Flames licking the proud hotels and theaters along Broadway. Smoke curling over the brownstones and stockyards of New York City. Panic in the North and a new push for peace. This was the dream of the Confederate Army of Manhattan, a group of Southern operatives who attempted and failed to burn Manhattan in November 1864. Public DomainA cartoon from Harpers Weekly depicting a would-be arsonist from the Confederate Army of Manhattan.Seeking revenge for Union destruction in the South, the Confederates planned to burn the most important city in the North. But their plot fizzled fast. Not only did they fail to inflict any real damage on Manhattan, but their attempted attack roused the ire of the North, even among northern Copperheads who opposed the war and advocated for a peace agreement. But the Confederate Army of Manhattans failed plot did have an impact. It led to the final execution of a Confederate soldier during the Civil War, Robert Cobb Kennedy. And it led to a bitter row between brothers Edwin and John Wilkes Booth, after John Wilkes professed support for the attack.This is the full story of the Confederate Army of Manhattan and the forgotten and failed plot to burn the city to the ground during the Civil War. The Plot To Burn New York City During The Civil WarFrom the beginning, the Confederate Army of Manhattans plot to burn New York City to the ground didnt go as planned. Enraged by Union attacks in the South, particularly the destruction of farms in Virginias Shenandoah Valley, the Confederate Secret Service devised a plan to move the conflict northward. The Gotham Center For New York City History reports that the Confederacy hoped to strike multiple northern cities on Election Day, Nov. 8, 1864, in hopes of demoralizing the North, and forcing the Union to negotiate for peace and end the Civil War. Library of CongressUnion troops burning farms in Virginias Shenandoah Valley, an attack which outraged the Confederacy.However, rumors of the plot spread across the North and in New York City, more than 3,500 Union troops arrived to protect the election. Thus, though a group of eight Southern operatives had already arrived in the city via Canada, they decided to hold off on their plan until after Election Day. Instead, the so-called Confederate Army of Manhattan decided they would attack New York City on Evacuation Day, November 25. This once-popular holiday all but forgotten today marked the departure of British troops from the city during the American Revolution. How The Confederate Army Of Manhattan Attacked The CityBefore they could attack, the Confederate Army of Manhattan needed their weapon. They acquired an incendiary concoction from a local chemist either phosphorus or Greek Fire made from sulfur, naphtha, and quicklime and set about testing it out to make sure they hadnt been scammed. The Confederates tossed the glass vials onto boards in Central Park, which successfully burst into flames. Next, they put their plan into action. The Confederates targeted almost two dozen hotels, most of which were located up and down Broadway. Starting around eight p.m. that night, the Confederates piled their hotel beds with clothing and furniture, tossed their glass vials, and slipped out into the city. Wikimedia CommonsA rendering of the Astor House in 1862, one of the Confederate Army of Manhattans targets.At 8:45 p.m., a fire was reported at the St. James hotel. Next, at the United States hotel. Smoke and fire was then witnessed at the St. Nicholas, the Lafarge House, the Belmont Hotel, and the Astor House. One of them Confederate operatives even tossed his glass vial into a stairwell at P.T. Barnums American Museum, where a number of freak shows performed. Meanwhile, the smoke caused a brief panic at the nearby Winter Garden Theater, where actor brothers Edwin, Junius, and John Wilkes Booth were appearing on stage for the first time. Edwin calmed the nervous audience, and the show went on. Public DomainJohn Wilkes, Edwin, and Junius Booth were on stage together for the first and only time when fires broke out at nearby hotels.Indeed, the Confederate Army of Manhattans plot had all the spark of a wet log. Only six of the eight men showed up. Most of their fires didnt catch. And the ones that did were easily extinguished. Part of the reason why their attack didnt work was that the conspirators had left the windows in their targeted hotel rooms firmly closed. Without a draft, their fires quickly went out. Instead of burning to the ground, New York City briefly smoldered then moved on. But the story of the Confederate Army of Manhattan didnt end there. The Aftermath Of The Failed Arson AttackThough the Confederate attack had failed, Northern newspapers reacted with outrage. The New York Times called it one of the most fiendish and inhuman acts known to modern times, and Frank Leslies Illustrated Newspaper dubbed the failed plot The most diabolical attempt at arson and murder of which there is any record in the history of our country. Even some Southern newspapers condemned the attack. The Richmond Whig suggested that Boston or Philadelphia were better targets, but that New York should be spared because of its economic connection to the South and antipathy toward President Lincoln. Meanwhile, though most of the conspirators escaped, Federal authorities succeeded in arresting one plotter, Robert Cobb Kennedy. At a military trial, Kennedy was sentenced to death and hanged the next spring. He was the last Confederate soldier executed during the Civil War. Public DomainRobert Cobb Kennedy was the only member of the Confederate Army of Manhattan who was arrested, put on trial, and executed.And the actions of the Confederate Army of Manhattan also rippled into a family drama. In the aftermath of the attack, Edwin and John Wilkes Booth had a terrible fight about the would-be plot to destroy the city. John Wilkes claimed that the Confederate operatives were heroes which, according to Fords Theatre National Historic Site, outraged Edwin. He told John Wilkes he should go elsewhere to make such sentiments known; that he was not at liberty to express them in the house of a Union man.The brothers never spoke again. And just months later just weeks after Kennedy was hanged John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln. As such, the Confederate Army of their Manhattan quickly became a footnote to the Civil War, an overlooked event subsumed by the drama of the presidential assassination and the end of the conflict. Indeed, the plot failed. But had a window or two been left open, or if the Confederates had better organized their attack, it could have ended quite differently. Had New York City burned, perhaps it would have changed the tide of the Civil War itself. After reading about the Confederate Army of Manhattan and the failed plot to burn New York City to the ground, discover the stories of some of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War. Or, learn about Andersonville Prison, the most infamous prisoner-of-war camps from the conflict. The post The Confederate Army Of Manhattan, The Southern Operatives Who Tried To Burn New York City To The Ground appeared first on All That's Interesting.