Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War

Rose managed to meet with the French Emperor, Napoleon III. She charmed him when they spoke. He informed her that he could not openly support the Confederacy until England did. Rose found that she loathed the French after staying in their court. She wanted to return home. News of the Confederacy’s desperation—the need for more troops, the drafting of any white man possible, and the food scarcity—troubled Rose.

Jefferson Davis’s manservant and Varina’s maid fled to Washington, DC. Mary-Jane continued to spy despite the increased risk. Elizabeth continued to encrypt any intel she got from the Richmond Underground. One of her contacts, Merritt Rowley, volunteered to act as a courier for Elizabeth. He traveled to Fort Monroe on his own, delivering Elizabeth’s message to Butler with great urgency. The intel allowed Butler to propose a plan to attack Richmond. In February, alarm bells warning Richmond of the invasion woke Elizabeth in the middle of the night. Butler was attacking, but the Confederacy managed to hold off Union forces. Elizabeth had been receiving strange missives warning about a mass escape from Libby Prison. Elizabeth visited her brother who had been hiding in the countryside to avoid conscription. She stayed the night.