The caning of senator Charles Sumner: A review of his injuries and prolonged recovery

Abstract

Charles Sumner was an outspoken abolitionist and Republican United States Senator from Massachusetts from 1851 to 1874. In 1856, at the height of the national debate about slavery before the Civil War, Sumner was assaulted in the Senate chamber by a Democratic congressman from South Carolina. Preston Brooks attacked Sumner by striking him on the head and neck over 30 times using his walking cane as a weapon. After the attack, Sumner lost consciousness and was carried out of the Senate chamber. Though he recovered over the week following the attack, Sumner did not return full-time to his Senate seat until December 1859 due to the sequelae of his injuries. Historians have debated the cause of Sumner's prolonged disability, with several suggesting that he was experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder. Although diagnosis cannot be made definitively, the details of Brooks’ assault and Sumner's subsequent medical history suggest that Sumner's documented symptoms during his three-year recovery were likely the result of a traumatic brain injury.