Greene, 2008, p. 321 identifies Scales's brigade as under the command of Colonel Joseph H. Hyman but under the temporary command of Lieutenant Colonel Thomas S. Galloway, Jr. on April 2. Union soldiers occupied Richmond and Petersburg on April 3, 1865, but most of the Union Army pursued the Army of Northern Virginia until they surrounded it, forcing Robert E. Lee to surrender that army on April 9, 1865, after the Battle of Appomattox Court House, Virginia. Union Army Chief Engineer John G. Barnard estimated Union casualties in the VI Corps breakthrough at about 1,100 killed and wounded, "all of which occurred in the space of about fifteen minutes. It is generally regarded as the turning point of the war and has probably been more intensively studied and analyzed than any other battle in U.S. history. [215], To buy time for reinforcements from Major General Charles W. Field's division of Longstreet's corps to arrive and take positions on the Dimmock Line, Nathaniel Harris's brigade along with detachments from Thomas's and Lane's brigades made a stand at Forts Gregg and Whitworth while other Confederate units pulled back to or arrived at the main works. Confederate: Varied around 52,000, Butlers Assault When General Robert E. Lee learned of the VI Corps breakthrough, he notified Confederate President Jefferson Davis that he would be forced to abandon Richmond and Petersburg and head toward Danville that night. [177] Thicker, more secure abatis and sharpened stakes slowed Wheaton's division's advance. [168][178] The Massachusetts sharpshooters were able to suppress Confederate fire to allow the pioneers to open gaps in the obstructions. By Earl J. Hess [44] The Union forces had cut the Boydton Plank Road in two places and were close to the Confederate line and in a strong position to move a large force against both the Confederate right flank and the crucial road junction at Five Forks in Dinwiddie County to which Lee was just sending Pickett's mobile force defenders. [39][45][46] The Union Army was nearly in position to attack the two remaining Confederate railroad connections with Petersburg and Richmond, if they could take Five Forks. [168][188] Keifer directed his leading regiment to pass through an opening in the obstructions which Union soldiers had spotted earlier. [174] To the right of Hyde's brigade, Colonel (Brevet Brigadier General) James M. Warner's brigade's lead regiment, the 102nd Pennsylvania Infantry, became disoriented in the near darkness and over the swampy ground after taking the rifle pits. [144] Many Union soldiers reached the obstructions before the pioneers and tore them away with bare hands or found small openings to pass through. There were 55 gun batteries and walls as high as forty feet in certain areas. [201] Wright left Hamblin's brigade to guard the captured line as he reorganized most of the remaining men of the corps to move south. [158] The attack started in such dim light that the men still could not see much beyond the extent of their own company. [141], After careful planning during the two preceding days, Wright had chosen to attack the Confederate line from the Jones house to the left end of his line opposite Union Forts Fisher and Welch. [256], When Parke did not receive a favorable reply to his request for cancellation of the assault, he prepared to send 18 regiments forward. Jenkins. Greene, 2008, p. 298 suggests that the slightly staggered assault by the Union regiments may have appeared to the Confederates to be separate attacks by the Union force. [261], Confederate counterattacks led to bitter fighting, traverse to traverse, as the afternoon continued. Petersburg campaign: ruins of the Richmond & Petersburg Railroad bridge, This article was most recently revised and updated by, 9 Questions About the American Civil War Answered, Famous Figures in American Military History Quiz. [notes 16][236] Yet, the defenders of Forts Gregg and Whitworth bought some valuable time which allowed Field's division and a few other defenders to occupy the Dimmock Line defenses. He was larger than life to many of his contemporaries, and Andrew makes him just as large to his readers. READ MORE: American Civil War: Causes and Dates. [notes 18][146] Confederate casualties are unknown, although General Humphreys reported that Parke claimed 800 prisoners, 12 guns and some flags were captured along with the Confederate works. [notes 21][277] Besides, Miles understood that Sheridan had ordered his men to drive the enemy toward Petersburg, so he turned his division in that direction. [210] The Union soldiers withdrew in the face of this large force, leaving two captured guns behind. With Southern railroads and their supply lines severely damaged, Confederate troops suffered from hunger and exhaustion. [277], At 2:30p.m., Meade learned of Miles's difficulties and ordered Humphreys to take one of his divisions back to Sutherland's Station to support Miles. The Petersburg Breakthrough Battlefield is a historic district in Dinwiddie County, near Petersburg, Virginia. [267] At about 7:30a.m. Mott captured the Confederate picket line at Burgess's Mill and at 8:30a.m. Mott sharply attacked the Confederate trenches on their right flank, which then were rapidly evacuated. [notes 17][248] The later telegram was received by Davis while at the worship service. Brigadier General Robert B. Potter's division was to the west of the Jerusalem Plank Road. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. The VI Corps was in high spirits after the success of the Valley Campaigns under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan, but the enlisted men were nervous about this attack; not realizing just how thin the Confederate lines had become. [142][143] To the right of the point of attack were inundated areas and strong defenses near the Lead Works. [125], After the battle on the night of April 1, Fitzhugh Lee informed Robert E. Lee of the defeat and rout at Five Forks from Church's Crossing near the Ford Road junction with the South Side Railroad where the remaining forces of Rooney Lee and Thomas Rosser joined him. Confederate Casualty trenches at Petersburg April 1865. [129] Lee ordered Longstreet to move with Major General Charles W. Field's division to the Petersburg defenses. As a result of that battle the Confederate right flank and rear were exposed. [10] Lee knew that his forces could not sustain the defenses much longer and the best chance to continue the war was for part or all of his army to leave the Richmond and Petersburg lines, obtain food and supplies at Danville, Virginia, or possibly Lynchburg, Virginia, and join General Joseph E. Johnston's force opposing Major General William T. Sherman's army in North Carolina. The Union attackers assembled in the dark only about 600 yards (550m) from the Confederate picket line and 600 yards (550m) from the Confederate main line. Hill and Robert E. Lee both learned of the breakthrough soon after it occurred. Fort Gregg was part of the larger Third Battle of Petersburg during the Ninth Offensive. Believing that the assault would end in a disaster similar to Cold Harbor ten months earlier, many men wrote down their names and home addresses on pieces of paper and pinned them to their shirts so their bodies could be identified afterwards. Trudeau, 1994, p. 49. Battle of Gettysburg, (July 1-3, 1863), major engagement in the American Civil War, fought 35 miles (56 km) southwest of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that was a crushing Southern defeat. Miles's and Gershom Mott's divisions to attack at once. University of North Carolina [194] The outnumbered North Carolina soldiers were overwhelmed by the Union force, led by the 10th Vermont Infantry Regiment. Tag(s): Battle of Petersburg Civil War African-Americans. [176] Major James A. Weston later wrote that his 33rd North Carolina Infantry Regiment amounted to a mere skirmish line and was overcome by sheer force of numbers, although McGregor wrote that the Confederates appeared glad to surrender when the Pennsylvanians reached their line. That night, under orders from General Robert E. Lee, Confederate Major General Fitzhugh Lee led his cavalry division from Sutherland's Station to Five Forks to defend against an anticipated Union drive to the South Side Railroad which could sever use of that important final Confederate railroad supply line to Petersburg. [176], Wheaton's division was led by the axmen and 75 skirmishers from the 37th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment armed with Spencer repeating rifles. The 20,000 Confederate defenders held on, awaiting reinforcements from the rest of Lees Army of Northern Virginia. [182] His flanking maneuver contributed to the capture of the sector of line that was attacked by Wheaton's other brigades. 3841. [29][30], Grant ordered Major General Edward Ord to move part of the Army of the James from the lines near Richmond to fill in the line to be vacated by the II Corps under Major General Andrew A. Humphreys at the southwest end of the Petersburg line before that corps moved to the west. [65][71], The rain continued on March 31. The Union IX Corps under Major General John G. Parke promptly counterattacked. After Lees plan to join with General Joseph E. Johnston was thwarted, he surrendered to General Grant on April 9 at Appomattox Court House. Location: Petersburg Virginia. The remaining supply lines were cut and the Confederate defenders were reduced by over 10,000 men killed, wounded, taken prisoner or in flight. Date. [149] Colonel Andrew M. Nelson's Mississippi brigade, Brigadier General Samuel McGowan's South Carolina brigade, Brigadier General William McComb's Maryland and Tennessee brigade and other regiments of MacRae's brigade held other segments of the 6 miles (9.7km) of earthworks between Indian Town Creek and Burgess Mill. Hunger, exposure, and the apparent hopelessness of further resistance led to increasing desertion, especially among recent conscripts. [228], The 25 Mississippians who were detailed to defend Fort Gregg's palisaded gate in the rear were outnumbered by the Union soldiers who were able to get to the back of the fort and they became worn down by casualties. [282] Artillery preceded infantry. [124] In view of the situation, Lieutenant General A.P. Nine and a half months, 70,000 casualties, the suffering of civilians, thousands of U. S. Colored Troops fighting for the freedom of their race, and the decline of Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of No. Wise and Colonel Martin L. Stansel in lieu of the ill Young Marshall Moody,[47][49][50] reinforced by the brigades of Brigadier Generals Samuel McGowan and Eppa Hunton, attack the exposed Union line. Trudeau says it lasted for five hours. Lee raced to reinforce the Petersburgs defenses. [214][227] Eventually, Union soldiers found the uncompleted short trench in back of the fort which allowed them an easier opportunity to climb onto the fort's parapet. [167] Gould suffered three severe bayonet and sword wounds, including two to his head, but a rifle pointed at him point blank misfired. Tracy. [231] After several bayonet charges, the Union attackers finally carried the works by sheer force of numbers and, after desperate hand-to-hand combat, forced the surviving defenders to surrender. [144][150] Despite the close formation, brigades were to keep intervals between them and the lines in each brigade were to be kept at least 50 paces apart.[151]. [3] General Grant estimated the VI Corps took about 3,000 prisoners, which historian A. Wilson Greene states is "probably not far wrong. [126][135][137] If the Confederates held their line, Grant said that Humphreys should send Miles's division down White Oak Road to reinforce Sheridan. [101] They attacked from mostly positions sheltered by woods just outside the Confederate breastworks. [195] The VI Corps deployed in support of the XXIV Corps but instead of being able to rest, the troops on the north end of the line would have to deal with Confederate artillery fire protecting Lee's headquarters at the Turnbull House on Edge Hill. Hill's corps due to Hill's death. Press, 2009. Locations: DINWIDDIE, Virginia. [259], The Union attackers captured Miller's salient but then had to fight from traverse to traverse along the trenches. The Confederates jumped on top of a large traverse between the fort and the battery to fire down on the Union attackers. [214] Although Fort Whitworth was larger, it was deteriorated in part due to the removal of wood for firewood by some of the same Confederate troops now sent to defend it who were camped nearby during the winter. Beginning after the unsuccessful attack of the city of Petersburg by Ulysses S. Grant, Grant then constructed trenches around the eastern portion of Richmond to the outskirts of Petersburg. The intervening thick, damp woods and an acoustic shadow prevented the Confederate commanders from hearing the opening stage of the battle nearby. Petersburg Campaign, (1864-65), series of military operations in southern Virginia during the final months of the American Civil War that culminated in the defeat of the South. But, mostly owing to mismanagement and inefficiency, Southern railroads had broken down or been destroyed. It took place on Saturday, July 30, 1864, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Robert E. Lee, and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major General George G. Meade (under the direct supervision of the general-in-chief, Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant ).