Pardons for West Virginians

Following the Civil War, there were thirteen "confederate profiles" that disqualified an individual from receiving a "general amnesty." If a "rebel" fell under one of these exclusions, amnesty was denied and an application for a "special personal pardon" from President Johnson was required. Excluded from receiving a "general amnesty" were individuals who:

1. were civil or diplomatic agents or officials of the Confederacy

2. left judicial posts under the United States to aid the rebellion

3. were Confederate Military Officers above the rank of Army Colonel or Navy Lieutenant

4. were members of the U.S. Congress who left to aid in the rebellion

5. resigned commissions in the U.S. Army or Navy and afterwards aided in the rebellion

6. treated unlawfully black prisoners of war and their white officers

7. had absented themselves from the United States in order to aid in the rebellion

8. were graduates of West Point or Annapolis who served as Confederate officers

9. ex-Confederate Governors

10. left homes in territory under United States jurisdiction for purposes of aiding the rebellion

11. engaged in destruction of commerce on the high seas or in raids from Canada

12. voluntarily participated in the rebellion who had property valued at more than $20,000.00

13. had broken the oath taken under the provisions of the proclamation of 8 Dec. 1863

Reference:

Douthat, James L., "Special Presidential Pardons for Confederate Soldiers", Mountain Press, 1999.