Abraham Lincoln Gallery

John Surratt, member of the Lincoln conspiracy, 1866 (1955). Artist: Unknown

John Surratt, member of the Lincoln conspiracy, 1865 (1955). Surratt (1844-1916), pictured here in Papal Zouave uniform, was involved in an unsuccessful attempt to kidnap US President Abraham Lincoln with the intention of holding him for ransom in exchange for the release of Confederate prisoners of war. His mother, Mary Surratt, was executed for her involvement in the assassination of Lincoln, having given the conspirators accommodation in her boarding house. Surratt denied any involvement in the assassination plot, but fled overseas to avoid arrest. He served briefly in the Papal Zouaves in the Vatican City under the name of John Watson, before being recognised and escaping to Egypt. He was apprehended by US officials in Alexandria in November 1866 and was extradited to the United States for trial. He admitted his involvement in the kidnap attempt but continued to deny that he was involved in the assassination. He was eventually released after the case ended up in a mistrial with the statute of limitations having expired on all cahrges other than murder. A print from Mathew Brady Historian with a Camera by James D Horan, Bonanza Books, New York, 1955.

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Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), US president. Artist: Unknown

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), US president. The 16th president of the United States of America, Abraham Lincoln joined the Republican party in 1858 and was elected president two years later. His implacable opposition to slavery led to the secession of the southern states and the outbreak of the American Civil War. In 1863, he proclaimed the emancipation of all slaves in the southern Confederate states and later that year restated his anti-slavery views in the Gettysburg Address. Lincoln was infamously shot by actor John Wilkes Booth whilst attending the theatre in 1865. Illustration from The Life & Times of Queen Victoria, by Robert Wilson, Vol III.

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'Mrs. North and Her Attorney', 1864. Artist: John Tenniel

'Mrs. North and Her Attorney', 1864. Mrs North says: You see, Mr. Lincoln, we have failed utterly in our course of Action; I want Peace, and so, if you cannot effect an Amicable Arrangement, I must put the Case into Other Hands. A miserable President Lincoln is being told by Mrs North that the Civil War must be brought to an end. Recently, McClellan was nominated to stand against Lincoln for the Democratic candidacy, and that is why Mrs North says that if Lincoln cannot bring the matter to a conclusion, she will have to instruct somebody else - rather in the manner of instructing a different solicitor to sort out a civil matter without recourse to legal action. In fact, though, McClellan's nomination led to a split in the party between those for continuing the war, and those advocating peace, and this divergence led to Lincoln's re-election. From Punch, or the London Charivari, September 24, 1864.

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