Battle of Appomattox Court House 1865
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 9 April 1865 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1865 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | American Civil War | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 37.3775, -78.7961 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Appomattox Court House, fought in Appomattox County, Virginia, on the morning of April 9, 1865, was one of the last, and ultimately one of the most consequential, battles of the American Civil War (1861–1865). It was the final push of Confederate general in chief Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia before they surrendered to the Union Army of the Potomac under the Commanding General of the United States Army, Ulysses S. Grant.
Lee, having abandoned the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, after the nine-and-a-half-month siege of Petersburg and Richmond, retreated west, hoping to join his army with Confederate forces, the Army of Tennessee in North Carolina. Union infantry and cavalry forces under General Philip Sheridan pursued and cut off the Confederates' retreat just southwest of the small central Virginia village of Appomattox Court House. Lee launched a last-ditch attack to break through the Union forces to his front, assuming the Union force consisted entirely of lightly armed cavalry. When he realized that the cavalry was now backed up by two corps of federal infantry, he had no choice but to surrender with his further avenue of retreat and escape now cut off.
The signing of the surrender documents occurred in the parlor of the house owned by Wilmer McLean on the afternoon of April 9.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Appomattox Court House (revision 1378752752), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of Appomattox Station 1865 · 4 km
- Battle of Lynchburg 1864 · 34 km
- Battle of Cumberland Church 1865 · 36 km
- Battle of High Bridge 1865 · 43 km
- Battle of Rice's Station 1865 · 46 km
- Battle of Sailor's Creek 1865 · 51 km
Other battles of the American Civil War
- Skirmish at Cedar Creek 1864
- Skirmish at Terre Noire Creek 1864
- St. Albans Raid 1864
- Third Battle of Murfreesboro 1864
- Third Battle of Winchester 1864
- Battle of Aiken 1865
- Battle of Amelia Springs 1865
- Battle of Anderson 1865
- Battle of Appomattox Station 1865
- Battle of Averasborough 1865
All 498 battles of the American Civil War →
Browse more: battles in United States · North America · 19th century battles