one of the most prestigious presidents in American history?
John Wilkes Booth was a very successful actor during the Civil War era, by 1864, he earned 20,000 dollars a year, during a time when the average Northern family earned about 300 dollars a year. Booth was an open Confederate supporter during the war, also, a supporter of slavery, even though he didn’t own any, Booth throughout the years came under the assumption that President Lincoln was trying to dispose of his beloved South.
In November 1864, after Lincoln was reelected, Booth composed a plan to kidnap Lincoln and take him to the city Richmond, Virginia where he could be used for ransom for southern soldiers, who were being held captive in Union prisons. A group of confederates were recruited by Booth to help him in his attempt to kidnap the president. …show more content…
He was informed that Lincoln and his wife, Marry Todd Lincoln, would be at Ford’s Theater to see the play Our American Cousin. Booth used connections from his acting career to gain access to the president’s box. Booth finally realized that he wouldn’t be able to kidnap the president and the only option was to kill him. His plan also included killing everyone in Lincoln’s administration. Lincoln, William Seward General Grant, and Lincoln’s Vice President Andrew Johnson were in the Booth’s plan to be murdered within the same time Lincoln was. Booth plan was drawn out with the assassinations of the administration happening at the same time with the thought that this would put the Republican Party into shambles long enough for the Confederacy to reassemble itself. However this was
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