Oskar Becker (assailant)

Oskar Becker (18 June 1839 in Odessa - 16 July 1868 in Alexandria) was a German political fanatic, known for his attempted assassination of William I of Prussia.

Biography

In 1850 he entered Leipzig University, and in 1861, at Baden-Baden, endeavored to kill the William I of Prussia by firing two shots from a pistol, at a distance of three paces. The monarch suffered only a slight injury of the neck. The assailant, in a letter found upon him, stated as his motive the conviction that William was unequal to the task of uniting Germany. He was sentenced to twenty years' imprisonment, but was pardoned by William, and released in 1866, with the stipulation that he should leave the German Confederation forever. He lived for a time at Chicago, and subsequently went to Alexandria, Egypt, where he died.

Becker was an uncle of artist Paula Modersohn-Becker.^{[citation needed]} William later became the first emperor of the German Empire.

References

•  "Becker, Oskar". New International Encyclopedia. 1905. 

External links

•  "Becker, Oskar". Encyclopedia Americana. 1920. 

Persondata
Name	Becker, Oskar
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	18 June 1839
Place of birth
Date of death	16 July 1868
Place of death