Which individual attacked Charles Sumner with a cane, resulting in a fractured skull?

The individual who attacked Charles Sumner with a cane, resulting in a fractured skull, was Preston Brooks. This event, which occurred in 1856, was a significant moment in the escalating tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States.

Brooks, a congressman from South Carolina and a supporter of slavery, violently assaulted Sumner, a senator from Massachusetts and a vocal opponent of slavery, as a response to a speech Sumner had delivered in which he criticized pro-slavery politicians and specifically targeted Brooks's relative, Senator Andrew Butler. This incident underscored the intense political and social divisions of the era, symbolizing the breakdown of civil discourse in American politics leading up to the Civil War. It illustrated the lengths to which some individuals would go to defend their beliefs and the increasing hostility between North and South.