S8 Ep116: The Jesse Scouts and the Origins of Civil War Irregular Warfare Patrick K. O'Donnell The Civil War saw the rise of irregular forces like Jesse Scouts, named after John Fremont's wife, who used 21st-century tradecraft like infiltration and Confederate dis
The John Batchelor Show
John Batchelor
4.5 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 23 November 2025
⏱️ 12 minutes
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Summary
- The Jesse Scouts and the Origins of Civil War Irregular Warfare
The Civil War saw the rise of irregular forces like Jesse Scouts, named after John Fremont's wife, who used 21st-century tradecraft like infiltration and Confederate disguises, led by John C. Carpenter. The Confederacy countered with the Partisan Ranger Act to control guerrillas like John Singleton Mosby. Confederate leaders were ambivalent toward partisans, viewing them as both useful and potentially destabilizing to command structure.
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| 0:00.0 | The weather. Tomorrow, expect a biting cold front. Hmm, how naughty. I wonder what I'll be |
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| 0:26.3 | Sun Express, non-stop sunshine. |
| 0:32.9 | This is CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor. |
| 0:39.8 | Here's John Bachelor. |
| 0:42.0 | It is the summer of 1862, Captain John Charles Carpenter, a man who is known to have many faces and guises. |
| 0:52.5 | He is going to introduce us to a concept that seems very 21st century, |
| 0:58.7 | and yet this is the Civil War at the opening, and it begins the story of the unvanquished, |
| 1:07.2 | the untold story of Lincoln's Special Forces, the manhunt for Mosby's Rangers, and the |
| 1:12.8 | shadow war that forged America's special operations. I welcome the author Patrick K. O'Donnell, |
| 1:19.8 | my good friend, to introduce us to Captain Carpenter, who is not trustworthy, and yet that is the nature of this business. |
| 1:30.4 | These are very brave men who are also at the same time capable of betrayal. |
| 1:36.2 | That makes the challenge of serving with them and using them in combat to be especially dangerous, |
| 1:44.4 | and why so many of the commanding voices |
| 1:48.4 | of the Civil War didn't trust it. |
| 1:51.1 | Patrick, congratulations, and good evening to you. |
| 1:54.7 | Introduces the Captain Charles Carpenter, |
| 1:57.5 | and what is Jesse Scouts? |
| 1:59.6 | Good evening. Good evening, John. This is, the Jesse Scouts |
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