In 1864, a deadly cycle of retaliation unfolded between Union General George A. Custer and Confederate partisan leader John S. Mosby. The executions at Front Royal revealed the dark extremes of Civil War vengeance and the brutal consequences of guerrilla warfare. The Front Royal Executions of 1864 were a violent and controversial episode during the American Civil War, involving Confederate partisan leader Colonel John S. Mosby and Union cavalry commander General George A. Custer. Mosby, known as