Charles Sumner Is Attacked On The Floor

On this day in 1856 preston brooks a congressman from south carolina viciously attacked massachusetts senator charles sumner on the floor of the united states senate.

Charles sumner is attacked on the floor. In one of the most violent events in the history of the senate during this period one of its members was subjected to a severe beating while seated at his desk on the floor of the old senate chamber. But the attacker wasn t an assassin he was a fellow elected representative. On may 22 1856 representative preston brooks attacked senator charles sumner with a metal tipped cane leaving sumner seriously injured. Attack on senator charles sumner.

Three days earlier in a passionate anti slavery speech sumner had used language southerners found deeply offensive. Senate during the american civil war during reconstruction he fought to minimize the power of the ex. Rather than challenge sumner to. The caning of charles sumner or the brooks sumner affair occurred on may 22 1856 in the united states senate when representative preston brooks a pro slavery democrat from south carolina used a walking cane to attack senator charles sumner an abolitionist republican from massachusetts in retaliation for a speech given by sumner two days earlier in which he fiercely criticized.

On this date representative preston brooks of south carolina accompanied by representative laurence keitt of south carolina severely beat senator charles sumner of massachusetts with a cane in the senate chamber. It is believed that firebrand john brown and his supporters were inspired by the beating of sumner to attack pro enslavement settlers. On may 19 massachusetts senator charles sumner an ardent abolitionist began a two day speech on the senate floor in which he decried the crime against kansas and blasted three of his. Charles sumner january 6 1811 march 11 1874 was an american politician and united states senator from massachusetts as an academic lawyer and a powerful orator sumner was the leader of the anti slavery forces in the state and a leader of the radical republicans in the u s.

And in kansas news of the savage beating on the senate floor arrived by telegraph and inflamed passions even more. Brooks s violent act was in response to a speech in which sumner attacked the institution of slavery and pro slavery senators such as andrew butler of south carolina brooks s. A nearly fatal beating on the u s. Senate floor on this day in 1856 was another step toward a civil war five years later.

The speech sumner had given of course had been about kansas.