Civil War Confederate Spy. One of the most famous clandestine agents of the Southern Confederacy, she served the rebel forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Born in Martinsburg, Virginia (now part of West Virginia), she operated her spying operations from her fathers hotel in Front Royal, providing valuable information to Generals Turner Ashby and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson during the spring 1862 campaign in the Valley. The latter general then made her a Captain and honorary aide-de-camp on his staff; as such she was able to witness troops reviews. Betrayed by her lover, she was arrested on July 29, 1862, and held for a month in the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, DC. Exchanged a month later, she was in exile with relatives for a time but was again arrested in June 1863 while on a visit to Martinsburg. On December 1, 1863, she was released, suffering from typhoid, and was then sent to Europe to regain her health. The blockade runner she attempted to return on was captured and she fell in love with the prize master, Samuel Hardinge, who later married her in England after being dropped from the United States Navy's rolls for neglect of duty in allowing her to proceed to Canada and then England. Hardinge's subsequent attempt to reach Richmond, Virginia was thwarted when he was detained by Union hands, but died soon after his release. While in England Belle Boyd Hardinge had a stage career and published "Belle Boyd in Camp and Prison". She died while touring the western United States.
Civil War Confederate Spy. One of the most famous clandestine agents of the Southern Confederacy, she served the rebel forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Born in Martinsburg, Virginia (now part of West Virginia), she operated her spying operations from her fathers hotel in Front Royal, providing valuable information to Generals Turner Ashby and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson during the spring 1862 campaign in the Valley. The latter general then made her a Captain and honorary aide-de-camp on his staff; as such she was able to witness troops reviews. Betrayed by her lover, she was arrested on July 29, 1862, and held for a month in the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, DC. Exchanged a month later, she was in exile with relatives for a time but was again arrested in June 1863 while on a visit to Martinsburg. On December 1, 1863, she was released, suffering from typhoid, and was then sent to Europe to regain her health. The blockade runner she attempted to return on was captured and she fell in love with the prize master, Samuel Hardinge, who later married her in England after being dropped from the United States Navy's rolls for neglect of duty in allowing her to proceed to Canada and then England. Hardinge's subsequent attempt to reach Richmond, Virginia was thwarted when he was detained by Union hands, but died soon after his release. While in England Belle Boyd Hardinge had a stage career and published "Belle Boyd in Camp and Prison". She died while touring the western United States.
Bio by: Maverick1862
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BELLE BOYD
CONFEDERATE SPY
BORN IN VIRGINIA
DIED IN WISCONSIN
ERECTED BY A COMRADE
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