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309:'s scorched-earth tactics in Virginia. Each of the conspirators was equipped with incendiary devices, with which they planned to start fires in a number of hotels around the city where they had procured rooms. The goal of the plot was to overwhelm the local fire departments, burning much of the city and striking a blow to Union morale. While most of the conspirators proceeded as planned, Kennedy added his own twist, using one of his incendiaries to set a fire at
245:, who would both later serve as generals on opposing sides of the Civil War, but Kennedy proved a poor student. He accumulated numerous demerits and a poor academic record, and was finally thrown out after two years of study when he was caught drunk off-campus with another cadet. After two years of lackluster study, Kennedy returned to Louisiana. He quarreled often with his father and gained a reputation as a heavy drinker.
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After the failed attack, Kennedy and his associates fled to Canada, returning briefly to
American soil to participate in a failed attempt to rescue Confederate prisoners by hijacking the train carrying them and diverting it to Canada. Kennedy then attempted to return to Confederate territory, but was
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ended on
February 27; despite Bolles' inability to present more than circumstantial evidence, or to find a witness who had observed Kennedy perform any suspicious activities, Kennedy was found guilty on all charges and sentenced to hang. Stoughton appealed to President Lincoln to commute Kennedy's
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313:, allegedly because "it would be fun to start a scare." The plot ultimately failed, with the fires being quickly extinguished, possibly because the conspirators did not use the incendiaries correctly.
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Kennedy attempted to escape on March 19, but was foiled in the attempt and consequently spent his last days in irons. He made a confession to the camp commander, Martin Burke, and
230:. The family's fortunes improved in Louisiana, where they amassed over 3,000 acres of land as well as dozens of slaves, making them one of the wealthier families of the region.
269:, receiving a wound that left him with a permanent limp. His abortive term at West Point proved useful to him, as he was able to use a connection to former classmate General
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363:. Kennedy's execution on March 25, 1865, marked the last execution of a Confederate soldier by the United States government during the Civil War.
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to John Bailey
Kennedy, a physician, and his wife Eliza Lydia Cobb. His mother came from a prominent family, and was a distant relative of
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apprehended by federal detectives when his train entered
Detroit. He was then transferred back to New York to stand trial.
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In 1864, Kennedy joined a small group of fellow
Confederate operatives in a plot to burn New York City in retaliation for
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517:. Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association, vol. 18, no. 2 (spring, 1977), pp. 189–201 (
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After his capture, Kennedy was vilified in the
Northern press as a "Southern terrorist." He was transported to
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The
Confederate Dirty War: Arson, Bombings, Assassination and Plots for Chemical and Germ Attacks on the Union
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to get a position as an assistant. He was captured while carrying dispatches, imprisoned at
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Kennedy was one of a very small number of people to escape from
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shortly after his birth, but due to declining fortunes they moved again to northwest
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rather than back South; it was there that he was recruited by
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General Edwin Stoughton, Kennedy's classmate and later his defense lawyer
515:"In Violation of the Laws of War": The Execution of Robert Cobb Kennedy
345:. His trial began on January 17, 1865. The trial, under Judge Advocate
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When the war began, Kennedy entered Confederate service, joining the
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402:"A Vast and Fiendish Plot: The Confederate Attack on New York City"
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Barnum's American Museum, where Kennedy attempted to start a blaze
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Confederates executed by the United States military by hanging
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sentence to life imprisonment, but the appeal was refused.
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Confederate States Army personnel who were court-martialed
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operative who was hanged for his role in a failed plot to
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Robert C. Kennedy:Louisiana Confederate Secret Agent
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233:At the age of 18, Kennedy left home to attend
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384:"The Man Who Tried to Burn New York"
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630:People executed for war crimes
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293:The plot to burn New York City
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430:"True Crime in the Civil War"
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216:governor of Georgia
168:Robert Cobb Kennedy
79:Cause of death
23:Robert Cobb Kennedy
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360:The New York Times
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204:Howell Cobb
178:during the
172:Confederate
559:Categories
367:References
235:West Point
93:Allegiance
44:1835-10-25
645:Saboteurs
386:pp. 36–37
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134:1861–1865
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220:Alabama
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