The Reason Lincoln Had to Die: Second Edition

by Ian F Wesley (Editor), Don Thomas

What the public has known about assassination of Abraham Lincoln for nearly 150 years isn't history, but fiction, and an unsolved crime. In 1977, a document was discovered which revealed that no fewer than six Union spies had infiltrated associates of John Wilkes Booth months prior to his assassination of Abraham Lincoln. History writers since 1977 have failed to include the names, descriptions and roles of these secret agents, presumably because this information didn't seem to fit the prevailing understanding of the ... Read More

What the public has known about assassination of Abraham Lincoln for nearly 150 years isn't history, but fiction, and an unsolved crime. In 1977, a document was discovered which revealed that no fewer than six Union spies had infiltrated associates of John Wilkes Booth months prior to his assassination of Abraham Lincoln. History writers since 1977 have failed to include the names, descriptions and roles of these secret agents, presumably because this information didn't seem to fit the prevailing understanding of the assassination. This document was created by the War Department in 1865, but was hidden from the conspirators' trial and the public, and was believed to be destroyed. It was just one of many pieces of evidence deliberately withheld to ensure Lincoln's assassination would appear to be the work of Confederate agents. To the contrary and before two years had passed, every alleged Confederate mastermind behind Booth (Davis, Johnson, Surratt) had been found by courts and Congress to have played no role in the deed. Yet the Confederate conspiracy theory prevailed. In this most important book, Don Thomas explodes the numerous myths that have been circulated since 1865, and concretely identifies the faction of Union government officials who engineered Lincoln's death and its cover-up. It can be known, for the first time, clearly, even in their own words, what made these men believe Abraham Lincoln had to die. This astonishing book reveals: The architects of Lincoln's assassination and their political motives How the Civil War was extended nearly a year in order to achieve a political goal Multiple Union agents within Booth's gang, including their names, descriptions and roles How the crime was covered up and the guilty parties protected Damning evidence other historians have overlooked or chosen to ignore. Read Less