Why John Wilkes Booth Wants To Get To Richmond

Summary

• Episode 3 of Manhunt sheds light on John Wilkes Booth’s delusions and how he viewed himself post-assassination.
• Edwin Stanton’s pursuit of Booth uncovers potential Confederate conspiracy elements, adding depth to the narrative.
• The inclusion of fictional events, like Alec Leconte’s death, highlights the racial tensions of the post-Civil War era.

Warning! This article contains major spoilers for Manhunt episode 3.Manhunt episode 3 continues to follow John Wilkes Booth’s journey south after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln along with Secretary of War Edwin Stanton’s pursuit of him. In doing so, episode 3 provides more insight into not only Booth’s intentions, but also the sociopolitical climate of America in the immediate aftermath of the American Civil War. Episode 3 also adds some color to the personalities of the two men involved in the cat-and-mouse game at the heart of Manhunt. Booth is depicted as an egotistical, borderline delusional white supremacist, while Edwin Stanton is presented as his direct opposite.

Booth’s journey comes to a standstill in the forests just outside of Virginia at the end of the episode after an unexpected encounter with the Confederate Secret Service. Meanwhile, Edwin Stanton takes another step towards potentially proving that Booth’s assassination attempt was a Confederate conspiracy, and not the act of a lone gunman. While the narrative of Manhunt takes plenty of dramatic detours away from the true story of John Wilkes Booth, episode 3 makes it clear that taking some creative license is the right choice to create a more engaging crime thriller.

Why John Wilkes Booth Kept A Journal Of Lincoln’s Assassination & His Own Escape

The diary is a manifestation of how important Booth thought himself to be.

One of the defining characteristics of Anthony Boyle’s portrayal of John Wilkes Booth in Manhunt is how thoroughly deluded he has become. Booth truly believes himself to be a hero, as displayed by the dream he has of becoming the second president of the Confederacy. The journal he keeps along his journey is evidence of just how important he believed he was. He even mentions to his companion David Herold that his musings would become a mainstay of schools and libraries once he “finds the right publisher in Richmond.”

John Wilkes Booth’s real journal is on display in the museum at Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site on the original location of the theater in Washington, D.C.

In reality, Booth was vilified and hunted as a coward, a traitor and a menace to the United States of America. Episode 3 provides the best glimpse yet into how Booth viewed himself, and what motivated him to attempt to take out the most prominent members of the United States government. In Manhunt, his delusions are encouraged by Samuel Cox, the supposed Confederate Secret Service member who treats Booth as a hero.

Why John Wilkes Booth Wanted to Get to Richmond (& What The Soldiers Found There)

Booth has a misguided notion of Richmond’s importance after the end of the war.

Booth’s delusion is played out even further by his desire to get to Richmond. Samuel Cox tells him outright that nobody of any importance to the Confederacy is left in Richmond, and that the Union Army destroyed most of it recently. That does not deter Booth in the slightest, as he tells both Cox and his companion David Herold that he is “a symbol” in Richmond, and only in Richmond (the former Confederate capital). Booth is so certain of the hero’s welcome awaiting him in the South that he refuses to see reason, and dooms himself in the process.

What Role Samuel Cox Played In Booth’s Escape

The show embellishes Cox’s role in service of the greater conspiracy.

After having his broken leg set by Dr. Samuel Mudd, Booth and Herold recruited free man Oswell Swann to take them to Rich Hill, the home of Samuel Cox. In reality, Cox was a known Confederate sympathizer and reluctantly opted to shelter Booth when he unexpectedly came calling at his door in the night. In Manhunt, Samuel Cox is depicted as a secretive member of the Confederate Secret Service, with a hidden signal room in his basement and well-established ties to the “Secret Line”, which is the path that Booth is seeking to Richmond and beyond.

Like several characters in Manhunt, Cox’s role is embellished to serve the overarching conspiracy narrative that the show is angling towards. Cox being a hidden Confederate Secret Service member makes it seem like Booth is on an established path laid out for him by parties unknown, as opposed to him stumbling through Maryland seeking help where he can get it. While Cox does not shelter Booth and Herold for very long, the end of episode 3 sees him point them in the direction of the mysterious “River Ghost”, who will help them on the next leg of their journey.

John Surratt Jr.’s Role In Lincoln’s Assassination Explained

He’s labeled the second most-wanted man in the country.

John Suratt, Jr.’s role in Booth’s assassination of Lincoln has been kept nebulous so far in Manhunt. While he was most assuredly not one of the individuals who attempted to kill one of the important members of Lincoln’s cabinet, it’s heavily implied that Surratt may have been involved in the planning. His status as a member of the Confederate Secret Service means that if he was involved, it could be the proof that Edwin Stanton needs to confirm that Confederate leaders were behind Booth’s actions.

It’s assumed that Surratt was one of the chief planners of the events of April 14th, and therefore would know what Booth’s end game was.

Lafayette Baker sent James Wallace, the reporter turned spy, to Montreal to confirm suspicions of a Confederate plot, as many Confederate leaders fled there after the war due to Canada’s lack of extradition. Wallace confronts Surratt to find out where Booth is, because it’s assumed that Surratt was one of the chief planners of the events of April 14th, and therefore would know what Booth’s end game was. Unfortunately, neither Wallace nor Stanton is able to corner Surratt, and he escapes on a ship likely bound for Europe, where the Confederacy still has allies.

How Alec Leconte’s Death Motivates Stanton Further Despite His Own Health Issues

The tragic shooting carries heavy symbolism.

There is no historical record of the specific shooting incident depicted in Manhunt episode 3, but it serves an important purpose in depicting the theoretical outcome of John Wilkes Booth’s actions. The black Union soldier shot by a white man who falsely accused him of stealing a horse is named Alec Leconte in the show, but he’s actually a fictional representation of the climate in the early days of Reconstruction. While this specific event may not have happened, it was representative of the racial violence that marked that time period.

Edwin Stanton attempted to intervene before Leconte was shot in episode 3, sacrificing his own health by triggering another asthmatic attack in the struggle. It is juxtaposed with Lincoln asking Stanton to work with Frederick Douglass to do whatever they can to help black Americans in the period following the Civil War. Leconte’s death drives home just what is at stake if the healing of Lincoln’s Reconstruction is not allowed to progress. For Edwin Stanton, every minute that Booth spends on the run delays that progress, and the country’s ability to move forward.

Stanton’s Trip to Montreal Explained

While pursuing one member of the potential Confederate conspiracy, Stanton finds another.

Stanton’s trip to Montreal is another example of Manhunt setting the Secretary of War up to be a boots-on-the-ground detective, and furthers the spy thriller elements of the show. Stanton is determined to find John Surratt, Jr., thinking that he is the only lead he has to Booth’s location and destination. After learning that Surratt is in Montreal from Baker’s spy, he goes to find the man himself.

Episode 3 introduces the audience to George Sanders, a man that may have had a hand in the Confederate conspiracy to kill Lincoln, and Stanton comes face to face with him. Sanders is painted as a businessman whose interests were hurt by the Emancipation Proclamation, and therefore he has a reason to want Lincoln dead and the Confederacy to continue to run unimpeded. It’s suggested that Sanders may have even been the driving force behind Booth’s assassination via Surratt (who he actively protects in the episode) and the Confederate Secret Service.

While there has never been any definitive proof that there was a Confederate conspiracy to kill Lincoln behind Booth’s assassination, Manhunt has thus far been content to paint it as a reality. Sanders, along with the Confederate leaders he meets with in Montreal at the end of episode 3, represent the parties who would have been behind such a conspiracy if it was, in fact, real. If Booth is the series’ primary villain, then Sanders is being set up as the man behind the curtain.

Why Mary Simms Got a Land Grant

The symbolic act ends episode 3 on a hopeful note.

Episode 3 ends on a hopeful note, with Mary Simms receiving a land grant from the War Department as part of Lincoln’s initiative to help integrate freed slaves and former slaves into the Union. While in reality that may have never happened to the actual Mary Simms, her story is meant to offer some perspective for newly freed black Americans in the post-Civil War period. Per AP News, Manhunt‘s showrunner Monica Beletsky stated that she intended Mary Simms to be a composite of several of the courageous individuals who testified against Booth and his conspirators–which the real Mary Simms did.