Daniel M'Naghten - Assassination

Assassination

In January 1843, M'Naghten was noticed acting suspiciously around Whitehall in London. On the afternoon of 20 January the Prime Minister's private secretary, civil servant Edward Drummond, was walking towards Downing Street from Charing Cross when M'Naghten approached him from behind, drew a pistol and fired at point-blank range into his back. M'Naghten was overpowered by a police constable before he could fire a second pistol. It is generally thought, although the evidence is not conclusive, that M'Naghten was under the impression that he had shot the prime minister, Robert Peel.

At first it was thought that Drummond's wound was not serious. He managed to walk away, the bullet was removed and the first newspaper reports were optimistic: The ball has been extracted. No vital part is injured, and Mr Guthrie and Mr Bransby Cooper have every reason to believe that Mr. Drummond is doing very well. But complications set in and, in spite of (or possibly because of; see below) the surgeons' efforts—bleeding and leeching—Drummond died five days later.

M'Naghten appeared at Bow Street magistrates' court the morning after the assassination attempt. He made a brief statement in which he described how persecution by the Tories had driven him to act: The Tories in my native city have compelled me to do this. They follow, persecute me wherever I go, and have entirely destroyed my peace of mind... It can be proved by evidence. That is all I have to say. It was indeed all he had to say. He never spoke about the assassination again (apart from a dozen words when asked to plead guilty or not guilty at arraignment).