The Duel: Who Made the First Shot?

The Duel: Whom Made the First Shot?

On July 11th, 1804, Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton engaged in the most famous duel in American History. Just across the Hudson River in Weehawken New Jersey, Hamilton would be mortally injured and eventually killed while Burr’s reputation becomes wounded. There is so much controversy and clouded facts with this duel that historians still don’t know what really went down in New Jersey.

It is well known that Hamilton and Burr were mortal enemies, and it is a fact that Burr requested this duel to happen. Burr, being an anti-federalist, and Hamilton, basically representing the Federalist Party, never really seemed eye to eye. The facts that we know about this day are as listed: one bullet was shot, a few seconds of silence happened, another bullet was shot, and then Hamilton was on the ground, wounded severely. He was so severely wounded, the bullet broke some ribs, went through some internal organs, and landed in a vertebrae. Hamilton himself knew he wouldn’t make it. However, what we don’t know is who fired the shots, and who fired them first.

There are two sides to this story: pro Hamilton and pro Burr. Pro Hamilton reports stated Burr made the first shot at Hamilton. The story goes that Hamilton’s pistol was raised above his head, and when Burr shot him, a muscle response happened, that caused Hamilton’s trigger finger to push the gun and cause a bullet to fly. Evidence supporting these claims was broken tree bark in the leaves above Burr’s head as well as statements made by Hamilton himself. Hamilton told his doctors to be careful with his gun, because it was still loaded. Therefore, Hamilton himself didn’t even know he shot the gun. The pro Hamilton side of the argument is the most popular in today’s society. In fact, the most popular musical on Broadway, Hamilton, has these arguments in the lyrics.

On the flip side of things, pro Burr arguments claim that Hamilton was the one to make the first shot. This is the more plausible answer due to how Burr reacted when he realized he shot Hamilton. Burr wanted to speak with him right after the bullet went into Hamilton, but he was ushered away. Historians believe Hamilton shot first, but intentionally missed Burr, making sure the bullet went over Burr’s head. This was so Hamilton could honor his pledge made before the duel, and it also proves that fact tree bark was scattered behind Burr. This was Hamilton’s shot, and Burr was most likely waiting for the smoke to clear before he made his shot, hence the delay before the second was heard. Burr could have made a deadly shot, but it isn’t likely Burr was trying to. Burr knew that killing Hamilton would have made things worse for him, so why bother? In other duels, the most popular place to shoot people without killing them was in the leg or hip, which Burr was

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