The exhausted condition of Lee's army The battle of Hatcher's Run, Dabney's Mill and Armstrong's Mill Gordon's assault on Fort Stedman - - The battles of Dinwiddie Court House, White Oak Road and Five Forks The assault on the Petersburg Lines-Lee's retreat from Petersburg - Davis' flight and the evacuation of Richmond Lincoln's visit to Richmond His terms of peace The battles at Sailor's Creek, Farmville and Highbridge-Lee's surrender at Appomattox - Wilson's raid from Chickasaw to Selma and Macon Johnston's surrender to Sherman - Davis' proclamation His capture and imprisonment -Surrender of the other Confederate armies — The cost of the war Condition of prisoners. The winter had been one of unusual severity, entailing much suffering upon both armies, but upon the Confederates especially, who were poorly fed and clothed. Lee strengthened his works and extended them up the south side of Hatcher's Run, where the Boydton plank road crosses the Run. A. P. Hill held the right from Hatcher's Run to Fort Gregg; Gordon and R. H. Anderson held the line from Hill's left to the Appomattox; and Longstreet from the Appomattox to the Confederate left, north of the James at White Oak Swamp. The length of the line was about 37 miles, 8 of which were north of the James. To cover these lines Lee on December 30 had about 59,000 officers and men while Grant at the same time had about 110,000. At this time Lee was in a dire condition, for while his soldiers were enthusiastic, the vacan cies in his ranks were not being filled up by volunteers. Moreover, many of the troops classed as present and fit for duty were well-nigh exhausted from fighting, exposure to the elements and constant dread of an assault by Grant. On March 5 Lee wrote: "All the disposable force of the right wing of the army has been operating against the enemy beyond Hatcher's Run since Sunday. Yesterday, the most inclement day of the year, they had to be retained in line of battle having been in the same condition the two previous days and nights. I regret to be obliged to state that under these circumstances, heightened by assaults and fire of the enemy, some of the men had been without meat for three days, and all were suffering from reduced rations and scant clothing, exposed to battle, cold, hail and sleet. I have directed Colonel Cole, chief commissary, who reports that he has not a pound of meat at his disposal, to visit Richmond and see if nothing can be done. * Richardson, Messages and Papers, vol. vi., pp. 276-277; Nicolay and Hay, Life of Lincoln, vol. x., pp. 143-145; Lincoln, Complete Works, vol. ii., pp. 657-659. THE EMPLOYMENT OF NEGROES BY THE CONFEDERATES. 113 good soldiers and that the measure If some change is not made and the commissary opinion that the negroes would make department reorganized, I apprehend dire results. The physical strength of the men, if their courage survives, must fail under this treatment. Taking these facts in consideration with the paucity of our numbers, you must not be surprised if calamity befalls us.” * With the evacuation of Richmond the State of Virginia must be abandoned. There is anarchy in the opinions of men here and few are willing to give counsel. Still fewer are willing to incur the responsibility of taking or advising action." + But Davis was not yet ready to give up the struggle and in his message to the Confederate congress on March 13 stated that "there remains for us no choice but to continue the contest to a final issue." Another measure which plainly foreshadowed the approaching ruin of the Confederacy was determined upon by the Confederate congress about the middle of March. This was the passage of an act of March 13, providing for the employment of slaves in the military service. In a letter to a Mississippi representative on February 18 Lee expressed the was not only expedient but necessary." After the measure became law Lee coöperated with the Confederate war department in an effort to recruit negro troops; but the slaves manifested anything but alacrity to engage in the contest. Meanwhile General Grant, well aware of the condition of affairs in the Confederacy, was desirous of carrying forward operations to bring the war to an effectual conclusion by the capture of Lee's army. His greatest source of uneasiness was the fear that Lee would abandon his lines about Petersburg and Richmond and unite with Johnston before he was ready to make an effectual pursuit.* Accordingly, on February 5, Grant put in motion an expedition to interrupt the Confederate line of communication by the Boydton road running through Dinwiddie Court House to Petersburg. Gregg's cavalry division was directed to march early in the morning by way of Reams' Station to Dinwiddie Court House and strike the road; Warren's 5th corps was to cross Hatcher's Run and supcommanding the 2d corps was ordered port Gregg; General Humphreys with two divisions to the crossing of the Vaughan road over the Run and to Armstrong's Mill to hold these two points and to keep up communication with Warren, four miles distant on the one side and with Miles' division *Official Records, vol. xlvi., pt. i., pp. 47, 50, 52. 114 HATCHER'S RUN, DABNEY'S AND ARMSTRONG'S MILLS. in the Union intrenchments three or four miles distant on the other. Humphreys pushed Mott's division to the south side of Hatcher's Run and Smyth's division to Armstrong's Mill on the north side about 1,000 yards from the Confederate works. Two brigades were sent to Smyth's support. At 5 P. м. on February 5, parts of A. P. Hill's and Gordon's corps came out of their works and, under cover of the woods, attacked Smyth, but without avail. Hartranft's division of the 9th corps and Wheaton's of the 6th then further strengthened Smyth's line. Gregg captured some wagons and prisoners on the Boydton road and in the evening fell back to Malone's Bridge at Rowanty Creek, from which he moved up to the Vaughan road crossing, where he arrived early on the morning of the 6th with Warren, who had been ordered to support Humphreys. driven back. Three Union brigades were then sent to Crawford's aid and at the same time Mahone's division arrived and took position between Evans and Pegram, when the whole Confederate line advanced, driving Warren back in great disorder. Some of Warren's men, however, rallied upon Wheaton's division which had crossed from the north bank of the stream, and the Confederates were checked. On the morning of the 7th no large force of the enemy was in sight, and the Union works were extended to Hatcher's Run at Vaughan road crossing. The Union loss was 1,352 killed and wounded and 187 missing. The Confederate loss was about 1,500, among the killed being General John Pegram.* General Lee had foreseen that the evacuation of Petersburg would be forced upon him when Sherman approached from the south, and it was determined early in March that as soon as the roads would admit of movement the two places should be abandoned and the army moved to Danville to unite with General Johnston in an attack on Sherman, then marching northward from Savannah.t Before commencing his re About 1 P. M. Warren with two divisions moved along the Vaughan and Dabney's Mill road; Gregg, supported by one of Warren's divisions, went down the Vaughan road to Gravelly Run to observe the left. Gregg was attacked by a part of Pegram's division, but repulsed the Confederates with the aid of a part of treat, however, Lee proposed to make Griffin's division. Crawford's division of Warren's corps, moving along the Dabney's Mill road, also encountered part of Pegram's division and forced it back to Dabney's Mill, where Evans' division reinforced Pegram; and Crawford in turn was. Official Records, vol. xlvi.; Humphreys, The Virginia Campaign of '64 and '65, pp. 312-315; Walker, History of the Second Army Corps; Powell, History of the Fifth Army Corps; Confederate Military History, vol. v., pp. 351–352. Regarding this plan see the contradictory statements in Long, Memoirs of R. E. Lee, p. 403, and Davis, Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, vol. ii., pp. 648-649. 116 BEGINNING OF THE MOVEMENT AGAINST RICHMOND. a cordon around Fort Stedman, while Tidball's artillery had concentrated a heavy fire upon it and the adjacent line. At 7:45 Hartranft attacked Confederate detachments moving in the direction of City Point, capturing or driving them back, and by 8 o'clock was in possession of Fort Stedman and the entire line, together with 1,949 prisoners and 9 stands of colors. His own loss was 72 killed, 450 wounded and 522 missing. The 6th corps then attacked and captured the Confederate picket line, losing 449 killed and wounded and 30 missing, while the same feat was performed by the 2d corps, which captured 365 prisoners, with a loss to itself of 51 killed, 462 wounded and 177 missing. The Confederates made several unavailing attempts to recapture their own advanced lines. The total Union loss in this engagement was 170 killed, 1,323 wounded and 729 missing. The Confederate loss, including prisoners, was about 4,000. On March 24 Grant issued his long and carefully prepared instructions for a general movement of the armies operating against Richmond. This movement was to begin on the 29th and its object was to destroy the railroads leading into Petersburg from the south, so as to force Lee to come out of his intrenchments and fight on Official Records, vol. xlvi.; Humphreys, The Virginia Campaign of '64 and '65, pp. 317-321; Walker, History of the 2d Army Corps; Powell, History of the 5th Army Corps; Battles and Leaders, vol. iv., pp. 579-594; Nicolay and Hay, Life of Lincoln, vol. x., pp. 161-164. * open ground or so far attenuate his line as to permit a successful assault. By this time Grant had been joined by Sheridan and his cavalry from the Shenandoah Valley and had under his command 101,000 infantry, 14,700 cavalry, and 9,000 field artillery, with 369 guns. Lee's army numbered about 46,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry and 5,000 field artillery, with about 190 guns. On the night of the 27th the movement began with the greater part of the Army of the James marching secretly from the right to the left of the Army of the Potomac. On the morning of the 29th Sheridan's cavalry with the 5th and 2d corps moved to the left to turn Lee's right. This movement resulted in the battles of Dinwiddie Court House and White Oak Road on March 30 and 31 and the battle of Five Forks on April 1. The deploy to the left was led by Warren's 5th corps and Sheridan's cavalry, and the first engagement was near the Boydton road where Griffin's division of Warren's corps defeated two brigades from Lee's right, driving them back to White Oak Road. On the 30th the 2d and 5th corps closed in on the White Oak Road on Lee's right, and Wilcox's Confederate division, coming out of the intrenchments, assailed Warren but was driven back. Warren's advance division was now within 600 yards of the road. On the 31st Lee ordered * See, however, the figures in Humphreys, The Virginia Campaign of '64 and 65, pp. 323, 432434. |