🔗 Share this article

Throughout history, the descendants of the 20th US president discussed openly about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in books but, for various reasons, we just passed over it quickly.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. This work has now resulted in a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, starring a talented performer as the commander-in-chief and his co-star as the wanderer who shot him.

The series seeks to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the presidency during the economic era only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His presidency was cut short after only several months not only by the gunman's shot but by doctor errors – an event now frequently ignored while the killings of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and his behavior and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in Ohio in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against forced servitude and advanced to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was innovative for the period. He was compassionate. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Political Career and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would work as a party member for multiple terms. He was strong supporter of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“His oration on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a solution. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe unique to the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was thrust into it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the influential position of port authority. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He nominated a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute turned into a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a public failure, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the faction system and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who embodied the problematic element of the spoils network. The assassin was a unstable individual with a history of career disappointments, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, minister and member of a alternative community.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a pathway to success: politics. Caught up in the drama of the political contest, he created and presented an minor oration, and became persuaded internally that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau determined he had merited a prestigious position. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau emerged from hiding, pulled an handgun from his jacket and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “My God, what is this?” and dropped on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law