Siege of Petersburg

The Richmond-Petersburg Campaign, commonly known as the Siege of Petersburg, was a series of military operations in Virginia that occurred towards the end of the American Civil War, ultimately spelling the end of the war for the Confederacy. The Siege of Petersburg includes the period the starts at the transfer of the Army of Potomac across the James River, the aftermath of the Battle of Cold Harbor and the evacuation of Richmond. This dates from mid-June, 1864 to April 1, 1865. The "siege" was far from an actual military siege in the traditional sense, but a full ten months of constant trench warfare consisting of General Ulysses Grant's unsuccessful attack on Petersburg and the construction of over 30 miles of trench lines around the city. With Confederate supply lines weakened, Grant launched a successful attack through the Confederate lines and captured the city, with the Confederates still buying enough time for General Robert E. Lee's army to escape. Lee would surrender eight days later to Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia on April 9, 1865.

The hellish trench warfare of the Petersburg Campaign would soon become a major part of warfare during the first World War.