The Birth of a Nation
Part 1 dramatises the American Civil War and deals with the introduction of slavery and the rise of the abolitionist movement in New England. Part 2 deals with events following Lincoln's assassination, the attempts of the northern states to establish control over the south, the struggle for black emancipation and the growth of the Ku Klux Klan, which is portrayed as having saved the south from anarchy and annihilation. The political, economic and racial struggles that are part of the nation's birth are partly portrayed through a double love-story.
Cast & credits
Cast
- Benjamin Cameron, "The Little Colonel" Henry B. Walthall
- Flora Cameron Mae Marsh
- Flora, as a Child Violet Wilkey
- Margaret Cameron Miriam Cooper
- Mrs. Cameron Josephine Crowell
- Dr. Cameron Spottiswoode Aitken
- Wade Cameron George André Beranger
- Duke Cameron Maxfield Stanley
- Elsie Stoneman Lillian Gish
- The Hon. Austin Stoneman Ralph Lewis
- Phil Stoneman Elmer Clifton
- Tod Stoneman/black-face spy Robert Harron
- Lydia Brown, Stoneman's Mulatto Housekee Mary Alden
- Senator Charles Sumner Sam De Grasse
- Silas Lynch George Siegmann
- Gus, the Renegade Walter Long
- Jeff, the Black-smith Wallace Reid
- Abraham Lincoln Joseph Henabery
- Mrs. Lincoln Alberta Lee
- Gen. Ulysses S. Grant Donald Crisp
- Gen. Robert E. Lee Howard Gaye
- The Mooning Sentry, Federal Hospital William Freeman
- Laura Keene Olga Grey
- John Wilkes Booth Raoul Walsh
- "White Arm" Joe/slave auctioneer prologu Elmo Lincoln
- Leader, Confederate Counter-attack on Pi Elmo Lincoln
- Stoneman's Negro Servant Tom Wilson
- Union Soldier Eugene Pallette
- Negro Woman with Gypsy Shawl Madame Sul-te-wan
- Jake William De Vaull
- Faithful Mammy Jennie Lee
- Man Who Falls from Roof Erich von Stroheim
- cast member Eric Campbell
Credits
Direction
- Director D.W. Griffith
- Assistant Director Thomas E. O'brien
- Assistant Director George André Beranger
- Assistant Director George Siegmann
- Assistant Director Raoul Walsh
- Assistant Director W.S. Van Dyke
- Assistant Director Erich von Stroheim
- Assistant Director Jack Conway
Production
- Production Company Epoch Producing Corporation
- Production Company David W. Griffith Corporation
- Producer D.W. Griffith
- Producer Harry E. Aitken
Writing
- Script D.W. Griffith
- Script Frank E. Woods
- Original novel/script consultant Thomas Dixon Jr.
Photography
- Photography Billy Bitzer
- Assistant Photographer Karl Brown
Editing
- Editor James Smith
Costumes
- cost Robert Goldstein
Music
- Musical accompaniment composed Joseph Carl Breil