"Daniel Edgar Sickles became a New York politician with tremendous clout. Sickles murdered his wife's lover Phillip Barton Key, the son of Francis Scott Key, and got away with it. Later he was an integral part of the Union victory at Gettysburg.
In brief, he was James Buchannan's attache in London, a New York state congressman, a Civil War brigadier general, a post war governor of South Carolina, and minister to Spain. Yet his behavior is so scandalous that there is scant mention of him in most history books.
His leg, lost to cannon shot at Gettysburg, is preserved at the Walter Reed Medical Center and he would visit with friends on the anniversary of its loss to view it. He was a terrible womanizer and took with him a prostitute on an overseas assignment in London and introduced her to the Queen of England. He reportedly seduced a woman of great power in Spain when there representing the U.S. Eventually, he toured the country with old confederate war rivals in a lecture series."
David Fletcher, Resident Scholar
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Review Analysis of American Scoundrel
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Job/profession/poverty story
Yes
Politician story?
- corrupt politician
Period of greatest activity?
- 1800's
Subject of Biography
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- politician/elected ruler
Age:
- 60's-90's
Biography of famous person?
Yes
Ethnicity
- White
Nationality
- American (!)
How sensitive is this person?
- hard edged
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other people
Physique
- average physique
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 4 (a fair amount)
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Century:
- 19th century
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- moderately detailed references to deaths
Writer's slant towards subject:
- neutral
Story of entire life, or part?
- story of nearly entire life
How much dialogue in bio?
- little dialog
Lot of titilating info about love life?
Yes
