PDF A Rumor about the Jews: Antisemitism; Conspiracy; and the Protocols of Zion by Stephen Eric Bronner in History

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Northern sympathizer in the Confederate capital; daring spymaster; postwar politician: Elizabeth Van Lew was one of the most remarkable figures in American history; a woman who defied the conventions of the nineteenth-century South. In Southern Lady; Yankee Spy; historian Elizabeth Varon provides a gripping; richly researched account of the woman who led what one historian called "the most productive espionage operation of the Civil War." Under the nose of the Confederate government; Van Lew ran a spy ring that gathered intelligence; hampered the Southern war effort; and helped scores of Union soldiers to escape from Richmond prisons.Varon describes a woman who was very much a product of her time and place; yet continually took controversial stands--from her early efforts to free her family's slaves; to her daring wartime activities and beyond. Varon's powerful biography brings Van Lew to life; showing how she used the stereotypes of the day to confound Confederate authorities (who suspected her; but could not believe a proper Southern lady could be a spy); even as she brought together Union sympathizers at all levels of society; from slaves to slaveholders. After the war; a grateful President Ulysses S. Grant named her postmaster of Richmond--a remarkable break with custom for this politically influential post. But her Unionism; Republican politics; and outspoken support of racial justice earned her a lifetime of scorn in the former Confederate capital. Even today; Elizabeth Van Lew remains a controversial figure in her beloved Richmond; remembered as the "Crazy Bet" of Lost Cause propaganda. Elizabeth Varon's account rescues her from both derision and oblivion; depicting an intelligent; resourceful; highly principled woman who remained; as she saw it; true to her country to the end.