Killing Angels: Martyrdom, Spirits and the Business of Symbolic Death

written for history class, 2008

What does one think of when the word “angel” is mentioned?

Perhaps, one sees an image of a cherubic, pudgy-cheeked, rosy-skinned infant or a curvaceous blonde draped in finest silks ascending towards the heavens guided by gilded ivory wings. Likely, the mind does not first conjure an image of a haggard, bearded, middle-aged man of towering stature lying slumped forward in a spectator seat of Ford’s Theater with a noticeable chunk of cerebral matter missing. Upon the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the populous of the United States (especially in the Northern states) began to associate Lincoln as a man and president with a higher meaning, a higher power, and indeed, a higher standard- a veritable angel, sent from God. Immediately following his death, newspapers ran sensational headlines and cartoon-style homages to the fallen leader. By careful examination of these papers and images, it becomes abundantly clear that Lincoln’s death transformed him from politician to demigod. Biblical allusion, attenuated metaphors regarding the Lincoln’s “guiding” influence and villainous media portrayal of John Wilkes Booth indicate a fervent opinion regarding Lincoln’s role in the cohesion of a union divided. Through examination of newspaper accounts immediately following his death, Abraham Lincoln was imaged as martyr, patriarch, savior and soul of the United States.

It becomes imperative to note, regarding sentiments about Lincoln’s death, the
seemingly unanimous nature of the populous’ feelings. On May 5th, 1865, the New York
Times ran a piece about the assassination, stating,

“Those national emblems, thousands in number, but yesterday floating proudly in the breeze, are lowered to half-mast, to mourn the loss of one dearly loved by all. Every house became one of mourning, none were found here so depraved as to refuse to condemn the act of the assassin, and all breathed but one sentiment that the deceased was an honest man.”

This unanimity reached across class and racial divide, as, in New Orleans, “Sixty thousand people assembled on the public streets to give vent to their public grief- not the least among them was found the colored race.” While people of all skin colors lamented the loss of their leader, solidarity amongst members of different social classes emerged as well. “It was the universal grief,” Harper’s Weekly reported, “that so heavily draped our streets. Not only the mansions of the rich, but the squalid hovels of the poor put on the habit of mourning.” The muddling of class divides indicates the extent to which Lincoln had become embedded in the fabric of the union. His death was recorded as, “a personal blow to every faithful American household.” The fact that one could plausibly claim that the death of one man touched every American household seems enough to show that Lincoln’s stature in society was not merely that of a removed president or war general, but of a man personally effecting millions of people.

Lincoln’s effect on the masses was also portrayed nicely in an illustration from Harper’s Weekly . As Lincoln’s coffin lies in front of sturdy, solid pillars, Lady Liberty kneels nearby, weeping, overcome by grief. With the American flag clutched in her hand, she embraces the coffin, signifying the connection between Lincoln and the livelihood of the United States. Around the name on the coffin there emanates glowing light, as if to indicate an influence reaching beyond temporal, socially constructed divisions. That distinctly different social and racial groups came together to mourn his death is an integral piece in understanding the seemingly extreme manner in which Lincoln was eulogized publicly, immediately following his death.

One significant way in which the American people remembered Lincoln was as a paternal figure, guiding the nation through rough times, leading the people with keen wisdom. Upon his death, the April 29th, 1865 issue of Harper’s Weekly reported, “and in his death it is not a party that loses a head, but a country that deplores a father.” The idea of Lincoln as the American patriarch permeated, as he was remembered (without irony) as, “holding the nation together through its darkest hours.” While he was the literal father of four children, he garnered a position in the collective mind of the country he left behind in death as a metaphorical, even metaphysical, father figure.

The “Lincoln-as-father” idea was not only found in the articles of the contemporary newspapers, but also in the images used to supplement the coverage of his death. In one illustration in the famous Harper’s Weekly , Lincoln was shown with his young son, Tad. As an aged Lincoln looks on, Tad stands at his side, intently laying his gaze upon the book in Lincoln’s lap as Lincoln turns a page. This picture creates a nice metaphor for Lincoln as the father figure of the nation, turning the pages of American history as a proud and diligent people look on. This picture, and indeed its underlying meaning, was a clear facet of the manner in which people eulogized the president publicly, as it ran the week after his death. Much like a young child without a parent, America is portrayed as an eager but young, entity without their guiding influence. But the nation did not stop at showing Lincoln as a father figure, and further images and metaphors were created that put Lincoln in a religious light.

Upon his death, newspapers immediately began using language and imagery that portrayed him as a savior and martyr of the nation, pulling it back from the brink of entire collapse. Spiritual and religious undertones circulated in the accounts of his death. Harper’s Weekly again reported, “The dust of our great leader, kissed to rest, and folded to our hearts, is there interned, beyond the breath of scandal, in sweet peace. Wounded with his wound, our hearts receive the mantle of his spirit as it flies.” The biblical reference (“ashes to ashes, dust to dust”) sparks an image of a person ordained by God for some sort of earthly mission. This image of Lincoln was countered by a devilish image of John Wilkes Booth and his actions. In The Chicago Tribune, the collision of good and evil was explored, as it was said, “President Lincoln, whose life was covered with glory by his faithfulness to his country, has ascended to his God. Pale in death, murdered by the hellish spirit of slavery, his body lies at the nation’s capital- a new sacrifice upon our country’s altar.” Lincoln assumes, in this text, the role of sacrificial lamb. It seems as though this sort of eulogy wording was perhaps heavy-handed in its estimation. However, other articles spoke quite literally about a connection between the messianic tale of Jesus on the cross and Lincoln’s death at Ford’s Theater.

To equate Lincoln with Jesus may seem far-fetched or sensationalized, but it was said, “He has sealed his service to his country by the last sacrifice. On the day that commemorates the great sorrow which Christendom reveres, the man who had no thought, no wish, no hope but the salvation of his country laid down his life.” Talk of an “ultimate sacrifice” was not fully fleshed out, as even more explicitly stated words were to follow. “It is the world’s old story, told again,” it was written, “that they who bruise the venomed head must bear, even as Christ did, its last foul sting, taking the savior’s passion with his crown.” Muddled metaphors thrown away, the newspaper directly correlated Lincoln’s death with Christ’s final act of faith. In both the press coverage of Lincoln’s death and in the collective mind of the American people, Abraham Lincoln had died a martyr, a savior of the union.

But the Biblical references did not cease there. Taking from another famous Biblical allegory, Lincoln was compared to Moses in a fusion of both his perceived image as a father figure and savior. In what can best be described as the climax of fervent Lincoln analogizing, it was said, “Like Moses, he had marched with us through the wilderness. From the height of patriotic vision he beheld the golden fields of the future waving in peace.” This quote encapsulated all three major themes in how the country began to memorialize Lincoln. First, the Biblical reference to Moses indicates the idea that Lincoln was somehow closer to God as a living man, given a divine purpose to guide the nation as the benevolent patriarch. Secondly, it says the “height of patriotic vision”, indicating that Lincoln was somehow of a higher intellectual plane, able to decipher the complex code of saving the union. Lastly, Lincoln is imaged as seeing “the golden fields of the future” as if to show that he had undoubtedly ascended to heaven was gazing down upon his country from the right hand of God. Lincoln emerged from these sort of memorials as a divine patriarch who had guided the nation as a politician and would continue to do so as an ascended spirit. However, the image was not completed without a complementing image of evil to act as a foil to the heavenly Lincoln.

In both words and images, John Wilkes Booth garnered a reputation as a villainous character. The Chicago Tribune reported in a headline, “Terrible news. President Lincoln assassinated at Ford’s Theater. A rebel desperado shoots him through the head and escapes.” Booth as the “rebel desperado” was used as a counterpoint to the divine image of Lincoln. In the minds of the American people, only a true scoundrel would murder the president in cold blood. This image was furthered by the wanted posters, which circulated the nation, offering a reward for Booth. In this poster, large bold type offers reward for “THE MURDERER” of “ our beloved president”. By using the word “murderer” juxtaposed with “beloved”, it puts the villain Booth in direct opposition to the angelic Lincoln, creating a battle between good and evil.

Even in smaller newspapers the theme of good and evil permeated. In Burlington, Iowa, a story ran saying, “That our most kind, lenient and magnanimous chief magistrate has been stricken down while in the exercise of his high office, by the bloody hand of the assassin, the climax of rebel crime, a martyr to the cause which lies dearest to the hearts of the people.” In this paper, the murder of Lincoln would only be reasonably justified by characterizing Booth as a “rebel”, clearly disregarding the ethos and moralities of the American union. By using the words “bloody hand”, Booth is portrayed as a devilish character who assumed full blame for the martyring of Lincoln. In a final characterization of Booth, it was reported that, “The assassin then leaped upon the stage brandishing a large dagger or knife…” By imaging Booth as a crazed man, armed and dangerous, he loses the human quality and takes on a slightly depraved, maybe even animalistic appearance. His craven image contrasts perfectly with the morally and socially elevated image of Lincoln as seraphim.

Abraham Lincoln’s death catapulted him into a posthumous image simultaneously as guiding father, selfless martyr and angelic savior. As the American people began to make sense of the assassination, newspaper and magazine accounts of Lincoln’s death and immediate legacy transformed him from human to demigod. Through metaphor, Biblical allusion, illustrated imagery and vulcanization of John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln’s death elevated him morally, ideologically and socially and placed him deep in the hearts and minds of his contemporaries.