U.S.

Grant and Total Warfare

March 9, 1864- Lincoln places U.S. Grant at the head of the Northern Army Grant decided to use Total Warfare tactics
Unrelenting drive to apply pressure at all points of the Confederacy no matter the cost in troops and supplies Complete destruction of Southern-owned property including homes, farmland, and agricultural stores

Total Warfare
Grant knew this style of warfare would bring the South to their knees as they were already feeling the pinch of a lack of troops, supplies, clothing, and food Idea was to get civilians to beg their government for surrender

The Wilderness Campaign

May, 1864- Grant led a threepronged attack against the Confederates in the Shenandoah Valley on his way to Richmond

The Wilderness CampaignSpotsylvania Courthouse, May, 1864

Eleven days of intense fighting ended in a stalemate with heavy casualties General Philip Sheridan simultaneously commanded Union cavalry raids towards Richmond that resulted in the death of Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart at Yellow Tavern Afterwards Grant marched his army south to continue the offensive

The Wilderness CampaignCold Harbor, June 1864

Strategic crossroads on the way to Richmond where Lee established a defense Grant sent 14 frontal assaults on Lees position resulting in massive Union casualties each time being repulsed by Lees army Grant saw it as a success because he inflicted heavy casualties upon the Confederates as well

The Wilderness CampaignPetersburg, June 1864

Grant abandoned his battle plans and attempted a stealthy invasion against a rail city (Petersburg) 25 miles south of Richmond Beauregard put up a great defense of the city until Lee arrived with reinforcements Grant surrounds Petersburg and lays siege to the city
Lee is trapped

The Wilderness CampaignLees Shenandoah Diversion

Lee sent General Jubal Early on the offensive against Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley to divert the Unions focus from Petersburg
Union General David Hunter is defeated

General Early had successfully rid the Shenandoah Valley of Union troops General Early then attempted an assault on Washington, D.C. (again, to divert Grants attention from Petersburg)

The Wilderness CampaignSheridan in the Shenandoah

Early marched his army to the outskirts of the northern capital, but eventually retreated back to Virginia because he felt his army was too small and weak to attack Grant replaces General Hunter with Major General Philip Sheridan who defeated Early at Opequon and Fishers Hill (September, 1864)

The Wilderness CampaignBattle of the Crater, July 1864

Coal miners from Pennsylvania volunteered to dig a tunnel to a point under the Confederate fort at Petersburg They placed a large charge of explosives at the end of the tunnel under Petersburg and blew a hole in the fortifications Union soldiers drove into the gap provided by the explosion, but following waves of troops were disorganized Confederates were able to regain the sector of Petersburg by the afternoon

The Wilderness CampaignCedar Hill, October 1864

General Early (CSA) sneak attacks Sheridans army to displace them from the Shenandoah Valley Sheridan was miles from the battlefield and rode to rally his disorganized and broken troops to victory Sheridan gains control of the Shenandoah Valley and proceeds to lay waste to everything in the region using scorched earth tactics

The Wilderness CampaignFall of the South

Back at Petersburg, Grant had immobilized Lees dwindling army Lee knew that if he left the trenches of Petersburg that Grant would overwhelm him in an open battlefield because of superior number of troops, so he stayed put

The Wilderness CampaignFall of the South Grant continued his siege of Petersburg for the remainder of the year as his troop strength continued to grow from reinforcements and Lees were starving, sick, and tired

Shermans March to the Sea Fall 1864

Grant gave General William Tecumseh Sherman the task of penetrating the Deep South Sherman utilized Total Warfare tactics destroying everything in his path Captured Atlanta in September 1864
Most important rail center of the Deep South Assured Lincolns presidential victory in 1864 as the war seemed to be coming to a successful end

Shermans March to the Sea Fall 1864

November 1864- Sherman leaves Atlanta in flames and marches towards the sea in a 60-mile wide path of destruction Estimated damage to Southern property was around $100 million December 1864- Sherman presented Savannah to Lincoln as a Christmas present

Election of 1864
National Union Party- Abraham Lincoln
Included War Democrats

Democrat Party- George McClellan Radical Republican Party- John Fremont Lincoln won the electorate vote 212 to 21