A Historian Reacts - The Assassin Nobody Talks About (Charles Guiteau)

[@jamieholtsclaw2305]

The real hero of the Garfield assassination was the executioner. Can you imagine how much self discipline it took not to pull the lever in the middle of Guiteau's final poem?

[@gordier6787]

his final words were "wait I'm not finished yet"

[@Thraim.]

The theme of this reaction video is "No way it happened like that. Oh, it actually did."

[@ninjagirl226]

fun fact Guiteau nearly killed Garfield a few times, but Guiteau didn’t want to kill Garfield in front of his wife. She was in bad health for most of Garfield’s presidency and Guiteau didn’t want to upset her. I believe Guiteau’s sister tried to have him institutionalized after he scared her into believing he was going to kill her with an ax. Guiteau ran away after a doctor on his sister’s behalf declares him insane. At least that’s what I remember from the book Destiny of the Republic, which is a really good read on this topic.

[@redjirachi1]

"Professionals have standards" Charles J Guiteau, apparently

[@Eric6761]

Sad how Giteau sister couldnt put him to treatment

[@emperorofrome692]

Here's the actual poem that Guiteau wrote and recited in a high-pitched voice at the gallows. "I am going to the Lordy, I am so glad, I am going to the Lordy, I am so glad, I am going to the Lordy, Glory hallelujah! Glory hallelujah! I am going to the Lordy. I love the Lordy with all my soul, Glory hallelujah! And that is the reason I am going to the Lord, Glory hallelujah! Glory hallelujah! I am going to the Lord. I saved my party and my land, Glory hallelujah! But they have murdered me for it, And that is the reason I am going to the Lordy, Glory hallelujah! Glory hallelujah! I am going to the Lordy! I wonder what I will do when I get to the Lordy, I guess that I will weep no more When I get to the Lordy! Glory hallelujah! I wonder what I will see when I get to the Lordy, I expect to see most glorious things, Beyond all earthly conception When I am with the Lordy! Glory hallelujah! Glory hallelujah! I am with the Lord." Sam wasn't lying when he said that the poem was repetitive.

[@raimarulightning]

Is... Is that even a poem? It's just nonsensical, repetitious rambling

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

That...is most definitely a poem. Can't help but feel sorry for the sick man, even though he killed a man. Can't help but feel sorry for'em.

[@BlueToast97]

...and this is almost exactly what the song in the musical is. Few words changed.

[@Ashley-jp4nn]

@@raimarulightning it’s not all that different from the church songs I grew up with... just...less creative somehow 😂

[@trevorcook3876]

@@BlueToast97 one of the few times sondheim has used others words in his works too. great song from a very underrated musical

[@tayters8763]

Oh dang, getting into Sam o'nella. I love the somewhat random nature of his topics but I was unsure if you would do his stuff as it can be a bit crass and cross lines that I haven't seen you cross, but I'm looking forward to it.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

Yeah a little out of my comfort zone but I like his stuff.

[@dummkopf7981]

@@LuanMower55 i second this

[@DFishFan]

@@LuanMower55 Yes! Would love to hear his perspective.

[@sirdr.doofenschmirtzthecat182]

@@dummkopf7981 I 7.8 Billion this

[@youcrany]

Wuuwwuutwuwuieyuwuwuwuuwuyuwuwuwut Uw

[@jonshive5482]

IIRC Guiteau was reputed to have said, "I shot Garfield. The doctors killed him." A wry statement concerning the woeful state of medical practice even in the late 19th century.

[@josepabloceniceros3483]

Your reaction to that “if the dick don’t spit” joke was priceless

[@skeletonbuyingpealts7134]

6:31

[@dummkopf7981]

@@skeletonbuyingpealts7134 thank you for your service

[@skeletonbuyingpealts7134]

@@dummkopf7981 No problem :]

[@airstrike9002]

@Miguel Armando yup I too am certainly not a bot who is programmed to recommend the same thing

[@larsemonts8782]

exactly

[@DevinMoorhead]

For a second I thought this was a Sam Onella post and my excitement was high

[@WARDEATHFUN]

It's the next best thing though tbh :p

[@The_Horse-leafs_Cabbage]

I know the feel, mate.... His poorly drawn thrown is eagerly awaiting his return.

[@soldiercantkill]

same

[@Byerly2k20]

Yeah... At least Grade-A is back

[@NeutralGuyDoubleZero]

@@Byerly2k20 let's hope he doesn't start making stupid overly serious crap again

[@DuBstep115]

I thought the postal was reference to the 90s brutal video game series Postal, where you go to town and kill everyone. Nice to know the real origin.

[@benn454]

Where did you think they got the idea for the game?

[@NatalieJ22]

Honestly sometimes history is so absurd that you have to laugh at it. Obviously what happened to Garfield was horrible but when the assassin is that insane, you gotta laugh at him.

[@redjirachi1]

I'm more mad at the doctors than Guiteau

[@germanfisch]

​@@redjirachi1well to be fair your average Joe today probably knows more about medical stuff than doctors of the past

[@enotsnavdier6867]

​@germanfisch Yeah it took WAYYYY too long for them to realize you should wash your fucking hands, and sterilize your equipment

[@kolosmenus]

17:40 It's funny, because I think most people my age, or even younger, know exactly what "going postal" means, but I've never heard where it came from.

[@devilmaycry09dante]

21:24 That facepalm got me laughing hard. I did not want to as I understand this guy really needed help, but oh my god his life is like a dark comedy.

[@Nikolaj11]

I really appreciate that you look into some of the more curious details, other people who react to Sam don't go quite so far even when they voice doubt about his claims. I think this is a good lesson for your viewers, that doubt without basis isn't any better than just taking everything presented in good faith.

[@mallc8874]

the glasses of truth

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

I like that.

[@mallc8874]

@@VloggingThroughHistory me to

[@icebreaker9995]

You should watch Alexander the Great and the opis mutiny speech

[@DaMathias]

My boy abe

[@zachosborne6577]

Love the fact checking “he could not have said bung hole” LOLOL that killed me

[@zacht1217]

You definitely are a high school history teacher haha I love your reactions. Please keep this up I guarantee you have inspired many kids to love history like us. My freshman history teacher did it for me and I will be for ever grateful for him showing me how awesome this subject is

[@TheMightyKent]

I’d love to see your reaction to Kings and Generals video on the Battle of Bannockburn during the Scottish War of Independence as I actually had an ancestor die in that battle support Robert de Brus. A man named David Barclay.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

My ancestor Robert de Clifford died there as well.

[@TheMightyKent]

@@VloggingThroughHistory From what digging I’ve done it seems the vast majority of my family comes from Wales and Scotland and there’s a surprising amount of them that have died fighting the British, before fleeing to Ireland and then the colonies after that. You’ve really got me interested in looking through my family history and trying to find the stories of these people.

[@TheMightyKent]

@@VloggingThroughHistory correction, it’s HistoryMarche that did the video on the battle of bannockburn, not Kings and generals.

[@TheMightyKent]

@The History a family friend of mine is descended from his brother! Her last name is actually Bruce!

[@zeallust8542]

21:40, its called Gallows humor, and it was actually pretty common back in the days of hangings I personally believe it was a coping mechanism, but it wasnt uncommon at all for people who were going to be hanged, to have basically a stand up routine beforehand. Its represented in a ton of shows and movies, but nobody realizes it was a real thing.

[@sigmasquadleader]

Probably their 15 minutes of fame.

[@zeallust8542]

@@sigmasquadleader I mean, may as well take advantage and try to be remembered in a good light in your last moments

[@IntentionsIV]

The “going postal” incident actually happened in my hometown, Edmond, OK. My mom brought it up every time we went to the post office

[@sam_culper7223]

Absolutely love your reactions to my favorite History Channels! Seeing you find out something new is so much fun. Would love to see you react to HISTORIA CIVILIS, He does an amazing series on Julius Caesar!

[@dr.atheist3087]

Just saying good luck to your boy on the soccer and thanks for getting this video ready for us.

[@DankSwegSkuxxXhayel]

Thank you for this content sir, you are a bright light for many in these dark times, much love from New Zealand!

[@StarzKri]

As someone who grew up and still lives in the Canton/Akron area, the McKinley monument was a big place in my childhood. Especially going to the museum all the time. I hope someone there was able to tell you the stories involving Mrs. McKinley.

[@nikigunn]

Stephen Sondheim used the poem from Guiteau's hanging in the musical Assassins, as Guiteau cakewalks up and down the stairs to the gallows. In his book "Look, I Made a Hat," Sondheim said The Ballad of Guiteau is one of the two songs where he set someone else's lyric to music.

[@johnclingman5270]

THANK YOU for the "hung" and "hanged" bit. I tell my students over and over it is hanged when it involves execution and hung every where else. No one ever believes me.

[@romellosmith3488]

Fun fact: one of the the first instances of someone going postal was in my native state of Oklahoma. It happened at a post office, hince the name.

[@theflapjack_1236]

I love the line "pulling out the glasses"

[@j.patrickboyce5513]

I felt that facepalm at 21:18 lol

[@travisnye3532]

Thank you for the Hung vs Hanged thing. It's a bug. Clothing is hung, people are hanged

[@catneko6855]

I feel like the historians child is loved by his dad alot and htats so great to be honest

[@otnat2094]

Please react to more Sam o nella! He does a lot of vids about history. 'World war II's unluckiest ship' is one of my favorites.

[@ChuckinCluck]

as someone from jersey i honestly never knew or cared to know the other 2 assassins, i always knew there were 4 and left it that

[@pomamoba]

His rags to riches video is the best of his work IMO

[@pattonpending7390]

You gotta love a KZbin guy with multiple 100% 'likes' on his videos.

[@drrakw2432]

Great video, I actually got to watch the stream this time. Thanks for posting!

[@nebzshady9389]

I always thought that "going postal" was a reference to the video games that I never played. Thanks for the info.

[@13StJimmy]

His video on Diogenes is also great... but very crude as I’m sure you can imagine 😂

[@aerialmacaroon6312]

You know looking at a lot of assassins I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if they weren’t either insane like Charles or taking a path the no one can comprehend

[@FlyAssGangstaBird]

It could be really fun watching you play some different historical maps on Geoguessr

[@capstan50g]

I grew up in Freeport IL and Charles Giteau is not the only famous person from there. Actress Callista Flockhart and football player Preston Pearson are also former residents, as was actor Spencer Tracy. It's also the site of a Lincoln-Douglas debate where the so-called "Freeport Doctrine" was first proposed by Douglas. To me, the most telling fact about Freeport when I lived there was that the population was only 26,000 but there were 66 churches. Also, my high school mascot was the Pretzel.

[@collinchurch1436]

The crossover I've been waiting for:)

[@nickoslin2810]

From someone who grew up in Mentor, good job on the pronunciation! 😂 Keep up the great work!

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

I speak at Shore, Memorial, and the High School every few years. One of my favorite places!

[@brianarbenz1329]

Yes he was called Charles Git-out by the women at Oneida. I saw A PBS documentary on the assassination which included that fact.

[@noissey2]

Last night I was thinking about asking you to react to this very video xd. So thanks!

[@SwineBrothers]

I saw this a year ago and got Assassination Vacation because you said it was good. You are not wrong, very entertaining and informative book.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@alexwood5582]

Wow! I was at the same tournament and was able to see his grave too!

[@TheMasonK]

As someone who works with the physically and mentally handicapped population for a living, this guy seemed to have the perfect storm to bring him to “madness”. When we analyze people with disabilities we look at a few factors such as family genetic (mental disorders specifically) history, early family life, and environmental factors (where do they come from geographically and are they rural or urban) to name a few. This guy had a lot of trauma in his past from his family dying to his father being abusive to being rejected in a Christian denomination. Trauma is a huge cause of many disorders. His narcissism seemed to be caused from his lack of feeling accepted. His brain seemed to form a defense from feeling rejected and instead of thinking through it logically (figuring out that he has problems he needs to hash out), he feels that everyone else is wrong.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

My wife and I were discussing all of this last night. She’s a social worker getting her masters in school counseling and is fascinated by studying the upbringing of people like Guiteau.

[@TheMasonK]

@@VloggingThroughHistory good for her!

[@redjirachi1]

History: Why'd you kill the head of state? John Wilkes Booth: I was an actor enraged by the loss of the Confederacy, so I used my position to play the role of Brutus to a man I saw as a tyrant. And I almost had the vice president and secretary of state dead as well Leon Czolgoz: I was an anarchist who loathed the rich elite and the working conditions of honest folk. So I took after anarchist shootings across Europe and took out a man I saw as a symbol of the rich elite. Lee Harvey Oswald: I was an ex-Soviet defector. I was shot before I could say by a bar owner associated with the mafia, spawning countless conspiracy theories and distrust in the government. Charles J Guiteau: *stonks*

[@raiden_mc]

Love this!

[@screenloch9291]

Fun fact about Chester Alan Arthur, his middle name was pronounced Al-AN as he chose to put emphasis on the 2nd syllable

[@ronnimcallister3970]

You NEED to react to Assassins the musical

[@isaacbobjork7053]

Knowing US geography quite well I also reacted immediately to the "Ann Harbor" bit. Ann Arbor!

[@justinlaird1655]

I’m from Mentor, OH. Been to Garfield’s house a few times it’s a pretty cool place! The Cleveland Museum of Natural History is pretty great too if you’re in the area again

[@yoslo6832]

I would love to view an alternative history where Garfield lived and finished his term.

[@SovietUnionCCCP]

16:45 “DAMN YOU GARFIELD!!!!!!!”

[@kianfanella1753]

Please watch more of Sam o’nella this is the the hardest I’ve laughed in a while!

[@Nightout88]

ah yes "postal" is a great game about delivering mail to your neighborhood

[@Zarflame99_Alt]

Greetings from Southington, Ohio near Niles and Warren.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

I know it well. I grew up in Mineral Ridge.

[@TheGravityShifter]

Petty thing here but I remember when a friend of mine tried to "correct" me by saying "hung" when it comes to execution. I hate the fact he tried correcting me when it wasn't correct in the first place, and I hate it more that I didn't research to prove he was wrong and went over 3 years just believing him so we wouldn't argue.

[@13StJimmy]

After thinking about it even if this sounds cliche but this guy sounds like the real life joker 😂

[@JABRIEL251]

Sometimes fact really is stranger than fiction.

[@jtilton5]

"Charles Guiteau? Sounds like a John Bull to me?" "No my good sir, I believe the assasin to be of French denotion."

[@David-fm6go]

I agree Garfield was a missed opportunity for the country.

[@t3trash565]

I see your uncofertability with sam o nella and its so funny

[@nickkonkle541]

lol I know right. "I feel like we're spending a little too much time on this topic". I can tell he's a dad

[@Cathmoytura]

14:38. I'm naturally ambidextrous and have done the write two things simultaneously trick. It's done by picking words that share a lot of letters, even if in different alphabets. It's best if the first couple letters of the words are the same. When one hand is writing, say, a shared "A," you write it with the other. You pause with one hand as the other writes an unshared letter, then write that hand's next letter. Yes, it takes good word selection and practice. But once you're proficient it impresses people. Then it creeps them out.

[@WaywardVet]

What did I just watch??? I'm very glad you stopped and fact checked some of this, because it's a level of deranged insanity that is hard to believe. Great video!

[@kjsalomonsen9299]

Alexander Graham Bell invented the metal detector for finding the bullet in Garfield.

[@alexmoorehead8501]

Commenting in case Gabriel Reyes' comment goes unseen, you should react to Sam o Nella's video about the Banana Republics!

[@Zanthosus]

I was born and raised in Freeport, IL until I was 16, and I don't think I ever learned that Charles Guiteau was originally from there. Our local historical fun fact is the Lincoln-Douglas debate site, where many believe Lincoln really sealed the deal for his presidency.

[@capstan50g]

Howdy, fellow Freeporter!

[@radlerdramatizations]

Shout out from NEO i grew up and live around the great trail and sandy beaver canal in carroll county!

[@konnorp1259]

Hello from Toledo! Love your vids!

[@stephenrask536]

This guy's story is electric, totally agree someone in his life failed us all by not having him put in a mental institution at the time..

[@ryanm9566]

I did a report on President Garfield in elementary school. I don't actually remember much about him specifically, but I remember being bummed out that I didn't get one of the more notable presidents and didn't think I'd have enough content to do a whole report on, then being surprised that there was a lot of interesting information when I started digging into it. Also about "going postal", it's important to remember that nobody "just snaps." Well, they do...but nobody snaps without a reason. Maybe not a justifiable reason, but a reason. It's sometimes mental illness, but often not. Usually it's extremist ideology like in the case of most mass shootings, bombings, terrorism or cult suicides; but it can also just be people pushed past their breaking point. These disgruntled workers were pushed to breaking point in a workplace environment the GAO described as, "coercive and abusive." It was one of the few jobs that people without higher education or specialized training could get to achieve a middle-class life, so they felt stuck. All of their complaints for better working conditions went unheeded, and many directly attribute those incidents of workplace rage to Postal Service management.

[@4RealAustinAndJacob]

From Niles Michigan :D

[@micahallen2226]

his song in the Assassins musical was the best

[@SwineBrothers]

I wouldn't say nobody cares, except I forgot that Garfield was even killed. That being said, Charles is a fascinating character.

[@altsadhara]

I'm indifferent on the hanged/hung debate. Languages don't have strict, unchanging rules; enough people use "hung" that it's an accepted word for the purpose.

[@schnibist]

finally someone who gets it

[@drugstoredilemmas7962]

I’m so glad I’m not the only one who gets slightly peeved when people say “hung” instead of “hanged” in proper circumstances

[@empollonamericano328]

6:31 new lines for my vocabulary

[@WBLOrange1]

You should react to some video games. See how historically accurate they are. Would be awesome to see.

[@phcusnret]

That's pretty freaky about Robert Todd Lincoln being close to the three presidential assassinations that happened in his lifetime.

[@TheLaserdice]

I used to work at the Planetarium at the McKinley Presidential Library & Museum.

[@jacobcochran3743]

Yeah Capone had syphilis when he died his brain was about the same as a 12 year old, also Lovecraft had syphilis as well i believe because his dad had it and when he was born he got it

[@sophiepalmer-doran344]

more info On July 2, 1881, Charles J. Guiteau fired two bullets from his Bulldog .44 at Garfield. One caused a superficial arm wound. The other entered in the right posterior thorax, fractured rib 11, traveled leftward and anteriorly into the L1 vertebral body, then lodged about 2.5 inches to the left of the spine, below the inferior border of the pancreas. For some period after the shooting, Garfield was fed rectally After the shooting, Garfield was treated with high maintenance doses of quinine (5 to 10 grains per day) and morphine (one-fourth grain daily), frequent sips of brandy, and a single dose of calomel. Garfield had chronic abdominal symptoms during his convalescence. They were ascribed to the calomel by one of the homeopathic practitioners attending him Garfield died 80 days after being shot. The cause of death has usually been described as either: (1) rupture of a splenic artery aneurysm, or (2) pyemia. In fact, his death was probably due to ischemic heart disease. At his trial, the assassin Guiteau admitted shooting the President, but denied killing him. Instead, he claimed that Garfield's physicians killed him. Although Guiteau was executed because his defense was not strong enough, he was probably correct. Garfield's original wound was 3.5 inches long, and ended with the bullet lodged in a harmless part of the abdomen. The wound was probed by the fingers of numerous physicians during the rest of Garfield's life so that, by the time of his death, the wound track was 20 inches long and oozing pus. It seems reasonable that the terminal event in Garfield's life was a myocardial infarction. However, the wound could have contributed to the terminal event in three ways, all of them derived from the fact that Garfield was mightily infected for a period of 3 months: It seems reasonable to suppose that Garfield had anemia of chronic disease, which would have lowered the ischemic threshold. Chronic infection could have led to amyloidosis. If it affected the heart, then it is not surprising that an ischemic event would have been so rapidly fatal. It is becoming increasingly clear that coronary atherosclerosis is an inflammatory, perhaps infectious, disease. It is possible that Garfield's chronic inflammation and infection could have accelerated atherosclerosis. @t

[@Iris_1217]

Alexander Graham Bell created the metal detector which the doctors used to try to find the bullet, which is wild. I couldn't find a reference to Guiteau attacking his sister with an axe. Did that actually happen? I mean, it would make sense, he definitely didn't seem to like his family much. Then there's the attempted assassination of Andrew Jackson (Two pistols, both misfired), Theodore Roosevelt (Bullet lodged in his chest, went through with the speech anyway, the bullet was slowed down by his glasses case and the notes he had for the speech), FDR (The assassin missed and ended up shooting the Mayor of Chicago), Gerald Ford (Twice in two weeks, once by a member of the Manson family), Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan. Including the four that were successful, that's 10 different assassination attempts on sitting Presidents (Eleven if you count both of the ones on Ford).

[@JHarris533]

5:35 - I Imagine Christian Perfectionists would point to Mathew 22:30 as to why they do not believe in marriage: "At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage"... same as to why many Christian Perfectionists were also fervent abolitionist - William Lloyd Garrison for instance

[@ZackyDaley]

Sometimes when you read historical books they have important info worded in a nonchalant way lol

[@jbjstyx]

I completely agree with you about Garfield, One omy absolutely favorite books is Destiny of the Republic about James A Garfield

[@Greg-jq1co]

I don't know what kind of bible that cult was reading but I had a good laugh.

[@jacob7300]

Good luck climbing the steps at the Mckinley Monument. Those really kill me.

[@taticeausescu3393]

Rip samonella

[@johnmichaelchance1151]

He’s just working on getting his degree right now.

[@bubblechip4]

@@johnmichaelchance1151 how you know?

[@joebobby1412]

I need your reactions to all of Sam O'Nella's videos ASAP.

[@mr.churchy3356]

I’m from the uk so I’m not an expert on us history but I know a fair amount and like learning more from your videos. Have you looked into the history behind the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan? I noticed you laughed and then said that you shouldn’t but sometimes it’s genuinely hard not to because nobody could come up with this stuff.

[@dennis2376]

Thank you.

[@davidtownsend6092]

Hello bro greetings from a fellow history nurd in Cleveland lol.

[@zeallust8542]

17:30 I knew what the term "going postal" meant, but I never knew the origins of it. Learn something new everyday, right?

[@zeallust8542]

Its kinda weird, I knew the term "going postal" because of a great, insensitive as hell, video game called "postal"

[@cdaiv3668]

I think the use of an early x-ray machine under his bed sent rust particles into his body.

[@ourtube3801]

How about Leon Czolgosz?

[@Kriegter]

Godamn Robert Todd Lincoln must had thought he was cursed

[@koreywitabagg665]

I mean who’s to say he wasn’t