Was it ever determined who actually lost the order? I know this was debated endlessly after the war, but I don’t know if there was ever a consensus reached. D.H. Hill denied he was responsible in an article published in The Century magazine, and even produced his copy of the order.
Some blame DH Hill. Others point to Maj. Henry Kyd.
Historians have been to focused on who lost the order, rather than who lost the cigars.
New information has been brought to light that a Private Lewinsky had been appointed official cigar smuggler of the confederacy, and it is likely that she blew the entire operation.