This Day in History: Burr Slays Hamilton in a Duel
- 5 years ago
This Day in History:
Burr Slays Hamilton in a Duel July 11, 1804 Vice President Aaron Burr shot
leading Federalist Alexander
Hamilton in the stomach.
Hamilton died the next day. The "affair of honor"
was the culmination of
two decades of political and
personal rivalry between the two. They came from opposite
backgrounds. Burr from a
prestigious family and Hamilton
from relative obscurity. They matured into politics
in the new nation with opposing
visions of what kind of country
America should be. During the duel, conflicting
accounts reveal that Hamilton
either shot at Burr and missed
or deliberately fired into the air. While charged with Hamilton's murder,
Burr was immune from prosecution
because he held the office of vice president.
Burr Slays Hamilton in a Duel July 11, 1804 Vice President Aaron Burr shot
leading Federalist Alexander
Hamilton in the stomach.
Hamilton died the next day. The "affair of honor"
was the culmination of
two decades of political and
personal rivalry between the two. They came from opposite
backgrounds. Burr from a
prestigious family and Hamilton
from relative obscurity. They matured into politics
in the new nation with opposing
visions of what kind of country
America should be. During the duel, conflicting
accounts reveal that Hamilton
either shot at Burr and missed
or deliberately fired into the air. While charged with Hamilton's murder,
Burr was immune from prosecution
because he held the office of vice president.