What led up to it?After the civil war, many southerners were still angry and wanted to get even with northerners for winning the war. In fact, the assassination of President Lincoln came only five days after the surrender of General Robert E. Lee at the Appomattox Court House. The assassination showed that many were still angry, and proved that something had to be done.
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The Assasination
Obsessed with avenging the confederates, John Wilkes Booth fatally shot Abraham Lincoln at the Ford Theatre on April 14th,1865. Booth's plan for assassinating Lincoln came after his failed attempt to kidnap him. After Booth shot Lincoln he fled to southern Maryland. Many people mourned Lincoln's death while the confederate army was searching for Booth. Although it took some time to find him, a confederate soldier finally cornered him in a burning barn and shot him. 4 of Booth's helpers were hanged, 4 were imprisoned, and 1 was acquitted. Everyone who knew Lincoln mourned him for days.
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