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Civil War

End of a Tragedy: The Road to Appomattox



END OF A TRAGEDY

THE ROAD TO APPOMATTOX





The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the events surrounding the

end of the American Civil War. This war was a war of epic proportion.

Never before and not since have so many Americans died in battle. The

American Civil War was truly tragic in terms of human life. In this

document, I will speak mainly around those involved on the battlefield in

the closing days of the conflict. Also, reference will be made to the

leading men behind the Union and Confederate forces.

The war was beginning to end by January of 1865. By then, Federal

(Federal was another name given to the Union Army) armies were spread

throughout the Confederacy and the Confederate Army had shrunk extremely in

size. In the year before, the North had lost an enormous amount of lives,

but had more than enough to lose in comparison to the South. General Grant

became known as the "Butcher" (Grant, Ulysses S., Personal Memoirs of U.S.

Grant, New York: Charles L. Webster & Co.,1894) and many wanted to see him

removed. But Lincoln stood firm with his General, and the war continued.

This paper will follow the happenings and events between the winter of

1864-65 and the surrender of The Confederate States of America. All of

this will most certainly illustrate that April 9, 1865 was indeed the end

of a tragedy.

CUTTING OFF THE SOUTH

In September of 1864, General William T. Sherman and his army cleared

the city of Atlanta of its civilian...