Elite units continue to play a growing position in war, but not every soldier you do these specialized responsibilities. Specific men are necessary for special operations forces. Henry Harrison Young, a union big, was like a man; he was born for war. It was unusual to find a man who sought out threat in the most perilous risk and not just in the name of work.
The earlier untold tale of Henry Young and the Civil War models that inspired the creation of America’s unique forces is explored in my upcoming book The Unvanquished: The Untold Story of Lincoln’s Special Forces, the Manhunt for Mosby’s Rangers, and the Shadow War That Forged America’s Special Operations.
 , Young’s dominant officer observed”, We had several officers who in civic life had shown nothing above ordinary ability, that in the hour of trial, amidst the carnage of battle, proved themselves possessed of noble quality, but these brave men were no fearless, they loved life, and they knew the danger they were going to meet, and could be relied upon to charge up to certain death without faltering.”
Young, however, was truly fearless, a five- foot- five, wiry Rhode Islander who relished the thrill of combat. His brigade commander remembered that he was always on the lookout for the hottest spot, to cheer on a sluggish regiment, or to unite a disorganized one. General Philip Sheridan’s attention was captured in a dangerous mission by Young, who had been looking for him for two years.
Young’s current boss adamantly protested the transfer. He eventually, however, acquiesced for the best interests of the Union.
Sheridan wanted to expand his elite scouts and place them under the guidance of a hands-on, combat officer. Young fit the bill perfectly. To penetrate enemy lines, he would don a Confederate uniform. A master of disguise, the Rhode Islander served behind the lines so often that” his disguises had to be changed and varied constantly, now it was one role, now another—private soldier, deserter, countryman, peddler, Confederate officer. ” A contemporary who interviewed Young’s men and relatives wrote of the dashing officer that he was” imperturbably cool, patient, shrewd, and with a quiet way about him, yet frank and ingenious—it seemed that there was nothing he could not accomplish.”
While scouting, he once came upon a Confederate recruiting station and allowed himself to be recruited. Young showed up on the appointed day, but instead of joining the Confederate army, he captured the sergeant, all his” hard- earned recruits, and the entire contents of the office.”
Young requested three Rebel uniforms and two soldiers in search of a notoriously dangerous Confederate who “bragged that he never was so happy as when he let out the life-blood of a Union prisoner.” One pursuer was injured and the horse was shot out from under the other, leaving Young to battle the man alone in hand-to-hand combat. Somehow, the Rhode Islander single- handedly managed to apprehend the culprit.
Once Sheridan had found the man to lead his Jessie Scouts, he decided to make it a larger organization. Realizing the news would leak to the Confederates, the general called it a battalion of Scouts when it was, in fact, only a company. With the sixty Sheridan Scouts, as they would come to be known”, We frequently went into the Rebel line, learned to talk the Southern language and became familiar with each regiment, brigade, division, and corps of the Rebel army, and after that went among them as full- fledged Rebels.”
Young made the decision to forge unit cohesion and discipline after his Scouts received weapons and Confederate uniforms, and he planned to have his tiny band ambush a sizable unit of Confederate cavalry many times the Scouts ‘ numbers. They waited until the Confederate cavalry rode into sight while placing their horses behind trees where the Confederates frequently passed to create a kill zone.
On Young’s” shrill signal, ]he ] whirled his horse about, and fired his]Spencer ] carbine in the faces of the Confederate troops. His men followed him, the carbines roared like artillery, and bullets poured into the column’s bloody lanes, where the Yankees rode at speed, firing their revolvers without retribution on either side. Young lost only one man while the charge routed the enormous Confederate force. Like his nemesis John Singleton Mosby, whom Lincoln’s Special Forces hunted, Young proved a master of psychological warfare, fighting the Confederates by creating a fear of an unseen enemy.  , Lincoln’s Special forces would lead Sheridan’s army to victory, and then, as the war came to a close, these commandos would covertly be sent to fight in one of America’s first proxy wars against a European power, against the French, who had tens of thousands of troops in Mexico. Young and his men armed, trained insurgents, and conducted covert operations, hazardous and perilous duty, most, including Young, would never return home.
Although he and other members of Lincoln’s Special Forces helped save the Union and won seven Medals of Honor along the way, we do n’t know where this extraordinary warrior will end up. At least now, their story will be told.
Patrick K. O’Donnell is a bestselling, critically acclaimed military historian and an expert on elite units. He is the author of thirteen books, including , his forthcoming book on the Civil War: The Unvanquished: The Untold Story of Lincoln’s Special Forces, the Manhunt for Mosby’s Rangers, and the Shadow War That Forged America’s Special Operations, publishing May 7 and appearing in Barnes and Noble stores in the next few weeks. He is the bestselling author of The Indispensables, Washington’s Immortals, and , The Unknowns.  , O’Donnell served as a combat historian in a Marine rifle platoon during the Battle of Fallujah and often speaks on espionage, special operations, and counterinsurgency. He has provided historical consulting for DreamWorks ‘ award- winning miniseries , Band of Brothers , and documentaries produced by the BBC, the History Channel, and Discovery. PatrickKODonnell.com , @combathistorian
