The John Batchelor Show

Patrick K. O'Donnell, guest author, describes how, in the war's final hours, Robert E. Lee faced a monumental decision: follow Jefferson Davis's orders to scatter his army into the mountains to conduct guerrilla warfare, or surrender. Leechose to put "America first," rejecting the insurgency path to avoid subjecting the South to generations of further destruction. This act of statesmanship led to the meeting at Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865, where Grantoffered exceptionally favorable terms, allowing Confederate officers to keep their sidearms and horses. The surrender was marked by mutual respect, exemplified by Union General Joshua Chamberlain ordering a salute to the surrendering Confederates as "honor meeting honor." After the war, John Singleton Mosby underwent a radical transformation; he became a close personal friend of Ulysses S. Grant and served as his campaign manager in Virginia. Defying local sentiment, Mosby joined the Republican Party, famously remarking that "hell is being a Republican in Virginia." He later served as a diplomat in Hong Kong, where he fought against human trafficking. In his final years, Mosby befriended a young George S. Patton, and it is believed that Patton's future mastery of maneuver warfare was influenced by the aging partisan's tactical lessons. The story of the "Unvanquished" thus concludes with a narrative of reconciliation, showing how these former shadow warriors helped forge the foundations of modern America and its special operations legacy. The Unvanquished (8)1922

Patrick K. O'Donnell, guest author, explains that following Blazer's capture, Harry Harrison Young took command of the Union's special forces assets under Phil Sheridan. Only 5'5" but "absolutely fearless," Young transformed the Jesse Scouts into a vital strategic asset. These scouts, often operating in Confederate uniforms, conducted suicide missions and used elaborate disguises—such as peddlers or Southern recruiting officers—to gather real-time intelligence. The hazards were so extreme that most Jesse Scouts did not survive the war, though the unit ultimately earned seven Medals of Honor. As Sheridan moved to join Grant at Petersburg, the scouts performed an epic mission: delivering messages to Grant by riding 100 miles through enemy territory with the orders wrapped in tin foil in their mouths. During the final campaign, the Jesse Scouts acted as Sheridan's "eyes," seizing critical bridges and providing the intelligence needed to find weak points in Lee's lines. They played a pivotal role at the Battle of Five Forks, where they discovered that Confederate leaders were distracted by a "shad bake" (fish luncheon) and failed to hear the opening of the battle due to an atmospheric anomaly. The scouts even used misinformation to direct retreating Confederates to the wrong locations and intercepted orders meant to supply Lee's starving army at Amelia Courthouse. By disrupting Lee's logistics and securing vital supply trains, the Jesse Scouts and Sheridan's cavalry effectively "sealed the coffin" for the Army of Northern Virginia. The Unvanquished (7)

Patrick K. O'Donnell, guest author, details the final confrontation between Richard Blazer and Mosby's Rangers at Cabletown (or Meyerstown). After Blazer's scouts had embarrassed the Rangers twice, Mosby orchestrated a massive 300-man ambush. During a running gun battle across farmland, Lewis Powell, a Ranger known as "Terrible Powell," personally captured Blazer. The significance of Powell's role extends far beyond the battlefield; he was an operative for the Confederate Secret Service who had previously escaped Union custody in Baltimore. After delivering Blazer to a Richmond prison—likely a cover for meeting his handlers—Powell returned to "Mosby's Confederacy" briefly before "deserting" to Union lines to pose as a civilian. In reality, Powell had joined John Wilkes Booth's conspiracy to kidnap President Lincoln. The plot was a well-funded, large-scale operation involving hundreds of people and a network of safe houses. Evidence suggests that Mosby's command was aware of the kidnapping plan, as Mosby moved hundreds of men 80 miles away from his usual territory to secure the exact area of the Potomac River where the kidnappers intended to cross. This indicates that the kidnapping plot was not merely the work of a few actors but a coordinated special operation supported by the Confederate military infrastructure. Powell eventually became one of the primary Lincoln conspirators, transitioning from a feared scout to a pivotal figure in the war's final, tragic act. The Unvanquished (6)

Patrick K. O'Donnell, guest author, recounts how, by August 1864, General Ulysses S. Grant had grown enraged by the disruption caused by irregular partisans and ordered Phil Sheridan to initiate "total war" in the Shenandoah Valley. Grant's instructions were severe: hang captured Rangers without trial, destroy all crops and livestock, and take all men under 50 as prisoners. While Sheridan did not follow these orders entirely to avoid political backlash before the election, he did launch the "Burning Season," putting farms and mills to the torch. The trigger for this escalation was the Berryville Great Wagon Raid, where Mosby's men devastated a massive Union supply train. To counter Mosby, Sheridan deployed Richard Blazer and his scouts, arming them with the Spencer carbine—the "machine gun of the Civil War"—which allowed for rapid-fire lever action. Blazer used his signature detective work to track the Rangers, successfully capturing a portion of Mosby's command at Myer's Ford. This segment also addresses the presence of independent "bushwhackers" like Moberly, a ruthless figure who tortured prisoners. Although Mosby occasionally operated in the same vicinity as Moberly, he did not tolerate such lawlessness within his formal command. The conflict transformed into a personal and lethal game of cat-and-mouse between Blazer's "Legion of Honor" and Mosby's Rangers, characterizing the brutal "brother against brother" nature of the Civil War in the Valley. The Unvanquished (5)

Patrick K. O'Donnell, guest author, explains that in the summer of 1864, Confederate General Jubal Early, known as Lee's "mean old dog," launched a bold campaign that brought the war to the gates of the nation's capital. After repelling Union forces at Lynchburg, Early marched through the Shenandoah Valley and into Maryland, winning a time-consuming victory at Monocacy against Lew Wallace. This delay proved critical, as it allowed the Union's Sixth Corpsto rush to Washington's defense just as Early reached Fort Stevens. During the skirmish, President Abraham Lincolnfamously stood on the parapet under fire from Confederate sharpshooters before being told to step down for his safety. Simultaneously, the Confederate Secret Service planned a complex special operation to free 10,000 prisoners of war at Point Lookout, though the plot was eventually scuttled. While Early lacked direct coordination with Mosby, the Rangers supported the campaign by conducting the "Calico Raid" at Point of Rocks, severing the B&O Railroad and cutting off Union reinforcements. Mosby's tactics remained centered on swift, close-range attacks using pistols and shotguns to overwhelm the Union's Second Massachusetts Cavalry. Despite the brutality of these "running gunfights," Mosby was noted for treating high-ranking captives with respect, eventually forming post-war friendships with former enemies like the Union officer Forbes. This segment illustrates how close the Confederacy came to winning the war through a back-door strike on Washington. The Unvanquished (4)
1863