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Spring of 1864 finally came and the Union commander took the initiative. On June 12, Grant began to move the Army
of the Potomae across the Chickahominy River. Grant's eyes were on Petersburg and it's rail center. The rail center
linked Richmond with the Deep South.
On the night of June 15, 1864, the Battle of Petersburg began, the Siege of Petersburg
would last until the end of the Civil War. Nine monthe later, as spring on 1865 came, the siege had taken it's
toll on the Confederate Army. The Union Army waqs well supplied by way of the James River. But the Confederates
had lost men they could not replace.
General Lee was forced from the Petersburg trenches on April 2, 1865. The Confederates
moved westward looking for food. The South had less than 100,000 men under arms. The North had close to a million
men under arms. Confederate General Lee knew that he had no alternative. "but to go and see General Grant."
The two Generals would meet at Appomattox Courthouse on the afternoon of April
9, 1865. There they signed the surrender document at 3:00 p.m..
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