Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President
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Last update: 11-30-2025
Top reviews from the United States
- ScottA well-researched and engaging work about a key time in our historyMs. Millard does American history writing a service in Destiny of the Republic in several ways: 1) Rigorous research; 2) Shining a light on a sometimes neglected part of our history; 3) Providing a terrific narrative arc.
Research: History writing gained steam after Shelby Foote, I believe, re-engaged the public through his Civil War trilogy. In the avalanche of history books in the following decades there are hits and misses, the misses sometimes due to factual errors or too-breezy text. Ms. Millard demonstrates the craft of fine research and writing in Destiny of the Republic, incorporating diverse firsthand sources into her work - diaries, news articles, court records and interviews, as well as important analyses from magazines and books between the 1880s and today. Her precision and attention to detail are excellent.
The author's service to history readers extends to her portrait of Garfield who is easily overlooked in the line of chief executives. His demeanor and intellectual capacity are articulated well here. Re-introducing him to American history readers through this book brings him well-deserved attention even though he didn't have time to fully leave his mark on the nation's top office.
Reviving the history of the late 19th century: Much has been written about the mid-century since The Civil War marks its 150th year in 2011. The early 1800s has been a hot topic through several books. The Oxford history series produced Empire of Liberty (1789 - 1815) and What Hath God Wrought (1815 - 1848). McCollough wrote the terrific biography of Adams that sweeps us wonderfully from the late 1700s into the 1800s, and his newest book, The Greater Journey, starts in the early 1800s and overlaps into the later 1800s, though its focus is Americans in France.
A smart and notable book about the 1880s timeframe is Dark Horse from 2004, an important political look at Garfield and his contemporaries.
Destiny of the Republic creates for us a framework for America at the time Garfield. America wrestled with various issues that we could easily not consider today. The assassination closely followed the Civil War and raised a question of renewed internal turmoil, American technology was at an inflection point, and our growing pains and pride were being exercised as we evolved from a frontier, still vibrant in the West, to a mechanized and just-emerging urban society in the East.
Millard taps examples salient to this transformation of America, such as the medical theories of Joseph Lister that were not appreciated, and the tentative beginning that Bell experienced with his invention. Her use of these stories artfully brings the reader into a context of the time. The book solidly presents a needed perspective on the era via the thread of personal stories.
Which brings me to the third point - the narrative arc of the book. In a September 15 Washington Post article, Ms. Millard says, "If I have learned anything about nonfiction writing, it is that the challenge is not in finding a great story to tell. More often than not, real life is so rich, complex and unpredictable that it would seem completely implausible in the pages of a novel. The difficulty lies in understanding the people you are writing about -- not their actions, or even their thoughts, but their deepest character."
Recognizing that facet of history writing has proven critical and successful as Millard unleashes a narrative as engaging as any work of fiction. Destiny of the Republic pulls the reader in immediately. Its Prologue is storytelling craftsmanship that weaves suspense, a foreshadowing of murderous psychology and showing the reader that the author is going to provide rich elements to the history it explores.
The book delivers a cohesive story. Other reviews have already applauded the narrative qualities of the book:
In the Christian Science Monitor (September 13), Erick Spanberg says, "Millard builds a popular history that is both substantive and satisfying. Filled with memorable characters, hairpin twists of fate and consequences that bring a young nation to the breaking point ..."
Another reviewer says "... Candice Millard's The Destiny of the Republic manages to do more than justify its existence. Indeed she manages to present a compelling, tense work of history, a book that has the potential to cross over in the way that Manhunt and Devil in the White City did."
This book deserves to be mentioned in the company of those excellent books. Millard has crafted diverse facts into a colorful mosaic of the times. Regarding her research, she notes in her book's Acknowledgements: "...every time I visited one of these archives I found largely forgotten items that, more than a century after Garfield's death, brought him suddenly and vividly to life."
Millard's joy of discovery translates well to her narrative. Her enthusiasm is contagious. - Robert TuckerMeticulous research, outstanding writing, and comprehensive presentationHaving read Candice Millard's The River of Doubt, an outstanding contribution to the literature on Theodore Roosevelt, it was with great anticipation that I purchased this book from Amazon and began to read about James Garfield. A forgotten President due to his short tenure in office, James Garfied is deserving of a higher place in history. Showing the convergence of an insane man, the medical community, and President James Garfield, Destiny of the Republic tells the story of how a tragedy shaped a nation and ultimately caused a change in society for the better.
The book opens with the drowning of passengers aboard the Stonington and Narragansett after they collided in 1880. Insane con artist Charles Guiteau, who lived through the collision and believed his survival was a sign of his destiny, commits himself to killing James Garfied. Tracing his life as a preacher, liar, cheat, and delusioned politician, Destiny of the Republic carefully follows Charles Guiteau all the way through the assassination and finally his trial and execution. In the process we learn of the complexities of the not guilty by insanity plea as well as the problems of religious and political zealots. Getting into the mind of the crazed assassin, we gain from knowing the psychology and flawed mental thinking that could cause someone to kill a President.
At the same time we read about Guiteau, we also learn about the medical community replete with its strengths and flaws of thinking at the time. Although antiseptic surgery was discovered by Joseph Lister and used in Europe, most American doctors did not accept it as an approach to medicine. Without direct knowledge of bacteria, many physicians did not consider the value of a sterile environment for practicing medicine. It was common and even a mark of success to operate with blood on the clothes and with used instruments. Doctors would often dig their fingers into wounds, probing for bullets or other objects, causing greater infection and rarely curing the patient. It was not uncommon for bullets to remain in patients for years as the body adjusted to the foreign object. The greater danger was often the doctors themselves. In Garfield's case, Dr. Bliss insisted on being the primary physician and continually probed for the bullet, never finding it but slowly destroying Garfield by creating a bacateria filled canal that spread throughout the President's body.
In spite of the invention of a type of metal detector called the Induction Balance by famed inventor Alexander Graham Bell, a man known for the telephone and later the founding of the National Geographic Society, the bullet in James Garfield was never found. Although relentless in his pursuit of a way to help the President, Bell's invention was not effective due to the attending physician's wrong belief in the pathway and location of the bullet.
The biographical information on James Garfield is thorough, authentic, and engaging. Born into a poor family, Garfield became a scientist, a scholar, a soldier, a civil rights advocate, a devoted family man, and finally a statesman. A reluctant although effective politician, Garfield became President because of his intellect and popular demand rather than shrewd campaigning. His destiny to be President seemed pre-written and a result of his remarkable alacrity and natural leadership abilities. Unable to harbor resentment, maintaining a positive disposition and a love of life, Garfield's impact on society and culture was special and unique. These qualities and more add to the tragic circumstances of his life and death.
The book is well-written with perceptive insights into personalities, politics of the time, assassinations, insanity, and medical developments. In spite of the objective presentation of the facts, the outpouring of emotions can be felt on nearly every page. We can almost feel the blind probing into the back of the President and the pain of the infection as it ravaged his body. We despise the doctors, we cheer for Alexander Graham Bell, and we continually hold in disdain the man who shot and ultimately killed him. This marvelous book is highly recommend for readers of history, assassinations, and political machinations of the time. Not easy to put aside, Destiny of the Republic has an overriding tone of men and women who make a difference in the world. Although tragic and sad, in many ways this book portrays hope for the future as we learn to appreciate the medical advances of our time.