These are John F. Kennedy’s last words: What JFK said in the limousine when entering Dealy Plaza on Nov. 22, 1963

It was a moment that shook America to the core. Those who lived through it, remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when the shocking news came through.

US president John F. Kennedy was assassinated in cold blood at 12.30pm on 22 November 1963 as as his open-topped limousine drove down Elm Street on Dealey Plaza in Dallas.

Since then there has been endless speculation, conspiracy theories and hypotheses about who killed JFK and why. Some simply don’t believe the the ‘magic bullet’ narrative established by the Warren Commission in 1964.

It concluded that Kennedy was initially struck by a bullet fired from the sixth-floor window at the southeast corner of the Texas School Book Depository. Governor Connally was also wounded by the bullet on exit.

The bullet entered at the back of his neck and exited through the lower front portion of his neck, causing a wound which would not necessarily have been lethal. The president was then struck by a second bullet, which entered the right-rear portion of his head, causing a massive and fatal wound.

The president was rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital where surgeons battled to save his life. But the wounds he sustained were too severe. At 1 p.m. he was officially pronounced dead.

JFK’s last words

According to Vincent Bugliosi’s account of the assassination: Four Days in November: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy published in 2008, Kennedy’s last words were spoken in response to a comment by Nellie Connally, the first lady of Texas and wife of John Connally who was also a passenger in the Lincoln Continental SS-100-X presidential state car.

As JFK waved to the cheering crowds which were lining both sides of the street, she asked: “Mr. President, they can’t make you believe now that there are not some in Dallas who love you and appreciate you, can they?” To which he replied: “No, they sure can’t”.

Moments later, JFK was struck by two bullets - one of which blew out a section of his skull. Connally recalled hearing Jackie Kennedy cry out: “They have killed my husband. I have his brains in my hand.”

John F. Kennedy, the 35th US president was 46 years old at the time of his death. He was the fourth US president to be killed in an assassination attempt.