guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...
Kentucky
Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
Commonwealth of Kentucky
Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
in June 1864, after the state's Unionist population had suffered numerous guerrilla raids and murders. He declared
martial law
Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...
.
Prentice created the "Sue Mundy" persona to portray Burbridge as an incompetent commander, unable to protect Kentucky citizens.
Guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...
groups operated in Kentucky late in 1864 and in 1865 (as they did in neighboring Tennessee). Most were bandits, part of a breakdown in social order during the war, and they preyed on persons affiliated with either side for their own gang. Some claimed to be part of "Sue Mundy's gang" because of the popular image and instant notoriety. Prentice published articles about guerrilla terrorism in the ''Louisville Journal'', attributing it to activities of "Sue Mundy". He emphasized what he considered the incompetence of Burbridge to protect residents of the area.
In the first editorial Prentice wrote about the figure, he spelled her name 'Munday', but in every other editorial he spelled the name 'Mundy'. He portrayed her as a guerrilla.
The 20-year-old guerrilla
Marcellus Jerome Clarke
Marcellus Jerome Clarke (also called M. Jerome Clarke)Meade County on March 12, 1865, Clarke was tried in
Louisville
Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...
and hanged a few days later. All along, Prentice vehemently denied that Clarke was Mundy.
By some accounts, including his own, Henry C. Magruder (another guerrilla riding with Clarke) was the original Sue Mundy. Magruder made this claim in his posthumous memoir, ''Three Years in the Saddle: The Life and Confession of Henry Magruder: The Original Sue Munday, The Scourge of Kentucky'' (1865). The gang of guerrillas were captured and arrested after robbing a bank. As noted above, Clarke was convicted and executed by hanging soon after capture in March 1865. Magruder, having been shot in the lungs during capture, was allowed to recover his health in jail before he was hanged.Henry Magruder, ''Three Years In The Saddle: The Life and Confession of Henry Magruder: The Original Sue Munday, The Scourge of Kentucky'', (published by his captor, Major Cyrus J. Wilson, Louisville, Kentucky, 1865)
See also
*
Louisville in the American Civil War
Louisville in the American Civil War was a major stronghold of Union forces, which kept Kentucky firmly in the Union. It was the center of planning, supplies, recruiting and transportation for numerous campaigns, especially in the Western Thea ...