What Booth Said After He Killed Lincoln
John Wilkes Booth certainly saw himself as a dramatic figure in history. Upon shooting Lincoln, he jumped onto the stage and condemned his victim in Latin.
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John Wilkes Booth certainly saw himself as a dramatic figure in history. Upon shooting Lincoln, he jumped onto the stage and condemned his victim in Latin.
Knife, Ford’s theatre, flee, Derringer, destiny, presidential box, escape, assassination, murder, channel, smithsonian, John Wilkes Booth, watch, free videos, Confederacy, president, South, inauguration, southern, washington d.c., North, killing, Facts, abolitionist, stream TV, Sic Semper Tyrannis, TV online, video, abraham lincoln, Vice President, Episodes, free tv, April 14, slavery, Actor, Documentary, Henry Rathbone, stage, latin, Civil War, abolition, 1865
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PeopleTranscript
00:00The Lincolns and their guests arrive at Ford's in high spirits.
00:07The crowd applauds the President. They stop the play. They sit down and the play begins.
00:24The President comes to their barking up the wrong tree about the oak.
00:34About ten minutes after ten Booth began to mount the stairs leading up to the second tier of boxes where you would find President Lincoln.
00:48As Booth makes his way toward the presidential box, he is seen, but no one stops him.
00:55He was well known to everyone, a popular actor of course, and that let Booth get right behind Lincoln.
01:07Booth is in position at Ford's.
01:11Booth comes into the box right as the whole theater bursts into laughter.
01:19As the crowd roars with laughter, Booth takes aim.
01:26So that moment where the whole future looked like it finally lifted, the clouds had separated, comes crashing down.
01:41The bullet enters the back of Lincoln's head.
01:45Booth stepped up to him, fired a shot from perhaps three, four inches, not right against Lincoln's head, but close,
01:51and it hit Lincoln in the back of the head like a sledgehammer would.
01:56This is the derringer that Booth used on April 14. It's about six inches long, weighs about eight ounces.
02:05A part of the Ford's theater collection, this instrument of history was Booth's personal weapon.
02:12Booth probably had this weapon for at least five or six years before the assassination took place.
02:18It fires a single bullet, so this is like we say, one and done.
02:25Booth dropped the pistol, went to the front of the box intending to escape.
02:29Major Rathbone jumped from his seat, he grabbed Booth from behind and pulled him back from the railing.
02:35Booth twisted around in the major's grip, and for the first time the men were face to face.
02:40And Rathbone later said he was absolutely horrified by the look on Booth's face.
02:44And Booth was stronger than Rathbone was, so he was able to free himself and slash Rathbone with a knife.
02:56Booth leaps from the box to the stage.
03:00Sic simpateratus!
03:02And makes his escape.