Revealing the Tragic Reality Within the Streaming Giant's Latest Historical Drama

Throughout history, the family members of President Garfield spoke proudly about his remarkable life but avoided talking about his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was shot in a railway depot,” reflects one of his family members. “We studied the story in books but, for various reasons, we just passed over it quickly.”

Renewed Attention in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now led to a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, featuring a talented performer as the president and his co-star as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the historical period only to succumb to its toxic political divisions. His time in office was ended prematurely after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by doctor errors – an incident now frequently ignored while the assassinations of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a religious leader, he was a land worker. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and his approach and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was 18 months old, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An dedicated student, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds for an education.

He learned legal principles, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have a large family. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against slavery and progressed to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the era. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to leave army service when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a political representative for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of African American voting rights, viewing it as a issue of rights and the realization of a military promise.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, 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, representatives began looking for a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the surprise nominee. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the general election Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe particular about the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was forced into the role.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a public battle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a significant win for the presidential control over the faction system and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who represented the dark side of the political appointment process. The gunman was a unstable individual with a background of professional failures, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had not succeeded as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for greatness. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the events of the presidential race, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became persuaded internally that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a important role. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had no experience. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his educational gathering. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, pulled an handgun from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and collapsed on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law