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Local Film On Mosby Premieres Sunday

Mosby's Combat Operations in Fairfax County, Virginia opens Father's Day at the Cinema Arts Theatre in Fairfax

During the Civil War, Captain John Singleton Mosby and his expanding group of men created a nightmare for Union soldiers in Northern Virginia. By drawing support from the local population, he was able to conduct raids behind enemy lines and tie up Union forces that might otherwise have engaged General Robert E. Lee elsewhere. His legendary success is discussed in military circles to this day.

Local historians Chuck V. Mauro (an occasional Herndon Patch contributor), Don Hakenson and Steve Sherman recently completed a 90-minute documentary, Mosby's Combat Operations in Fairfax County, Virginia. The film will premiere this Father's Day, June 19 at Cinema Arts Theatre in Fairfax City. "We planned this as a Father's Day treat for all the dads in the area," Mauro said. "We hope they enjoy it."

Patch contributor Mike Conway recently spoke with Mauro and Hakenson to learn more. Here are some highlights from the conversation:

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Tell me about the film. What is it?

Hakenson: The movie is actually about the operations of John Singleton Mosby in Fairfax County. Chuck and myself and Tom Evans [another historian featured in the film]were talking and Tom said something to the effect of "we should film these sites before they disappear."

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Since Chuck had experience working on the book for the movie The Battle of Chantilly and had contacts with BLM Productions, I all of a sudden found myself standing in front of St. Mary’s Church, talking about the raid that occurred there on the 8th of August 1864. What we were trying to do is show people in Fairfax County the history of Mosby’s Rangers, during the period from 1863 up to 1865.

The movie focuses exclusively on Fairfax County, correct?

Hakenson: That is correct. If you look at the location where Mosby operated in Fairfax County you’ll notice it’s all around the county. Rose Hill, Herndon, Fairfax Courthouse, Annandale, near Alexandria. His actions encompassed the entire county.

There were 42 different engagements and you guys visit each of them?

Hakenson: Yes.  That is correct.

What were the most significant?

Hakenson: I would say when Mosby captured Brigadier General Edwin Stoughton at Fairfax Courthouse early in the morning on the 9th of March, 1863, really put Mosby on the map. It put him in newspapers and on the lips of the citizens and the Union army. 

You could also say it put him on the lips of the Confederates, because that was a significant raid. He went into Fairfax Courthouse, captured a Brigadier General and captured a large number of Union troops without firing a single shot. Fairfax Courthouse at the time was surrounded by 8,000 or more Union soldiers.  

That was really an audacious move by Mosby and was probably the most significant raid in Fairfax County. It made Mosby's career. He also captured the aide to Francis Pierpont, who was the Provisional Governor of the state of Virginia, at Rose Hill. So I would say those two events were the most significant in Fairfax County.

Mauro: Well if we have to pick one, we’ll pick Stoughton. During that particular raid he went into a Union stronghold, captured a Brigadier General, and got out without firing.

Hakenson: Yeah, I believe he captured the Brigadier General, two officers, and 28-30 men without a single shot being fired.

I know the film "The Battle of Chantilly" used re-enactors.  But this film is more of a straight documentary, correct?

Mauro: Right. There are six of us—I’ll use the term talking-heads, but it's basically six historians—who split up the 42 sites and do, in a sense, a kind of newscast. We go to the site to say where we are, what happened there and when, then go into the studio to narrate the rest of the story. It's kind of like an anchorman throwing the story to a correspondent in the field, so to speak.

You mentioned Stoughton and you mentioned Fairfax Court House—what were some of the other locations you visited in this film?

Mauro: One of the places that he stopped to get information was from Laura Ratcliffe, who lived on Centreville road south of Herndon. Both he and General Jeb Stuart, as they were going in and out—he always started west of Fairfax, in Fauquier mostly—would stop there as they came into Fairfax County to targets of opportunity to attack. 

lived in the Western portion of Fairfax, and he would stop by her house to get information, or food, or to rest for the night, which is kind of an interesting story. He counted on information and local guides, so he’d be able to travel more easily than the union troops. Laura Ratcliffe is one of the civilians who provided that assistance.

Why do you think Mosby is still so fascinating to people nowadays?

Hakenson: For one thing, he was a Confederate guerilla who was operating behind enemy lines and was able to wreak havoc on the Union army. He kept 40,000 troops guarding the city of Washington and away from Robert E Lee in the field.

He is considered by the US Army and the USMC as the ‘Father of Guerilla Warfare.' He is in the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame at Fort Bragg, and is the only member who actually fired at U.S. Army Soldiers. You can call him the Father of Guerilla Warfare, since he really brought it to an art form.  And what are we fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq today? Guerilla warfare.

Mosby's Combat Operations in Fairfax County, Virginia premieres Sunday, June 19 at Cinema Arts Theatre in Fairfax at 5 and 7 p.m.  Tickets are $8.  DVD copies of the film will be available for sale on site, or by e-mailing Chuck Mauro (cmauro10@aol.com) or Don Hakenson (dhakenson@cox.net) directly.  Go to www.hmshistory.com to learn more. Go to http://cinemaartstheatre.com/ for tickets and more information.

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