In a recent book on the war, author Jay Winik refers to April 1865 as "The Month That Saved America." Be that as it may, seldom if ever has the country witnessed a month quite like this one. Just as April 1861 had seen the war's beginning, April 1865 would, for all practical purposes, see that war's effective end. The surrender of the South's two most important armies during this month would stamp the war as finished, even though the fighting would continue for several more weeks.
This memorable 30-day period would also witness the fall of a national capital, a famous Union general accused of treason, a spectacular explosion on the Mississippi River, and the first presidential assassination in American history.
Five Forks - The last April of the war would begin in spectacular fashion for the Union. On the afternoon of April 1st, a brilliant infantry-cavalry assault under the command of Major General Phil Sheridan crushes the Confederate defensive line at Five Forks, Virginia.
Five Forks at this time represents the extreme right flank of Robert E. Lee's long defensive line in front of Petersburg and Richmond. Pinned behind these fortifications, Lee's dwindling Army of Northern Virginia has been holding off Union forces under U.S. Grant since June of the previous year. Sheridan's sledgehammer blow at Five Forks instantly changes that, and signals the end of the siege. Unless he acts quickly, the end of Lee's army will not be far behind.
Richmond falls - Capitalizing on the victory at Five Forks, Grant orders an all-out assault for April 2nd that pierces Lee's lines in several places. Notified of the situation by Lee, President Jefferson Davis and other Confederate officials begin working to evacuate Richmond as soon as possible. They will leave by train for Danville that night.
Despite the Union success along the siege lines however, the Rebels manage to hang on till evening, when the army begins a westward retreat. Lee hopes to eventually turn south and link up with Joe Johnston's Army of Tennessee, now facing Sherman in North Carolina.
With the retreat of Lee's army, the Confederate capital of Richmond falls to the advancing Union forces on April 3rd. Retreating Confederates have set off numerous fires around the city hoping to deny anything of value to the Yankees. The fires soon rage out of control and gut a large portion of the city. ("Southerners burned more of their own capital than the enemy had burned of Atlanta or Columbia," writes historian James McPherson.) It takes the arrival of Union troops, including the all-black 25th Corps, to finally extinguish the flames.
