strong> When an ailing Franklin D. Roosevelt died in Warm Springs, Georgia on April 12, 1945, he served as president of the United States for a long 12 years. However, history could have turned out quite differently. It was close, and he would never have assumed this position. On February 15, 1933, he literally miraculously escaped death at the hands of an assassination attempt
The beginning of the 1930s was a difficult period for Americans. The Great Depression was taking its toll on them, and the actions taken by Herbert Hoover to overcome it did not bring results. Therefore, when Roosevelt appeared on the scene with the slogan of New Deal ( New Deal ), it was him who, on November 8, 1932, elected the 32nd president of the United States.
After an exhausting campaign - in early 1933 - the winner decided to take a well-deserved vacation. As reported in Poland by "Ilustrowany Kuryer Codzienny": he took part in a fishing trip on board the yacht "Nourmachal". After it was over, he was going to go to New York to complete his administration.
Almost a haircut and history would have been different
Everything went smoothly until February 15, 1933. It was on this day that the yacht with Franklin D. Roosevelt reached Miami. On this occasion, the city authorities decided to duly receive the honorable guest. Roosevelt in Bayside Park was to give a speech and attend a banquet in his honor.
Giuseppe Zangara. It was he who on February 15, 1933, attempted to murder Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Many prominent politicians and businessmen attended the meeting. Of course, there were also crowds of Florida residents in the park, eager to see the president-elect with their own eyes. Among them, however, there was also a man who did not intend to applaud the new head of state. He had completely different plans - he wanted to kill the president!
That man was the Italian anarchist Giuseppe Zangara. He had learned about Rooveselt's visit by accident a few days earlier. Without thinking, he bought a revolver from the local pawnshop and on Wednesday afternoon he tried to get as close as possible to the convertible from which the elect was speaking.
As he was of small stature - he measured only about 155 cm - no one paid any attention to him and the attacker calmly positioned himself a few meters from his target.
As Roosevelt got out of the car to greet the crowd, Zangara swiftly reached for his gun and fired five shots . However, not one of them even scratched the head of state! The president-elect owed his life to the consciousness of the mind of Thomas Armor and Lillian Cross, who won the anarchist's hand at the last minute, thereby saving Roosevelt from certain death.
Injured Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak. He was hit by one of the President-elect's bullets.
Assassination of the president, or maybe the mayor?
Unfortunately, the stray bullets injured five people, including two badly. One of them was the Mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak. A longtime friend of Roosevelt and a relentless enemy of the Chicago mafia who emigrated from the Czech Republic as a child.
Due to his determined stance in combating organized crime, theories quickly emerged saying that it was not the president-elect who was the target of the attack, but Cermak. The ordering party of the whole project was to be the underworld of the Windy City.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has taken vigorous efforts to establish the truth. However, they did not reveal new details. The bomber himself emphasized that he acted without anyone's inspiration, and his motivation was his desire to kill presidents and kings. At the same time, he showed no signs of remorse.
In this situation, the court, which met only five days after the attack, sentenced him to 80 years (four times 20) of hard prison for attempted murder. Zangara was not satisfied with such punishment. He was counting on a death sentence. Apparently, he preferred the electric chair to the rest of his life rotting behind bars. Of course, he did not appeal. The prosecutor's office is also satisfied with the verdict.
Police record photo of Giuseppe Zangara taken after Franklin D. Roosevelt was assassinated.
The situation changed dramatically on March 6, 1933, when Anton Cermak died as a result of his injuries. Another hearing took place quickly. The assassin - now the murderer - got what he was hoping for. On March 20, 1933, he was executed in Raiford State Prison.
Meanwhile, Franklin D. Roosevelt served as president of the United States for the next 12 years. He went down in history as the one who led the United States out of the Great Depression and led the Americans to victory in World War II. We, in turn, associate it mainly with a submissive policy towards Stalin. I wonder what the fate of America and Poland would have turned out if the bullets had reached their target on February 15, 1933?
Sources:
- "Illustrated Daily Kuryer", 1933.
- Franklin D. Roosevelt (Assassination Attempt)