Siege of Petersburg

battle_name=Siege of Petersburg

1865 and the end of the siege

Hatcher's Run

Taking advantage of good weather conditions in early February, Generals Ulysses S. Grant and George G. Meade launched an offensive against the Confederate flank in the vicinity of the previous year's Battle of Boydton Plank Road. Hancock's successor, Andrew A. Humphreys, and Gouverneur K. Warren began crossing Hatcher's Run while David McM. Gregg's cavalry raided Confederate supplies. Gregg's raid failed and the Federal advance was hit by a series of counterattacks, but Humphreys and Warren were able to repulse each of them and extend the Union siege lines west of Hatcher's Run.

Related Topics:
February - Ulysses S. Grant - George G. Meade - Battle of Boydton Plank Road - Andrew A. Humphreys - Gouverneur K. Warren - David McM. Gregg

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Fort Stedman

As the siege continued, Grant attempted to break or encircle the Confederate forces in multiple attacks moving from east to west, and both armies' lines were stretched out until they surrounded the city. By March 1865, the siege had taken an enormous toll on both armies, and Lee decided to pull out of Petersburg. General John B. Gordon of the Second Corps then devised a plan to have the army attack Fort Stedman on the eastern end of the Union Lines, forcing the Union forces to shorten their lines. Although initially a success, the outnumbered Second Corps was forced back.

Related Topics:
John B. Gordon - Fort Stedman

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(Fort Stedman marked the end of what military historians call the "Richmond-Petersburg Campaign" of 1864–1865. The remaining actions in the Siege of Petersburg are classified under the Appomattox Campaign.)

Related Topics:
1864 - 1865 - Appomattox Campaign

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Five Forks

March also marked the arrival of Union cavalry under the command of General Philip Sheridan to the Petersburg battlefield. Sheridan was tasked with flanking the Confederate army, which forced Lee to send forces under General George Pickett to defend the flank. Grant then deployed the V Corps to cut off Pickett's forces. Although the attack was initially was pushed back, it was saved by forces under General Joshua Chamberlain, and Pickett was forced to withdraw to Five Forks on March 31. In the following days, the V Corps continued to press the attack, flanking Pickett's forces, and destroying the Confederate left. Confederate cavalry under the command of General W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee put up a stand against their Union counterparts under the command of Union General George Custer, allowing Pickett's forces to escape.

Related Topics:
Philip Sheridan - George Pickett - V Corps - Joshua Chamberlain - Five Forks - March 31 - W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee - George Custer

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Fall of Petersburg

After the victory at Five Forks, Ulysses S. Grant ordered an assault along the entire Confederate line. Horatio G. Wright's VI Corps, spearheaded by the Vermont Brigade, made a decisive breakthrough along the Boydton Plank Road line. John Gibbon's XXIV Corps overran Fort Gregg after a heroic Confederate defense. John G. Parke's IX Corps overran the eastern trenches but met with stiff resistance under John B. Gordon. General A.P. Hill was killed while trying to restore the broken Confederate line along the Boydton Plank Road. Hill had earlier vowed that he would never leave the Petersburg defenses. In the following days, Lee pulled his forces out from Petersburg and Richmond, and headed for the west in an attempt to meet up with forces under the command of General Joseph E. Johnston in North Carolina.

Related Topics:
Ulysses S. Grant - Confederate - Horatio G. Wright - VI Corps - Vermont Brigade - John Gibbon - XXIV Corps - John G. Parke - IX Corps - John B. Gordon - A.P. Hill - Joseph E. Johnston - North Carolina

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