1865
January 1865 – Fort Fisher, North Carolina
After Admiral David D. Porter’s squadron of warships had subjected Fort Fisher to a terrific bombardment, General Alfred H. Terry’s troops took it by storm on January 15, and Wilmington, North Carolina, the last resort of the blockade-runners, was sealed off. Timothy H. O’Sullivan promptly recorded the strength of the works and the effects of the bombardment.
January 1865 – The Fall of the Confederacy
Transportation problems and successful blockades caused severe shortages of food and supplies in the South. Starving soldiers began to desert Lee’s forces, and although President Jefferson Davis approved the arming of slaves as a means of augmenting the shrinking army, the measure was never put into effect.
February 1865 – Sherman Marches through North and South Carolina
Union General Sherman moved from Georgia through South Carolina, destroying almost everything in his path.
February 1865 – A Chance for Reconciliation is Lost
Confederate President Jefferson Davis agreed to send delegates to a peace conference with President Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward, but insisted on Lincoln’s recognition of the South’s independence as a prerequisite. Lincoln refused, and the conference never occurred.
April 1865 – Richmond Falls
On March 25, General Lee attacked General Grant’s forces near Petersburg, but was defeated — attacking and losing again on April 1. On April 2, Lee evacuated Richmond, the Confederate capital, and headed west to join with other forces.
April 1865 – Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
General Lee’s troops were soon surrounded, and on April 7, Grant called upon Lee to surrender. On April 9, the two commanders met at Appomattox Courthouse, and agreed on the terms of surrender. Lee’s men were sent home on parole — soldiers with their horses, and officers with their side arms. All other equipment was surrendered.
April 1865 – The Assassination of President Lincoln
On April 14, as President Lincoln was watching a performance of “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C., he was shot by John Wilkes Booth, an actor from Maryland obsessed with avenging the Confederate defeat. Lincoln died the next morning. Booth escaped to Virginia. Eleven days later, cornered in a burning barn, Booth was fatally shot by a Union soldier. Nine other people were involved in the assassination; four were hanged, four imprisoned, and one acquitted.
April-May 1865 – Final Surrenders of Remaining Confederate Troops
Remaining Confederate troops were defeated between the end of April and the end of May. Jefferson Davis was captured in Georgia on May 10.
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