Final Battles of the American Civil War

FredericksburgDecember, 1862

• "A chicken could not live on that field when we open on it.”(Porter Alexander.)

• Ambrose Burnside 116,683 troops vs..... Robert E. Lee 72,564 troops.

• Capture Fredericksburg and on to Richmond

FredericksburgDecember, 1862

• Rappahannock River (17 day delay pontoon bridges.

• Union forces cross river and loot the town.

• Marye’s Heights - 14 Union forces are repelled. (12,535 losses)

• Burnside is replaced by Joseph Hooker.

ChancellorsvilleSpring, 1863

• "My plans are perfect, and when I start to carry them out, may God have mercy on Bobby Lee, for I shall have none." Joe Hooker

• Joseph Hooker 70,000 men Vs. Robert E. Lee’s 40,000 men.

• “Let us Cross over the River and Rest under the shade of the trees.”(Stonewall Jackson’s last words. )

ChancellorsvilleSpring, 1863

• Objective: Robert E. Lee is forced to divide his army in two.

• Lee fakes an attack on Fredericksburg and sends Jackson to attack the Union right flank.

• Stonewall Jackson attack is a success but he is wounded by his own men by mistake.

• Union forces are destroyed with losses of over 17,000 men. Hooker is relieved of command.

GettysburgJuly 1,2,3, 1863

• "We'll fight them, sir, 'til hell freezes over, and then, sir, we will fight them on the ice.”

• Up men! And to your posts! And let no man forget today, that you are from Old Virginia!

Gettysburg Day 1July 1st ,1863

• Union and Confederate Calvary forces engage by accident.

• Confederate forces under Henry Heath are sent to capture shoes.

• Union forces fall back into defensive positions outside of Gettysburg.

• Both sides send large forces into the Gettysburg area and prepare to fight.

Gettysburg Day 2July 2nd, 1863

• They don't even need guns to defend that! All they've got to do is roll rocks down on us!

• Lee orders General Ewell and Longstreet to attack the Union Flanks.

• Ewell attacks Culp’s Hill and Longstreet attacks “Little Round Top”

• Union holds their line at a high cost. (Lee plans to strike the Union center.)

Gettysburg Day 3• Virginians! Virginians!

For your land - for your homes - for your sweethearts - for your wives - for Virginia! Forward... march!

• General George Pickett is ordered to attack the Union center. His army is smashed and Lee is forced to retreat.

VicksburgSpring, 1863

• General Grant Vs. Pemberton.

• Grant cuts off Vicksburg from the East.

• David Farragut sets up naval blockade.

• Siege begins May 1863.• Pemberton surrenders on

July 4th.• Vicksburg doesn’t celebrate

the 4th until 1944.

PetersburgSummer, 1864

• Railroad Hub South of Richmond.• Confederates defend the city by

digging trenches.• Siege begins and takes about 10

months.• Union loses 50,000 men and Lee

loses 30,000 men.• Lee loses his ability to maneuver

and Richmond is left open for the taking.

• The Crater(200X50 feet and 30 feet deep) Disaster for the Union.

Sherman’s March To The SeaFall, 1864

• Sherman wages total war on the South.

• Sherman takes and destroys Atlanta and Starts his March.

• The March ends in the captured city of Savannah.

• Sherman destroys the South’s ability to wage war and forces a quicker end to the war.

• Sherman offers Savannah to Lincoln as a gift. Success Helps Lincoln get reelected.

Appomattox CourthouseApril, 1865

• Final battle for Robert E. Lee.• Lee retreats West after the fall of

Richmond and tries to join Confederate forces in N. Carolina.

• Lee launches an attack in hopes to break the Union line. (Fails)

• Lee is forced to surrender. (Wilmer Mclean)

• Lee’s surrender essentially ends major combat in the Civil War.