Battle Of Appomattox  "Surrounded"  April 8 - 9, 1865

There was still deadly power in the claws and teeth of the wounded lion that was the Army of Northern Virginia. For a week the Rebels had traveled west from Petersburg, stopping only when necessary to rest or to fight off Union attacks on its heels and flanks. Each encounter was bloody and painful, but the remaining 30,000 Southern soldiers kept hope that their brilliant Gen. Robert E. Lee would somehow again lead them to victory. On the morning of April 8, the famished troops marched toward Appomattox Court House and the boxcars of rations at nearby Appomattox Station.

Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant knew he had Lee on the run and believed that if he could keep up the pressure, a Northern victory would be imminent. Having four times as many men as Lee, Grant was able to slash away at the fringes of the Rebel forces to slow them down while he sent his cavalry, with infantry following, to get in front and block their way. He also continued his correspondence with Lee concerning the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.

The evening of April 8 found Lee and his army near Appomattox Court House, where they discovered Union cavalry blocking their way. Lee held a council of war with his top commanders that evening to discuss the prospects for continuing the struggle. They came to a grim decision: The next morning, the gray soldiers would attempt to break through the Union force. If they found infantry as well as cavalry blocking their way, it would be time to admit the cause was lost and end the bloodshed.

Early the next morning three Confederate divisions from Gen. John B. Gordon's corps of the Army of Northern Virginia gave a final Rebel Yell and charged a Union line for the last time. The attack pushed back the Union cavalry, but as the pursuing Confederates crossed a low ridge, they were met with the sight of great masses of blue-clad infantry, deployed in line of battle.

Fascinating Fact:  The march made by the Union infantry to get in front of the Confederates was phenomenal. The soldiers knew the end was near and gave their all. One brigade marched 96 miles in three and one-half days.


Back to index page