Chasing Lincoln's Killer Analysis

“Atzerodt had doubts about his assignment. He would not do it, he said,” (Swanson 27) writes James L. Swanson in his novel Chasing Lincoln’s Killer. George Atzerodt was a slow-witted German member of Booth’s band of conspirators. He enjoyed clothes, food, and fame as provided by John Wilkes Booth, and was involved in the inner Conspiracy, although he refused to take any actions. He was condemned an active conspirator by authorities and hanged for his alleged crimes. It was only due to the suspension of the right of habeas corpus, in “Lincoln and the Writ of Liberty”, that prevented Atzerodt from being brought to court to determine if he was being legally held. Atzerodt did not have any chance to prove himself innocent, and was immediately arrested

For example, Booth gives evidence that Atzerodt was involved in the conspiracies when he wrote in his diary, “for six months we had worked to capture, but our cause being lost, something decisive and great must be done. But its failure was owing to others, who did not strike their country with a heart.”(Booth 1) The excerpt from the diary gives proof that Booth and his conspirators, including Atzerodt, planned to kidnap Lincoln, but the fact that the Southern cause was being lost due to his presidency influenced all the conspirators to put an end to their believed tyranny through the assassination plot. Nevertheless, Atzerodt was forced to be involved in the assassination conspiracy by Booth. According to the novel Chasing Lincoln’s Killer, “Booth then threatened Atzerodt, implying that he might as well kill Johnson, because if he didn’t, Booth would accuse him anyway and get him hanged.”(Swanson 27) This shows that Atzerodt did not want to be involved in the assassination plot and was not as supportive of the plot as the other conspirators in their plan to overthrow the government. Atzerodt was threatened by Booth that he would be captured anyways if he did not carry out the mission since it would make him

This reveals the bias of the manhunt as the German conspirator had never meant to do any harm to anyone and willingly revealed the conspiracy information. He had not supported the Confederate cause as strongly as the other conspirators and therefore did not feel a strong repugnance toward the Union that murder seemed immoral. Atzerodt was threatened with accusations to carry out the terrible deed, but he made no attempt at all to murder Johnson due to his cowardice. Therefore, it appears to be unjust that he was condemned with the felony of attempted assassination, which he had never committed or ever wanted to effectuate. In addition, Atzerodt’s role in the conspiracy was extremely insignificant compared to that of Mudd’s and other associates in Booth’s underground tunnel escape route. Atzerodt had only known information about the conspiracy, while the others had plotted with, sheltered, nourished, and even protected Booth during his escape and were released by the government, while he was charged guilty. Therefore, it seems reasonable Atzerodt should have served a brief prison sentence for his conspiracy, proving that his punishment far outweighed his