Essay Example on The book Manhunt

The book Manhunt The 12 Day Chase For Lincoln s Killer by James L Swanson tells the reader about the assassination and death of Abraham Lincoln the strategy and plan behind it all the chase and the struggles and hardships everyone went through John Wilkes Booth resided and worked in the North but he was a firm supporter of the Confederacy He did not like Lincoln Booth never liked anything about President Lincoln and he really hated his policies John thought that if he and a few other people like him were able to kidnap Lincoln that the south would win the war They planned to do this several months before the assassination was planned or even occured Booth wanted to take him to the south and trade him John at this time was a famous actor and could have shot him or kidnapped him a lot sooner But he also did not want to have to get caught and face all of the punishments for killing the president of course When the south surrendered John figured if he was able to kill the president and other important people apart of the Northern government at that time that might spark the flame up again for the south to continue fighting That was whenever an idea sprung upon him and this time he followed through with it John Wilkes Booth found out that Lincoln was coming to Ford s Theater and knew that now would be the perfect time to kill the president He had a very well thought through plan and figured if he killed the vice president Andrew Johnson and secretary of state William Seward that the triple assassination would just destroy the Union government Booth knew the play 

My American Cousin very well This would benefit to him very well He got into the same box the president was in pretty easily He did not have many complications and had a horse waiting for him outside John waited for a certain part of the play you sockdologizing old mantrap pg 43 and then pulled the trigger of the Deringer He was scared at first that he may have missed but he watched the president s head fall and then Major Rathbone caught him off guard and made him lose him balance as he was jumping down to the stage As he jumped he yelled Sic semper tyrannis he thundered It was the state motto of Virginia Thus always to tyrants Then Booth shouted The South is avenged pg 48 and broke his leg when he hit the stage Not everyone realized what was happening for a while many thought it was apart of the play and then the words The president was shot filled the theater Many rushed to the side of Lincoln and an army soldier Leale was in the audience and said that the president was not dead yet but would die from the wound very shortly They wanted to take him to the white house so that he could die there but many people argued back in forth that he would never make it to the white house before he died They ended up at a boarding house 

George and Lewis were captured fairly soon after going into hiding but John Wilkes Booth on the other hand managed to be on the run for twelve days Booth was found in a shed on a farm across from the Potomac river David surrendered but John refused to give in The shed was ordered to be set on fire Conger and Baker wanted to burn the barn pg 329 and John still stayed put Finally Boston Corbett went up to the barn and shot Booth in between the gap of a few boards John Wilkes Booth was then paralyzed but he survived long enough for the members of the calvary to drag him out from the shed while it was still burning People that offered help to Lincoln faced consequences too In total four people were hanged Including a doctor Dr Mudd helped him because of his broken leg Manhunt is a very detailed story from American history and helps the readers understand more in depth of the chase and everyone involved in the killing of Lincoln