After the battle of Cold Harbor Grant remained a few days trying to
find a weak place in the Confederate lines. This he abandoned and
resolved to move his army across the James and to Petersburg, which
place is about twenty miles from Richmond, and was defended by General
Beauregard with a small division of the Confederate army.
Petersburg was at the junction of three railroads, and was a place
of great importance to the Confederacy, as all the supplies of Lee's
army, as well as to Richmond, came by the way of Petersburg, and for
these reasons General Grant resolved to destroy the railroads, and if
possible to capture the city, and thus destroy the Confederates' source
of supplies.
These conditions being well known to Lee, he resolved to defend
Petersburg, and to save it from capture if possible, and thus began the
greatest struggle of its kind known in modern times.
The advance divisions of Grant's army, under Hancock and W. F. Smith,
appeared before Petersburg June 15, 1864. Beauregard managed to hold
the entrenchments with his small force until Lee's main army arrived,
which came by a shorter route than the one which the Federals had
taken. Both armies were in full force before Petersburg by the evening
of the 18th, and the great struggle had now begun. The Confederate
entrenchments extended for thirty miles, and the whole country was a
network of fortifications. Grant at once began to extend his lines of
entrenchments, and thus the two armies were pitted against each other
for their last great struggle, the army of General Grant numbering more
than 100,000 men, while that of General Lee was about half that number.
General Grant turned his attention to trying to destroy the railroads,
and made several attempts with much hard fighting to do so. But this,
having been anticipated by General Lee, he had given to A. P. Hill
the defense and the protection of the railroads, which was his source
of supplies. They were ably protected by General Hill, and Grant's
attacking parties in every instance were repulsed, and these plans were
at length abandoned by him for the present.
The two armies lay facing each other before Petersburg the entire
summer and fall, with several small engagements during the summer and a
few very severe ones.
A severe cavalry engagement was fought at Trevilian Station, north of
Richmond, on June 11th, between the Confederates, commanded by Generals
Hampton and Fitzhugh Lee, and the Federals, commanded by General
Sheridan.
During the latter days of July the Federals were engaged in digging
a mammoth tunnel, beginning in the rear of their entrenchments and
to extend under the Confederate fortifications before Petersburg, at
the completion of which they expected to fill the same with large
quantities of gunpowder which was to be exploded and was expected to
blow up the Confederate fortifications.
Of all the schemes employed by either army this was the greatest, and
one in which Grant had great faith, and the progress of which was
watched with great anxiety. The Confederates were apprised of this
undertaking, and had made ready by placing several batteries within
their lines so that the fire from the same would sweep the opening
which would be made by the blowing up of the "crater." At a few minutes
past five on the morning of July 30th this mine was exploded, which
was a sight to behold. The Federal troops who were in waiting to march
through the opening were somewhat delayed from the shock and horror of
the explosion, but at length marched in the opening in great numbers,
and by this time the Confederate batteries were brought into action,
which so horribly swept their ranks, and they were charged by General
Mahone with several divisions of Georgia troops, and the Federal loss
became so great, and their ranks in so much confusion, that they were
ordered to retire within their entrenchments, thus bringing to a dismal
failure the capture of Petersburg by this plan.
[Illustration: BATTLE OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT-HOUSE]
During the last days of August Grant renewed his plan to destroy the
Weldon railroad. This task was given to General Warren, with a large
force who, after fighting several hard battles with the dashing Mahone,
whose numbers were greatly inferior to that of Warren, and from his
reputation for strategy it is thought that he was very worthy to wear
the mantle of "Stonewall" Jackson, the Federals succeeded in destroying
this railroad in several places.
Grant continued to extend his lines, and by the end of October he was
very near the Southside railroad, and on the 27th fought a desperate
battle with A. P. Hill at Hatcher's Run, in which the Federals were
defeated and retired within their entrenchments before Petersburg, this
being the last engagement of importance until the coming spring.
The suffering and privation endured by Lee's army during the winter of
1864 and 1865, while they lay within the defenses of Petersburg and
Richmond with scant clothing and food, can scarcely be imagined by
anyone excepting those who were there. Their numbers were depleted by
sickness and other causes so by the coming of spring Lee had within his
ranks less than 50,000 men.
Lee's lines had been extended until they were so thin that there was
danger of breaking. A. P. Hill held the right, Gordon and Anderson the
center, and Longstreet the left. Late in February Grant's army was
reënforced by General Sheridan from the valley, and in the last days
of March it was further reënforced from General Butler's army from down
the James River.
General Lee began to see the position that he was in with his army
against superior numbers and equipment, and felt that he must sooner
or later evacuate Petersburg, and began to plan a junction of his army
with General Johnston's in North Carolina.
General Grant anticipated this plan of Lee's and began to extend his
lines westward so if possible to cut off Lee's chances of retreat.
Lee determined to make a bold attack on Grant's right, the objective
point being Fort Stedman. This plan was given to General Gordon to be
carried out, which he gallantly did, and captured the fort, but was
unable to hold the same, and retired within the Confederate lines.
His attack and capture of Fort Stedman was carefully planned and well
supported by the main Confederate army.
The battle at Fort Stedman did not interfere with Grant's plan in
extending his lines along the front of the Confederate army, under
General Warren. Lee had sent General Anderson to hold the road over
which he would retreat in the event he was compelled to evacuate
Petersburg.
On the 31st a large Confederate force was at Dinwiddie Court House, and
during that night they took a strong position at Five Forks, and here
on April 1st a hard battle was fought, the Federals being commanded by
Generals Sheridan and Warren. The Confederates were finally defeated
with a loss of 5,000 prisoners.
The Confederates' defeat at Five Forks was a great blow to Lee, and he
immediately began preparations for the evacuation of Petersburg and
Richmond.
On the night of April 1st Grant began his attack all along his lines,
which he kept up the entire night. His cannon threw shells into the
doomed city, and at dawn on April 2d the assault began. The Federal
troops went forward in an impetuous charge through a storm of grape and
canister which was poured into their ranks. The Confederates fell back
within their inner breastworks and the Federals pushed on the left as
far as Hatcher's Run, where they had a severe engagement in which the
Confederate General Pegram was killed, and another engagement near the
Southside railroad in which General A. P. Hill was killed. His death
was an irreparable loss to the Confederacy. He was one of their able
corps commanders, and had been in all the principal engagements in the
East. He played a distinctive part in the Seven Days' Battles before
Richmond; his timely arrival on the field saved Lee's army from utter
rout at Antietam Creek and turned defeat into partial victory; he was a
great favorite of "Stonewall" Jackson, and took a distinctive part in
the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, in which last-named
battle he was near by when "Stonewall" Jackson was mortally wounded;
with his corps was first on the field at Gettysburg; his corps received
the first onslaught of the Federals at the Battle of the Wilderness;
was too sick to command his corps at Spottsylvania Court House, which
was temporarily commanded by General Early; played a distinctive part
at Cold Harbor, and here at Petersburg, on Sunday, April 2d, the end.
He was buried in the cemetery at Petersburg on the night of April 2d,
while the whole country was being lit up by bursting shells and the
hurrying and noise of the progress of a great battle.
On Sunday morning, April 2d, General Lee notified the authorities
at Richmond that he must evacuate Petersburg at once, and to notify
President Davis of the situation. President Davis was at St. Paul's
Church with several of his cabinet listening to a sermon by Dr.
Minnegerode, speaking of a supper before Gethsemane. The sexton walked
up the isle and handed the President the message, which he read, and
quietly retired from the church, this being noticeable on account of it
being somewhat out of the ordinary, although they were accustomed to
the roar of the cannon at Petersburg. However, it was soon known that
Petersburg and Richmond were soon to be evacuated, and the service was
dismissed at the church without further announcement.
The city of Richmond was in a state of excitement as the officers
of the government departed from the city on their way to Danville,
and during the night the arsenals were set on fire by the evacuating
troops. The flames spread to a large portion of the city, which was
burned. The next day the city was taken charge of by the Federals.