Death by Lightning true story: How accurate is the Netflix historical series?

**Warning – contains spoilers for Death by Lightning.**

Four-part historical series Death by Lightning is now available to stream in full on Netflix, and it tells a story so remarkable it couldn't possibly be true – except it is.

The series stars Michael Shannon as the 20th President of the United States, James Garfield, while Matthew Macfadyen plays Charles Guiteau, the mentally ill man who went on to kill him.

Guiteau was delusional, and believed he had been a considerable asset in getting Garfield elected. When he was not rewarded for doing so, he sought retribution, shooting Garfield.

While Garfield did not die from the shooting, he did perish two months later, due to an infection caused by his doctors' unsanitary methods in treating the wound. He was only president for 199 days in total.

But just how true to real history is the series that viewers can now watch on Netflix? Read on for everything you need to know about the true story behind Death by Lightning.

What is Death by Lightning about?

The official synopsis for Death by Lightning says that it is a drama series "that brings to life the epic and stranger-than-fiction true story of James Garfield, reluctant 20th president of the United States, and his greatest admirer Charles Guiteau — the man who would come to kill him".

The series was created by Mike Makowsky, who said that the series, which is set in the 19th century, still remains incredibly relevant today, telling Tudum: "The theme of corruption in politics and our bureaucracy feels particularly evergreen these days.

"The idea of civil service reform and waging a battle to clean up the grift in our government — this is something that Garfield very much stood on the front lines of in his time.

"In 1881, it feels like America is sort of standing at a crossroads between the past and what the future of this country is going to look like, and it’s up to [people like Garfield] to really define how America, 100 years after its inception, is going to look and what kind of society they’re going to be."

Is Death by Lightning based on a book?

It is. Death by Lightning is based on the historical non-fiction book Destiny Of The Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard. The book was first published in 2012.

Showrunner Makowsky told Tudum that he read Millard's book in "one sitting, because it was one of the most insane true stories I had ever heard".

He continued: "I found it unspeakably tragic and moving, but also weirdly funny in a very dark way. It’s a tone that I tend to chase in the work that I take on, but there is a very deeply ingrained situational absurdity to roughly all of the proceedings that I was just so stunned by.

"As soon as I finished the book, I knew that I needed to adapt it and that in its best incarnation, it could speak to people in ways that other period shows might not."

How closely does Death by Lightning follow the real history?

Death by Lightning follows the real-life events pretty closely. As in any historical drama, particularly adapating events from so long ago, there has to be some creative license taken, of course.

This means that while all the central characters are based on real figures, and all of the central events that take place really did happen, the dialogue, many of the specific scenes, and many of the character interactions have been created to fill in the blanks.

Did James Garfield really not want to be President?

While we can never know exactly what was in Garfield's mind, it is certainly true that he entered the Republican primary election in 1880 having committed himself to John Sherman as the candidate.

As seen in the series, the Republican Party was split into two feuding factions, known as the Half-Breeds who wanted civil service reform, and the Stalwarts who did not.

As voting began, Garfield started receiving votes from those who believed he was the only candidate who could breach the impasse between the two, and be a unifying candidate.

Garfield protested that he did not want the nomination, but he continued to get more ballots cast in his favour, with those voting for Sherman and James Blaine eventually shifting their allegiances to him.

The Stalwarts were still dissatisfied with Garfield, so a staunch one of their members, and ally to their leader Roscoe Conkling, was chosen to be the vice presidential nominee. This was Chester A Arthur, who went on to be the 21st president of the United States after Garfield's untimely death.

Did Charles Guiteau really sing a poem as he was hanged?

Following his assassination of Garfield, Guiteau is seen continuing to mentally unravel in his prison cell, before being sent to the gallows.

In a particularly jaw-dropping scene, Guiteau sings to the crowd before his death, reciting a poem called I Am Going to the Lordy.

Despite the apparent absurdity, this is entirely true. Guiteau really did recite the poem, which he had written that very morning.

Death by Lightning is available to stream on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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