 With one companion , Benjamin travelled south in a poor carriage , pretending to be a Frenchman who spoke no English . He had some gold with him , and left much of it for the support of relatives . He was traveling in the same general direction as the Davis party , but evaded capture whereas Davis was taken by Union troops . Benjamin reached Monticello , Florida , on May 13 to learn Union troops were in nearby Madison . Benjamin decided to continue alone on horseback , east and south along Florida 's Gulf Coast , pretending to be a South Carolina farmer . He eventually reached Gamble Mansion in Ellenton , on the southwest coast of Florida . From there , assisted by the blockade runner Captain Archibald McNeill , he reached Bimini in the Bahamas . His escape from Florida to England was not without hardship : at one point he pretended to be a Jewish cook on McNeill 's vessel , to deceive American soldiers who inspected it — one of whom stated it was the first time he had seen a Jew do menial labor . The small sponge @-@ carrying vessel on which he left Bimini bound for Nassau exploded on the way , and he and the three black crewmen eventually managed to return to Bimini . McNeill 's ship was still there , and he chartered it to take him to Nassau . From there , he took a ship for Havana , and on August 6 , 1865 , left there for Britain . He was not yet done with disaster ; his ship caught fire after departing St. Thomas , and the crew put out the flames only with difficulty . On August 30 , 1865 , Judah Benjamin arrived at Southampton , in Britain . 
