View source for Richard Lawrence (failed assassin)

{{Short description|Failed assassin of Andrew Jackson (c. 1800–1861)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox criminal
| name              = Richard Lawrence
| image             = Shooting at the President - The Remarkable Trial of Richard Lawrence (cropped).png
| caption           = Depiction of Lawrence, 1835
| birth_date        = {{circa|1800}}
| birth_place       = England, [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]]
| death_date        = {{death date and age|1861|06|13|1800}}
| death_place       = [[Washington, D.C.]], U.S.
| resting_place     = [[Rock Creek Cemetery]], Washington,&nbsp;D.C., U.S.
| nationality       = American
| known_for         = Attempt to assassinate [[Andrew Jackson]]
| charge            = [[List of United States presidential assassination attempts and plots#Other attacks, assassination attempts, and plots|Assault upon the president of the United States with intent to murder]]<ref>{{cite web|title=UNITED STATES v. LAWRENCE|url=https://law.resource.org/pub/us/case/reporter/F.Cas/0026.f.cas/0026.f.cas.0887.pdf}}</ref>
{{Infobox event
| title = 
| child = yes
| verdict = [[Acquittal|Not guilty]] by [[Insanity defense|reason of insanity]]
}}
| penalty           = [[Involuntary commitment]]
| motive            = [[Delusion|Insane delusions]]
}}

'''Richard Lawrence''' ({{circa|1800}} – June 13, 1861) was a British-born American unemployed [[house painter]] who was the first known person to attempt the [[List of United States presidential assassination attempts and plots|assassination of a sitting president of the United States]]. Lawrence [[Attempted assassination of Andrew Jackson|attempted to shoot]] President [[Andrew Jackson]] outside the [[United States Capitol]] on January 30, 1835, however both of his pistols misfired and he was taken into custody. At trial, Lawrence was found [[Acquittal|not guilty]] by [[Insanity defense|reason of insanity]] and spent the remainder of his life in [[insane asylum]]s.

==Early life==
Lawrence was born in [[England]], [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]] most likely around 1800 or 1801. His family migrated to the United States when he was 12 years old and settled in [[Virginia]], near Washington, D.C. Lawrence's childhood and early adult years were apparently normal as was his behavior. At his trial, he was described by acquaintances and relatives as a "relatively fine young boy" who was "reserved in his manner; but industrious and of good moral habits."<ref>{{harvnb|Clarke|2012|p=236}}</ref> Lawrence later found work as a house painter. Historians have speculated that Lawrence’s exposure to the toxic chemicals used in paint in the 1800s (including lead, [[antimony]], [[Chromate and dichromate|chromates]], [[sulfide]]s and [[barium]]) contributed to his mental illness, which manifested itself when he was in his thirties. Lawrence began exhibiting [[Dissociative disorder|dissociative behavior]] and violent tendencies, especially towards his siblings.<ref name=johnson>{{harvnb|Johnson|2010|p=38}}</ref>

==Life, and mental health issues==
By November 1832, Lawrence's behavior and mental stability had inexplicably changed. He abruptly announced to his family that he was returning to England, and he left [[Washington, D.C.|Washington DC]] shortly thereafter. He returned a month later telling his family he had decided not to travel abroad as it was too cold. Shortly after returning, he again announced that he was returning to England to study landscape painting.<ref name="clarke1">{{harvnb|Clarke|2012|pp=236–237}}</ref>

Lawrence left once again and briefly stayed in [[Philadelphia]] before returning home. He told his family that "unnamed persons" had prevented him from traveling abroad and that the U.S. government also disapproved of his plan to return to England. Lawrence also claimed that while he was in Philadelphia, he had read several stories about himself in the newspaper that were critical of his travel plans and his character. Lawrence told his family that he had no choice but to return to Washington until he could afford to buy a ship and hire a captain who would sail the ship to England for him.<ref name="clarke1" />

Around this time,{{vague|date=January 2019}} Lawrence abruptly quit his house painting job. When questioned by his sister and brother-in-law, with whom he was living, Lawrence claimed that, because the U.S. government owed him a large sum of money, he did not need to work. Lawrence had come to believe that he was owed money because he was [[Richard III of England]] and owned two English estates. Lawrence became convinced that President [[Andrew Jackson]]'s opposition to the [[Second Bank of the United States]] was preventing the distribution of the money he believed he was owed. He felt that if Jackson were no longer in office, Vice President [[Martin Van Buren]] would establish a national bank and allow Congress to pay him the money for his English estate claims.<ref name="clarke1" />

Lawrence's personality and outward appearance changed dramatically around this time. Once conservatively dressed, Lawrence grew a mustache and began buying expensive and flamboyant clothing, which he would change three or four times a day. He took to standing in the doorway of his home for hours and gazing out into the street. Neighborhood children would jokingly address him as "King Richard", which typically pleased Lawrence, who failed to realize the children were teasing him. He also became paranoid and hostile towards others. On one occasion, he threatened to kill a maid who he thought was laughing at him. Lawrence also began verbally and physically abusing his family, mainly his sisters, over imagined slights. In one instance, he threatened to hit his sister with a paperweight because he believed that she had been talking about him. At Lawrence's trial, witnesses described the bizarre behavior that he exhibited. Several people testified that Lawrence would engage in nonsensical conversations with himself, and others stated that he would have laughing and [[profanity|cursing]] fits.<ref>{{harvnb|Clarke|2012|p=238}}</ref>

==Assassination attempt==
{{Main|Attempted assassination of Andrew Jackson}}
[[File:Assassination attempt on Jackson (cropped).jpg|thumb|Etching of the assassination attempt]]
In the weeks leading up to the assassination attempt, Lawrence began observing Jackson's movements. Witnesses later testified that Lawrence was often seen sitting in his paint shop muttering to himself about Jackson. On Friday, January 30, 1835, the day of the assassination attempt, Lawrence was seen sitting in his paint shop with a book in his hand while laughing. Lawrence suddenly got up, left the shop and stated, "I'll be damned if I don't do it."<ref>{{harvnb|Clarke|2012|pp=238–239}}</ref>

Later on that same day, Jackson was attending the funeral of [[South Carolina]] Representative [[Warren R. Davis]] at the [[U.S. Capitol]]. Lawrence originally planned to shoot Jackson as he entered the service but was unable to get close enough to him. However, by the time Jackson left the funeral, Lawrence had found a space near a pillar on the East Portico, where Jackson would pass. As Jackson walked by, Lawrence stepped out and fired his first pistol at Jackson's back; it misfired. Lawrence quickly made another attempt with his second pistol, but that also misfired. It was later determined that the weapons that he had chosen were noted for being vulnerable to moisture, and the weather on that date was humid and damp.<ref name=johnson/>

Lawrence's unsuccessful attempts were noticed by Jackson, who proceeded to beat Lawrence with a cane. The crowd, which included U.S. Representative [[Davy Crockett]], eventually intervened and wrestled Lawrence into submission.<ref name=johnson/> Lawrence was the first person to attempt to kill a sitting U.S. president.{{sfn|Johnson|2010|p=37}}

==Trial and commitment==
Lawrence was brought to trial on April 11, 1835, at the [[District of Columbia City Hall]]. The prosecuting attorney was [[Francis Scott Key]].<ref name="bartee">{{cite book|last1=Bartee|first1=Wayne C.|last2=Fleetwood Bartee|first2=Alice|title=Litigating Morality: American Legal Thought and Its English Roots|date=1992|publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]]|isbn=0-275-94127-2|page=91}}</ref> At his trial, Lawrence was prone to wild rants and he refused to recognize the legitimacy of the proceedings. At one point he said to the courtroom, "It is for me, gentlemen, to pass judgment on you, and not you upon me." After only five minutes of deliberation, the jury found Lawrence "[[insanity defense|not guilty by reason of insanity]]".<ref>{{harvnb|Regan|2008|p=31}}</ref>

In the years following his acquittal, Lawrence was held by several institutions and hospitals. In 1855, he was committed to the newly opened Government Hospital for the Insane<ref>{{Cite web|title=St. Elizabeths Hospital: A History|url=http://www.dcpreservation.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/0-COMPLETE-St.-Elizabeths-Hospital-A-History.pdf}}</ref> (later renamed [[St. Elizabeths Hospital]]), in Washington, D.C., where he remained until his death on June 13, 1861.<ref>{{harvnb|Oliver|Marion|2010|p=13}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=Barbour |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XKNcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=V1gNAAAAIBAJ&pg=6794,1770212 |title=Troubled minds pass through St Elizabeths Hospital |date=November 18, 1982 |work=Gettysburg Times |agency=Associated Press |page=23 |access-date=February 5, 2013}}</ref>

==Aftermath==
As with later assassinations, there was speculation that Lawrence was part of a [[conspiracy (political)|conspiracy]]. While nobody denied Lawrence's involvement, many people, including Jackson, believed that he might have been supported in or put up to carrying out the assassination attempt by the President's political enemies. U.S. Senator (and Jackson's former vice president) [[John C. Calhoun]] made a statement on the Senate floor that he was not connected to the attack. Nevertheless, Jackson believed that Calhoun, an old enemy, was at the bottom of the attempt.<ref name="knight">{{cite book|editor=Knight, Peter|title=Conspiracy Theories in American History: An Encyclopedia|year=2003|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=1-576-07812-4|page=362}}</ref>

Jackson also suspected a former friend and supporter, Senator [[George Poindexter]] of Mississippi, who had used Lawrence to do some house painting a few months earlier. Because Poindexter was unable to convince his supporters in Mississippi that he was not involved in a plot against Jackson, he was defeated for re-election. However, no evidence was ever discovered that connected Lawrence with either Calhoun or Poindexter in a plot to kill Jackson.<ref name="knight"/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |title=Defining Danger: American Assassins and the New Domestic Terrorists |last=Clarke |first=James W. |publisher=Transaction Publishers |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-4128-4590-8 |location=New Brunswick, NJ |oclc=743040369}}
* {{cite book |title=Trials of the Century: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture and the Law, Volume 1 |last=Johnson |first=Scott Patrick |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-59884-261-6 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |oclc=702674902}}
* {{cite book |title=Killing the President: Assassinations, Attempts, and Rumored Attempts on U.S. Commanders-In-Chief |last2=Marion |first2=Nancy E. |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-313-36474-7 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |oclc=733346450 |last1=Oliver |first1=Willard M. |name-list-style=amp}}
* {{cite book |title=Mass Historia: 365 Days of Historical Facts and (Mostly) Fictions |last=Regan |first=Chris |publisher=[[Andrews McMeel Publishing]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7407-6869-9 |location=Kansas City, MO |oclc=172521785 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/masshistoria365d0000rega }}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/andrew-jackson-narrowly-escapes-assassination This Day In History: Andrew Jackson narrowly escapes assassination] at [[History (U.S. TV channel)|History.com]]

{{Andrew Jackson}}
{{US Presidential Assassination Attempts}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, Richard}}
[[Category:1800s births]]
[[Category:1861 deaths]]
[[Category:Andrew Jackson]]
[[Category:American failed assassins]]
[[Category:Burials at Rock Creek Cemetery]]
[[Category:Deaths in psychiatric hospitals]]
[[Category:English emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Failed assassins of presidents of the United States]]
[[Category:House painters]]
[[Category:People acquitted by reason of insanity]]
[[Category:People with dissociative disorders]]