The Lincoln Assassination- Where Does Responsibilty Lie?
It's time to put to rest the myriad theories put forward over the years as to where responsibility rests in the assassination of President Lincoln. And what finer body of CW buffs than our own learned and opinionated selves to decide it? So who helped John Wilkes Booth pull the trigger?
Booth and his cohorts acted on their own. Though Booth was a Confederate sympathizer, agent, and spy and had connections to the Confederate Secret Service, his idea to assassinate Lincoln, Seward, and high Federal officials sprang from the derailment of his plan to kidnap Lincoln South for use as a bargaining chip in a negotiated settlement to end the war with Southern Independence. This plan falling through and the utter collapse of the Confederacy making kidnapping worthless, he resorted to removing Lincoln from the scene all together entirely working with his henchmen on his own hook, without material aid and support from outside sources.
Booth materially aided and supported by Confederate secret agents based in Canada and/ or Northern Copperheads. Though Confederate agents supported Booth's kidnap plan, in this scenario they worked with him or gave him funds for the purpose of killing the president and Federal leadership. That Booth met with these agents and received funds for his activities from them is known. Just how far did these contributions go? These agents were active in fomenting prison breaks, shipping supplies South, fomenting Northern uprisings, funneling money to war effort opposition, poisoning Union sentiment insidiously through the Press, and staging raids from Canada. I combined the north of the border agents with the Copperhead option as both denote a larger responsibility than Booth acting on his own and both fall short of direct Confederate government complicity. Also the Canadian based agents worked in league with elements of the Copperheads in many of their undertakings, such as launching a rebellion in the West with the Golden Circle and Sons of Liberty. This effort fell through, mostly because, as Lincoln himself in his inimical way put it cornerning these Northern malcontents, 'Taking oaths to shed the last drop of blood for what they believed was easy; it was shedding the first drop that was hard.'
Booth materially aided and supported by the Confederate Government. This theory has Booth's acts endorsed and aided directly by high government officials in the Confederacy, conceivably up to CSA President Davis himself. This is the position initially taken by the US government in the furor of the days of Davis's flight, the hunt for Booth, and the trials of his cohorts. The Federal government attempted to prove this attitude at the conspirators's trials. It was also the widespread belief in the North. It could not be proved at trial, and the government finally dropped this position officially. But that does not mean that many officials and Northerners still believed it, and that many believe it still.
Eisenschiml's Grand Conspiracy Theory- The Radical Republicans. Otto Eisenschiml in the '30s looked at the many discrepancies in the assassination record and asked- 'Who most benefitted from Lincoln's death?' and the answer is obvious, the radical element of the Republican Party, who wanted the jackboot dug deep onto Southern throats. And he asked- 'Who was in the best position to cover their tracks after this dastardly act?' and came up with the same answer- the Radical Republicans, particularly Secy of War Stanton and his nefarious chief of security in the District of Columbia, General Lafayette C Baker. The Radicals were hard drivers for sure, and believed rightly that Lincoln wasn't going to deal harshly with the rebellious states, in fact, might be able to make allies of them, and so neutralize the very group, themselves, who had pushed, prosecuted, and won this great war, besides which, rebellion must be punished by the sternest measures! Stanton was in place,with his agent Baker, to concoct this scheme, see to its' undertaking, and eliminate traces of it afterwards. Lincoln had done his job, now it was time for other men to carry on; may Lincoln rest in peace a national hero and martyr!
Chiniquy's Theory- the Jesuits and Roman Catholic Church. Chiniquy, a transplanted French Canadian ex-priest maintained that the Jesuits through their long experience of nefarious dealings undercutting governments and their hatred of free American institutions, liberties, and freemasonry undertook this mission to remove this symbol of American Protestantism and ideals. He noted that the Surratts were devout Catholics as well as secessionists, that Catholic priests in Canada had shielded John Surratt in his flight and that he finally gained refuge in Vatican City, and that the Surratt house was a frequent center of gatherings of Catholic clergy, as well as a Booth safehouse and meetingplace, where young Booth had his mind poisoned by the priests. Chiniquy was personally acquainted with Lincoln from prewar years and states that Lincoln was virulently anti-Catholic. Though there is no substantiation to this claim of any kind, anti-Catholicism has been a large factor in American politics and attitudes. It still finds its' reflection in the tenets of the KKK.
Goldstein's Theory- the Rothschilds and International Banking. This theory proposes that international money interests used Booth to remove Lincoln because they disliked his protectionist policies and wished to exploit the upcoming opportunities inherent in a financially bankrupt South and heavily indebted North to take control and dominate the burgeoning and soon to be internationally dominant US economy. Sort of a globalist, international business conglomerate, early version of the New World Order.
So let's settle this debate, what does everyone think?
__________________ 'It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag'
I think Booth and his cohorts were acting on their own. The Confederate government was too busy disintergrating to worry about getting Lincoln.
__________________ F. S. Powers
Union Ancersor: Pvt Arnuah Norton, 60th Ohio. (G-G-G Grandfather) Died at Salisbury NC, November 3, 1864
Confederate Ancestors: Captain Thomas A. Morrow, 29th Texas Cavalry (G-G-G- Uncle) and 2LT George W. Morrow, 31st Texas Cavalry (G-G-G Grandfather). Both survived the war
I think Booth and his cohorts were acting on their own. The Confederate government was too busy disintergrating to worry about getting Lincoln.
Was watching a Gary Gallagher lecture last night. He maintains that the previous kidnap plot had the backing and encouragement of Confederate agents. The failure of that and the turn to assassination left Booth on his own.
Ole
The question would then be, was this planned with the knowledge of any high Confederate Cabinet members?
E-chi-wa-wa, I wish Gallagher would do a lecture in San Antonio, I'd buy a ticket in a heartbeat.
__________________ F. S. Powers
Union Ancersor: Pvt Arnuah Norton, 60th Ohio. (G-G-G Grandfather) Died at Salisbury NC, November 3, 1864
Confederate Ancestors: Captain Thomas A. Morrow, 29th Texas Cavalry (G-G-G- Uncle) and 2LT George W. Morrow, 31st Texas Cavalry (G-G-G Grandfather). Both survived the war
FS- Right you are. Booth had the aid and support of these agents in Canada in his activities, that is up until his assasssination plot and act. But having that aid, it doesn't mean his or these agents' activities are in any way ordered by higher officials. The Confederate secret agents were sent to Canada and empowered to act in a manner to aid the cause and disrupt the Union as they best are able. It is not a regular chain of command type situation of necessity, there being very poor means of communication. They were no doubt given broad discretionary instructions and funded for these endeavors. Also this operation was considered a 'war measure', so can 'murder' be conceived as part of their instructions?
__________________ 'It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag'
ewc, you are correct sir. Having the aid and comfort of deep cover agents sent to "do what they could," and without benefit of cell phones in no way implicates any in the government.
FS, the lecture I was watching is on videotape. 12, 2-hour tapes (4 half-hour segments each) of Gary Gallagher on The Civil War offered by "The Teaching Company." When it's a slow news day, or Fox goes into its third repeat, and the history channel is going through its cycle again. I'll pop one in and watch. They were not cheap, but where else are you going to get a college course on Civil War History that you can pause (beer run), replay, and can do it again whenever you want?
Maybe he just hired some "dummies" to gather bad Intel.[very bad for Abe]
Stashed his "Escape" stuff at the girl`s.[Mary,S.]
And did it on his OWN!!! Possible?????[speaking of John, Wilkes]
Maybe he just hired some "dummies" to gather bad Intel.[very bad for Abe]
Stashed his "Escape" stuff at the girl`s.[Mary,S.]
And did it on his OWN!!! Possible?????[speaking of John, Wilkes]
Gauss
Had considered that, Paul. It does look a bit like outside coordination was made available. However (isn't there always one of those?), these people apparently didn't come together in a conspiracy, they had been hanging around together for a long time. At any one or all of their get-togethers (I believe it was round-robin winner-take-all checkers tournaments) the plot would easily have been developed with each of the participants taking a role in it.
Not saying that, that's the way it did happen; just that it certainly makes possible a plot without the aid of confederate agents.
A question Paul: How many yoopers does it take to interrupt a beer run?
[quote=ole]Had considered that, Paul. It does look a bit like outside coordination was made available. However (isn't there always one of those?), these people apparently didn't come together in a conspiracy, they had been hanging around together for a long time. At any one or all of their get-togethers (I believe it was round-robin winner-take-all checkers tournaments) the plot would easily have been developed with each of the participants taking a role in it.
Not saying that, that's the way it did happen; just that it certainly makes possible a plot without the aid of confederate agents.
A question Paul: How many yoopers does it take to interrupt a beer run?
Ken[/QUOTE
I can't resist answering that one. I takes only one. That's when the designated driver passes out....ha!
Calicoboy
__________________ My dear mother:- I have come safely through two more terrible engagements with the enemy, that at South Mountain and the great battle of yesterday (Antietam). Our splendid regiment is almost destroyed. We have had nearly 400 men killed and wounded in the battles. Seven of our officers were shot and three killed in yesterday's battle and nearly 150 men killed and wounded. All from less than 300 engaged. The men have stood like iron....Maj. Rufus Dawes, 6th Wisconsin Volunteers
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The Lincoln Assassination- Where Does Responsibilty Lie? 
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