A British clairvoyant warned Abraham Lincoln that his life was in danger weeks before he was assassinated, a historian claims. It is thought Charles Colchester, a medium who was close to the first lady, told the president of the threat in the early months of 1865. Lincoln was shot dead by actor John Wilkes Booth as he watched a play in a private box at Ford's Theatre, Washington DC, on the night of April 14 that year. Assassinated: An illustration shows John Wilkes Booth shooting President Lincoln at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865. Clairvoyant Charles Colchester had become close to first lady Mary Todd Lincoln, pictured centre . But while Colchester may have been passing on the information as a mystic warning, it is likely the information came directly from the assassin - who was also his drinking companion. Colchester's relationship with the president has been well-document, but until now historians have not connected him with Booth, Professor Terry Alford writes in Fortune's Fool, a new biography of the assassin, according to The Times. The medium became known to the Lincoln family after he was summoned by first lady Mary Todd Lincoln when she was looking to communicate with her dead 11-year-old son, Willie. Colchester, the illegitimate son of a duke, impressed Mrs Lincoln and was invited to hold a number of seances at the White House and the Soldiers' Home, the president's summer retreat. Warning: Abraham Lincoln, was told his life was in danger weeks before his death, it is claimed . But while he became important to the first lady, it appears he was unable to convince the president of his powers, writes Professor Terry Alford. On one occasion the president asked Joseph Henry, of the Smithsonian Institute, to investigate how Colchester was able to summon noises in different parts of a room - evidence, he claimed, of his ability to communicate with spirits. Mr Henry was forced to report that he was unable to find an explanation. (It was later discovered Colchester had an electrical noise-maker strapped to his bicep). His close relationship to the first lady allowed Colchester to become part of the Washington social scene. It was there he met Booth and the two men became friends, writes Professor Alford. 'They would go out and get drunk together,' he told The Times. In the weeks before the assassination, Booth was staying at the National Hotel - less than six blocks from Ford's Theatre. Colchester visited him there often, writes Alford. In early 1865 Booth abandoned his plan to kidnap Lincoln and decided instead to assassinate him. He shared his plot with a number of trusted friends in Washington, but it is not clear whether Booth was one of them. What is known is that, in April 1865 - the month of the assassination - another friend urged the president to be mindful of his personal safety, Lincoln replied: 'Colchester has been telling me that'. Colchester fled Washington after being confronted by a member of the president's inner circle following a blackmail attempt on the first lady. He died in Iowa a few years later. Fortune's Fool: The Life of John Wilkes Booth, will be published in Britain by Oxford University Press on May 28.
Abraham Lincoln was shot dead in Washington DC theatre on April 14 1865 . Clairvoyant Charles Colchester had warned him of threat, it is claimed . Colchester was close to Lincoln family and also friend of assassin Booth . But the British medium had failed to convince president of his powers . Revelations made in new biography on Booth by historian Dr Terry Alford .