Chief,

Quantrill had a Captain's commission under the Partisan Ranger Act of 1862. As a matter of fact Quantrill petitioned Gen. Robert E. Lee himself for a regular commission and was rejected because Lee felt , as did many of the old line officers, that partisans were a detriment to the cause. President Davis had agreed to a Partisan Ranger Act in April, 1862 even though he did not believe it the proper thing to do. Gen. Thomas Hindman enacted his Partisan Ranger Act in July 1862. Unlike Partisans like Mosby, McNeill, Imboden, and other Partisan commanders Quantrill operated outside the chain of command. After the Partisan Ranger Act was revoked in 1864, the more efficient units received official Confederate recognition rather than lose the troops. I.E. Mosby's (43rd Va.), Imboden's(Northwest Brigade), Trigg's(27th Bn. Va. Cav.) Even John H. McNeill was told to disband but he refused and continued to operate in Western Virginia. Quantrill obtained a Col.'s uniform but never held the rank. The revocation of the Partisan Ranger Act placed Quantrill's men even farther outside the pale.

Len