Battle of Namozine Church
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Namozine Church, Virginia was a minor engagement that occurred on April 3, 1865 during the Appomattox Campaign
of the American Civil War
. The battle was the first engagement between units of the Confederate
Army of Northern Virginia
under the command of General Robert E. Lee
after that army's evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia on April 2, 1865 and units of the Union
Army of the Potomac
under the command of Maj. Gen.
George G. Meade and the overall direction of Union General-in-Chief Lt. Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant
. The pursuit of Lee's army was led by the Union Army Cavalry Corps and associated infantry corps under Cavalry Corps commander, Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan
. The forces immediately engaged in the battle were brigades of the cavalry division of Union Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer
, especially the brigade of Colonel William Wells
, and the Confederate rear guard cavalry brigades of Brig. Gen. William P. Roberts
and Brig. Gen. Rufus Barringer
.
The engagement signaled the beginning of the Union Army's relentless pursuit of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia after the fall of Petersburg and Richmond, which led to the near disintegration of Lee's forces within 6 days and the Confederate army's surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia on April 9, 1865. Captain Tom Custer
, the general's brother, won the first of two Congressional Medals of Honor which he won within four days at this battle.
under Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler
was directed to march on Richmond from south of the James River
. Butler's plan was to move up the James River by boat, land at the lightly defended Bermuda Hundred Plantation near Richmond and cut the railroad lines between Petersburg and Richmond.
, the Army of the Potomac had pushed the Army of Northern Virginia south from the Rapidan River
and Rappahannock River
line to the outskirts of Richmond. After the failure of the disastrous Union attack on the entrenched Confederates at the Battle of Cold Harbor
on June 3, 1864, Grant directed the Army of the Potomac to break contact with the Confederate Army, cross the James River and attack the small Confederate force defending the important railroad center of Petersburg, Virginia
, just to the south of Richmond. Union forces nearly overwhelmed this small force but the Confederates were soon reinforced and were able to repulse the Union attack. If Petersburg had fallen, the Confederates would have been unable to supply and hold Richmond, as later events showed. At this time, however, the small force of Confederate defenders held Petersburg against the poorly directed attack of Meade's ineffective subordinates until those defenders could be reinforced by Lee's army. Grant's brilliant tactical improvisation had been thwarted not only by a stout Confederate defense, but also mainly by the inability of subordinates to carry it out. Nonetheless, in mid-June 1864, the Army of the Potomac had the Army of Northern Virginia in a position that required the Confederate army to defend Richmond and Petersburg or to see the Confederacy's capital and a key railroad center fall under Union control. The Army of the Potomac settled into a Siege of Petersburg
which was to last until April 2, 1865. Throughout the siege, the Union forces conducted attacks and maneuvers which required the Confederates to spread their weakening army over longer and thinner lines. Finally, the far right western end of the Confederate line broke at the Battle of Five Forks
on April 1, 1865.
forces of the Army of the Potomac under the command of cavalry corps commander, Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan, defeated a large force of Confederates from the Army of Northern Virginia under the command of Maj. Gen. George Pickett
at the Battle of Five Forks, Virginia at the western end of the Confederate lines. General Lee had sent this large force to the end of the line to prevent a suspected attempt by the Union forces to attack and turn this segment of the line in order to get behind the Confederate defenses in general. After sustaining about 800 casualties and losing over 5,000 men who were captured, the remaining Confederates retreated from the strategic Five Forks crossroads to Ford's Station or Ford's Meeting House on the Southside Railroad.
On April 2, 1865, Grant ordered a general advance all along the Confederate lines, which broke in several places, leading to what is now known as the Fall of Petersburg or Breakthrough at Petersburg or occasionally the Third Battle of Petersburg. Four Confederate brigades stood west of Hatcher's Run and due east of Five Forks along White Oak Road where it is met by Claiborne Road. The attack against these brigades by II Corps of the Army of the Potomac under the command of Maj. Gen. Andrew A. Humphreys
sent the Confederates into retreat to Sutherland's Station or Sutherland's Depot on the Southside Railroad. Confederate Maj. Gen. Henry Heth
, who succeeded to corps command upon the death in action of Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill
on April 1, organized a defense with these brigades but left them under the command of Brig. Gen. John R. Cooke as Heth returned to Petersburg. In the ensuing Battle of Sutherland's Station
advanced brigades of the Union infantry division commanded by Brig. Gen. Nelson A. Miles
of Maj. Gen. Humphreys's corps attacked the hastily fortified positions of the Confederate brigades. The Union attackers initially were repulsed with heavy losses. After a second futile attempt to take the Confederate position by two Union brigades, Miles attacked again with his entire force in mid-afternoon and overwhelmed the Confederates. The Union victory at Sutherland's Station started with the collapse of the brigade of Brig. Gen. Samuel McGowan
on the Confederate left flank. As a result of the Confederate defeat, the Southside Railroad, the Confederates' last supply line, was cut and General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia had to abandon Petersburg and Richmond and flee westward.
and his cabinet, were able to escape from Petersburg and Richmond just in advance of the Union troops entering those cities on April 3 because Confederate rear guard forces, especially at Forts Gregg and Whitworth, and Fort Mahone and Sutherland's Station
, fought desperate delaying actions on April 2 to give most of the Confederates a head start on Union Army pursuers. General Lee's ultimate intention was to proceed through Danville
and then to unite with General Joseph E. Johnston's Confederate army, which was attempting to slow the advance of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's Union army in North Carolina. First, he planned to reunite the four columns of his army that left Petersburg and Richmond and to resupply at Amelia Court House, Virginia, 39 miles (62.8 km) southwest of Richmond. Lee's men left their positions in Petersburg and Richmond with only one day's rations. Lee expected to find a supply train of rations that he had ordered brought to Amelia Court House to meet the army at that location.
but the remnants of the divisions of Maj. Gen. George Pickett and of Maj. Gen. Bushrod Johnson
, the latter of which included Moody's Brigage, Wallace's Brigade and Wise's Brigade, along with the cavalry divisions of Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee
, who was cavalry corps commander, and Maj. Gen. W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee
following as a rear guard moved on the Namozine Road, south of the river. While most of Lee's army had an effective one day head start on their flight from Richmond and Petersburg, the advance Union Army cavalry and infantry corps under the command of Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan were able to keep Lee's forces to their north by pursuing them on a parallel course to their south. Union cavalry harassed and skirmished with Confederate units almost from the outset of the Confederate army's march from Petersburg. Confederate rear guard dismounted cavalry units often paused to block the roads from pursuing Union cavalry. As early as the evening of April 2, Confederate cavalry under Fitzhugh Lee detected units of the Union cavalry division of Brig. Gen. Thomas Devin
in pursuit and had Bushrod Johnson's infantry throw up a series of breastworks along the Namozine Road in order to repulse the Union riders.
On April 3, 1865, advance units of the Union cavalry fought with rear guard Confederate cavalry at Willicomack Creek and the Battle of Namozine Church. In the early morning of April 3, at a ford on Namozine Creek
, regiments from the 2d brigade, under the command of Colonel William Wells, of Custer's 3rd cavalry division, which had taken over the advance pursuit, threatened the rear guard of Rooney Lee's column. That rear guard was the cavalry brigade of Brig. Gen. William P. Roberts and a few infantry units. Roberts had dismounted the 4th North Carolina Cavalry Regiment and the 16th North Carolina Cavalry Battalion and had them entrench on the west side of the creek. Custer brought up artillery to blast the North Carolina cavalrymen with canister and had the 1st Vermont Volunteer Cavalry Regiment ford the creek out of sight of the Confederates in order to outflank them. When the Confederates discovered this maneuver, they fled their position in order to try to regroup further down the road. Custer's division then crossed the creek and headed for Namozine Church, about 5 miles (8 km) away. The leading Union cavalry brigade of Custer's 3rd Division, the 2d Brigade under Col. William Wells, who had attacked the Confederate cavalrymen of Brig. Gen. Rufus Barringer along the creek, fought a running battle along the road until they reached Namozine Church.
Barringer's Confederates, the 1st and 2d North Carolina Volunteer Cavalry Regiments with a single artillery piece, with the 5th North Carolina Volunteer Cavalry Regiment in reserve , counterattacked the 8th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment of Wells's brigade, commanded by Maj. James Bliss, as they reached the Namozine Church After sharp fighting, the Confederate cavalry were turned away by the 8th New York Cavalry and reinforcements from the 15th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, commanded by Col. John J. Coppinger' and the 1st Vermont Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, commanded by Lt. Col. Josiah Hall. About 9 a.m., as Wells's brigade began their attack, Brig. Gen. Custer's younger brother, Captain Tom Custer, spurred his horse over a hastily thrown up barricade of the still deploying Confederate cavalry and captured 3 Confederate officers and 11 enlisted men, as well as the battle flag of the 2nd North Carolina Cavalry. For his actions, the younger Custer would eventually be awarded a Congressional Medal of Honor, one of two he would earn within four days.
Barringer's Confederate cavalry had bought enough time for Bushrod Johnson's infantry division to pass nearby Namozine Church around 8 a.m. Unfortunately for Johnson, his forces took a wrong turn at a fork in the road and had to halt when his command reached a bridge over Deep Creek that was underwater from recent flooding. Although the Union cavalry drove off the Confederate cavalry, the North Carolina cavalry regiments had secured the Namozine Church road intersection long enough for Johnson to return and take the correct fork. When General Johnson approached with his infantry division, Custer's forces were forced to retire, allowing the Confederate forces to proceed across Deep Creek, an Appomattox River tributary. Then, Fitzhugh Lee and his cousin, "Rooney" Lee, second son of Gen. Robert E. Lee, separated their cavalry commands and continued their retreat. Custer later chased the fleeing Confederates but near dark he ran into substantial infantry opposition from Johnson's division at Sweathouse Creek and halted for the night. After dark, however, Wells's brigade continued to attack Fitzhugh Lee's force along Deep Creek. Brig. Gen. Barringer and many of his men were captured by Sheridan's scouts who were wearing gray uniforms and who led Barringer and his remaining men into a trap. Rooney Lee's adjutant general
, Maj. J. D. Ferguson, also was captured. Sheridan's forces camped for the night along the road from Namozine Church to Deep Creek while the Confederate infantry and remaining cavalry continued to march to their designated consolidation point of Amelia Court House, where they expected to receive much needed supplies and rations.
Colonel Wells lost 95 Federal cavalrymen killed and wounded in the engagement. Total Confederate losses are not known, but Custer's men were able to capture many of the Confederates. They took 350 prisoners, 100 horses and an artillery piece while initially clearing the road as far as the Namozine Church. Johnson reported 15 wounded from his division. After the battle, Namozine Church served as a field hospital
and later as Maj. Gen. Sheridan's temporary headquarters.
and Burkeville, Virginia
which blocked Lee's access to the Richmond and Danville Railroad
and to the direct route southwestward. Lee had hoped to find a supply train at Amelia Court House, Virginia, 39 miles (62.8 km) southwest of Richmond, but when he and his forces arrived there on April 4, 1865, he found that the train contained only ordnance, ammunition, caissons and harnesses. After a delay for unsuccessful foraging efforts, or as some historians have argued, primarily because of the delay in bringing up a pontoon bridge needed to cross rain-swollen rivers, Lee had to order his hungry men to resume their march in the hope that they could find rations at Farmville, Virginia
.
On April 5, 1865, Sheridan ordered Crook to send cavalry patrols north of Jetersville to reconnoiter his left flank. Between 4 miles (6.4 km) and 7 miles (11.3 km) out of Jetersville, Union Brig. Gen. Henry E. Davies, Jr. attacked and destroyed about 200 wagons of a Confederate army wagon train and took at least 300 prisoners. Confederate cavalry engaged Davies's rear guard in a running combat through Amelia Springs but Davies's force linked up with reinforcements near Jetersville which permitted Davies to limit his losses and keep his prisoners.
On the morning of April 6, Meade thought that the Confederate army remained concentrated at Amelia Court House and, despite the suspicions of Grant and Sheridan that the Confederates had moved on, Meade sent the Army of the Potomac infantry in the direction of Amelia Court House on that morning. The Union forces soon discovered that Lee had started moving west and changed their direction of march to continue their pursuit. In the afternoon of April 6, 1865, approximately one-fifth of the remaining soldiers of the Army of Northern Virginia were cut off from the main body of Confederate troops at the Battle of Sailor's Creek
(or Battle of Sayler's Creek
) and killed or (mainly) captured.. The killed and captured were about 8,000 men, including Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell
and eight other generals. This in turn was about one-sixth of the number of men who had left Richmond and Petersburg with Lee's forces.
After about five more small engagements over the next three days, with the Army of Northern Virginia melting away and Union forces surrounding them, Lee surrendered his army to Grant on April 9, 1865 at Appomattox Court House
, Virginia, about 90 miles (144.8 km) west of Richmond.
Appomattox Campaign
The Appomattox Campaign was a series of battles fought March 29 – April 9, 1865, in Virginia that culminated in the surrender of Confederate General Robert E...
of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The battle was the first engagement between units of the Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
under the command of General Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
after that army's evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia on April 2, 1865 and units of the Union
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
under the command of Maj. Gen.
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
George G. Meade and the overall direction of Union General-in-Chief Lt. Gen.
Lieutenant General (United States)
In the United States Army, the United States Air Force and the United States Marine Corps, lieutenant general is a three-star general officer rank, with the pay grade of O-9. Lieutenant general ranks above major general and below general...
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
. The pursuit of Lee's army was led by the Union Army Cavalry Corps and associated infantry corps under Cavalry Corps commander, Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
. The forces immediately engaged in the battle were brigades of the cavalry division of Union Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...
, especially the brigade of Colonel William Wells
William Wells (general)
-Medal of Honor:Wells commanded the Second Battalion, 1st Vermont Cavalry, in the repulse of Stuart's Cavalry at the Battle of Hanover during the Gettysburg Campaign...
, and the Confederate rear guard cavalry brigades of Brig. Gen. William P. Roberts
William Paul Roberts
William Paul Roberts was a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He was the youngest Confederate general officer to serve in the War.-Early life:...
and Brig. Gen. Rufus Barringer
Rufus Barringer
Rufus Clay Barringer was a North Carolina lawyer, politician, and American Civil War brigadier general.-Early life:...
.
The engagement signaled the beginning of the Union Army's relentless pursuit of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia after the fall of Petersburg and Richmond, which led to the near disintegration of Lee's forces within 6 days and the Confederate army's surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia on April 9, 1865. Captain Tom Custer
Thomas Custer
Thomas Ward Custer was a United States Army officer and two-time recipient of the Medal of Honor for bravery during the American Civil War...
, the general's brother, won the first of two Congressional Medals of Honor which he won within four days at this battle.
Overland campaign
In early May 1864, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, Union Army General-in-Chief, directed the Union Armies to make coordinated advances against Confederate forces on several fronts. Grant ordered the Army of the Potomac under Maj. Gen. George G. Meade to destroy the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and take the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. Grant accompanied Meade's army on the campaign which began on May 4, 1864. At the same time, the Union Army of the JamesArmy of the James
The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia.-History:...
under Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler
Benjamin Franklin Butler (politician)
Benjamin Franklin Butler was an American lawyer and politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States House of Representatives and later served as the 33rd Governor of Massachusetts....
was directed to march on Richmond from south of the James River
James River
The James River may refer to:Rivers in the United States and their namesakes* James River * James River , North Dakota, South Dakota* James River * James River * James River...
. Butler's plan was to move up the James River by boat, land at the lightly defended Bermuda Hundred Plantation near Richmond and cut the railroad lines between Petersburg and Richmond.
Siege of Petersburg
After a series of bloody but inconclusive battles later known as the Overland CampaignOverland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directed the actions of the Army of the...
, the Army of the Potomac had pushed the Army of Northern Virginia south from the Rapidan River
Rapidan River
The Rapidan River, flowing through north-central Virginia in the United States, is the largest tributary of the Rappahannock River. The two rivers converge just west of the city of Fredericksburg...
and Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
line to the outskirts of Richmond. After the failure of the disastrous Union attack on the entrenched Confederates at the Battle of Cold Harbor
Battle of Cold Harbor
The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought from May 31 to June 12, 1864 . It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign during the American Civil War, and is remembered as one of American history's bloodiest, most lopsided battles...
on June 3, 1864, Grant directed the Army of the Potomac to break contact with the Confederate Army, cross the James River and attack the small Confederate force defending the important railroad center of Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...
, just to the south of Richmond. Union forces nearly overwhelmed this small force but the Confederates were soon reinforced and were able to repulse the Union attack. If Petersburg had fallen, the Confederates would have been unable to supply and hold Richmond, as later events showed. At this time, however, the small force of Confederate defenders held Petersburg against the poorly directed attack of Meade's ineffective subordinates until those defenders could be reinforced by Lee's army. Grant's brilliant tactical improvisation had been thwarted not only by a stout Confederate defense, but also mainly by the inability of subordinates to carry it out. Nonetheless, in mid-June 1864, the Army of the Potomac had the Army of Northern Virginia in a position that required the Confederate army to defend Richmond and Petersburg or to see the Confederacy's capital and a key railroad center fall under Union control. The Army of the Potomac settled into a Siege of Petersburg
Siege of Petersburg
The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War...
which was to last until April 2, 1865. Throughout the siege, the Union forces conducted attacks and maneuvers which required the Confederates to spread their weakening army over longer and thinner lines. Finally, the far right western end of the Confederate line broke at the Battle of Five Forks
Battle of Five Forks
The Battle of Five Forks was fought on April 1, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, in Dinwiddie County, during the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. The battle, sometimes referred to as the "Waterloo of the Confederacy," pitted Union Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan against...
on April 1, 1865.
Confederate lines collapse
The Confederate Army had to hold Five Forks in order to protect the Southside Railroad, their last supply line. On April 1, 1865, at the end of the Siege of Petersburg, Union Army cavalry forces and V Corps infantryInfantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
forces of the Army of the Potomac under the command of cavalry corps commander, Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan, defeated a large force of Confederates from the Army of Northern Virginia under the command of Maj. Gen. George Pickett
George Pickett
George Edward Pickett was a career United States Army officer who became a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
at the Battle of Five Forks, Virginia at the western end of the Confederate lines. General Lee had sent this large force to the end of the line to prevent a suspected attempt by the Union forces to attack and turn this segment of the line in order to get behind the Confederate defenses in general. After sustaining about 800 casualties and losing over 5,000 men who were captured, the remaining Confederates retreated from the strategic Five Forks crossroads to Ford's Station or Ford's Meeting House on the Southside Railroad.
On April 2, 1865, Grant ordered a general advance all along the Confederate lines, which broke in several places, leading to what is now known as the Fall of Petersburg or Breakthrough at Petersburg or occasionally the Third Battle of Petersburg. Four Confederate brigades stood west of Hatcher's Run and due east of Five Forks along White Oak Road where it is met by Claiborne Road. The attack against these brigades by II Corps of the Army of the Potomac under the command of Maj. Gen. Andrew A. Humphreys
Andrew A. Humphreys
Andrew Atkinson Humphreys , was a career United States Army officer, civil engineer, and a Union General in the American Civil War. He served in senior positions in the Army of the Potomac, including division command, chief of staff, and corps command, and was Chief Engineer of the U.S...
sent the Confederates into retreat to Sutherland's Station or Sutherland's Depot on the Southside Railroad. Confederate Maj. Gen. Henry Heth
Henry Heth
Henry "Harry" Heth was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. He is best remembered for inadvertently precipitating the Battle of Gettysburg, when he sent some of his troops of the Army of Northern Virginia to the small Pennsylvania village,...
, who succeeded to corps command upon the death in action of Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill
A. P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill, Jr. , was a career U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars and a Confederate general in the American Civil War...
on April 1, organized a defense with these brigades but left them under the command of Brig. Gen. John R. Cooke as Heth returned to Petersburg. In the ensuing Battle of Sutherland's Station
Battle of Sutherland's Station
The Battle of Sutherland's Station was an American Civil War conflict fought on April 2, 1865, in Dinwiddie, Virginia during the Appomattox Campaign....
advanced brigades of the Union infantry division commanded by Brig. Gen. Nelson A. Miles
Nelson A. Miles
Nelson Appleton Miles was a United States soldier who served in the American Civil War, Indian Wars, and the Spanish-American War.-Early life:Miles was born in Westminster, Massachusetts, on his family's farm...
of Maj. Gen. Humphreys's corps attacked the hastily fortified positions of the Confederate brigades. The Union attackers initially were repulsed with heavy losses. After a second futile attempt to take the Confederate position by two Union brigades, Miles attacked again with his entire force in mid-afternoon and overwhelmed the Confederates. The Union victory at Sutherland's Station started with the collapse of the brigade of Brig. Gen. Samuel McGowan
Samuel McGowan
Samuel McGowan was an admiral of the United States Navy.-Early life:McGowan, born at Laurens, South Carolina, on 1 September 1870, he attended Wofford College, Class of 1889, where he was a member of the Chi Phi Fraternity...
on the Confederate left flank. As a result of the Confederate defeat, the Southside Railroad, the Confederates' last supply line, was cut and General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia had to abandon Petersburg and Richmond and flee westward.
Confederate army flight
Much of the Army of Northern Virginia as well as Confederate President Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
and his cabinet, were able to escape from Petersburg and Richmond just in advance of the Union troops entering those cities on April 3 because Confederate rear guard forces, especially at Forts Gregg and Whitworth, and Fort Mahone and Sutherland's Station
Battle of Sutherland's Station
The Battle of Sutherland's Station was an American Civil War conflict fought on April 2, 1865, in Dinwiddie, Virginia during the Appomattox Campaign....
, fought desperate delaying actions on April 2 to give most of the Confederates a head start on Union Army pursuers. General Lee's ultimate intention was to proceed through Danville
Danville, Virginia
Danville is an independent city in Virginia, United States, bounded by Pittsylvania County, Virginia and Caswell County, North Carolina. It was the last capital of the Confederate States of America. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Danville with Pittsylvania county for...
and then to unite with General Joseph E. Johnston's Confederate army, which was attempting to slow the advance of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's Union army in North Carolina. First, he planned to reunite the four columns of his army that left Petersburg and Richmond and to resupply at Amelia Court House, Virginia, 39 miles (62.8 km) southwest of Richmond. Lee's men left their positions in Petersburg and Richmond with only one day's rations. Lee expected to find a supply train of rations that he had ordered brought to Amelia Court House to meet the army at that location.
Battle of Namozine Church
Most of Lee's army marched west on routes north of the Appomattox RiverAppomattox River
The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River, approximately long, in central and eastern Virginia in the United States, named for the Appomattocs Indian tribe who lived along its lower banks in the 17th century...
but the remnants of the divisions of Maj. Gen. George Pickett and of Maj. Gen. Bushrod Johnson
Bushrod Johnson
Bushrod Rust Johnson was a teacher, university chancellor, and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He was one of a handful of Confederate generals who were born and raised in the North.-Early life:...
, the latter of which included Moody's Brigage, Wallace's Brigade and Wise's Brigade, along with the cavalry divisions of Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee
Fitzhugh Lee
Fitzhugh Lee , nephew of Robert E. Lee, was a Confederate cavalry general in the American Civil War, the 40th Governor of Virginia, diplomat, and United States Army general in the Spanish-American War.-Early life:...
, who was cavalry corps commander, and Maj. Gen. W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee
William Henry Fitzhugh Lee
William Henry Fitzhugh Lee , known as Rooney Lee or W.H.F. Lee, was the second son of Robert E. Lee and Mary Anna Randolph Custis. He was a planter, a Confederate cavalry General in the American Civil War, and later a member of the U.S. Congress.-Early life:Lee was born at Arlington House in...
following as a rear guard moved on the Namozine Road, south of the river. While most of Lee's army had an effective one day head start on their flight from Richmond and Petersburg, the advance Union Army cavalry and infantry corps under the command of Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan were able to keep Lee's forces to their north by pursuing them on a parallel course to their south. Union cavalry harassed and skirmished with Confederate units almost from the outset of the Confederate army's march from Petersburg. Confederate rear guard dismounted cavalry units often paused to block the roads from pursuing Union cavalry. As early as the evening of April 2, Confederate cavalry under Fitzhugh Lee detected units of the Union cavalry division of Brig. Gen. Thomas Devin
Thomas Devin
Thomas Casimer Devin was an United States Army officer and general. He commanded Union cavalry during the American Civil War and during the Indian Wars.-Early life:...
in pursuit and had Bushrod Johnson's infantry throw up a series of breastworks along the Namozine Road in order to repulse the Union riders.
On April 3, 1865, advance units of the Union cavalry fought with rear guard Confederate cavalry at Willicomack Creek and the Battle of Namozine Church. In the early morning of April 3, at a ford on Namozine Creek
Namozine Creek
Namozine Creek is a stream in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is a tributary of the Appomattox River. Rising in Nottoway County northeast of the town of Blackstone, Namozine Creek forms the boundary between Dinwiddie County to the south and Nottoway and Amelia counties to the north for nearly...
, regiments from the 2d brigade, under the command of Colonel William Wells, of Custer's 3rd cavalry division, which had taken over the advance pursuit, threatened the rear guard of Rooney Lee's column. That rear guard was the cavalry brigade of Brig. Gen. William P. Roberts and a few infantry units. Roberts had dismounted the 4th North Carolina Cavalry Regiment and the 16th North Carolina Cavalry Battalion and had them entrench on the west side of the creek. Custer brought up artillery to blast the North Carolina cavalrymen with canister and had the 1st Vermont Volunteer Cavalry Regiment ford the creek out of sight of the Confederates in order to outflank them. When the Confederates discovered this maneuver, they fled their position in order to try to regroup further down the road. Custer's division then crossed the creek and headed for Namozine Church, about 5 miles (8 km) away. The leading Union cavalry brigade of Custer's 3rd Division, the 2d Brigade under Col. William Wells, who had attacked the Confederate cavalrymen of Brig. Gen. Rufus Barringer along the creek, fought a running battle along the road until they reached Namozine Church.
Barringer's Confederates, the 1st and 2d North Carolina Volunteer Cavalry Regiments with a single artillery piece, with the 5th North Carolina Volunteer Cavalry Regiment in reserve , counterattacked the 8th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment of Wells's brigade, commanded by Maj. James Bliss, as they reached the Namozine Church After sharp fighting, the Confederate cavalry were turned away by the 8th New York Cavalry and reinforcements from the 15th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, commanded by Col. John J. Coppinger' and the 1st Vermont Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, commanded by Lt. Col. Josiah Hall. About 9 a.m., as Wells's brigade began their attack, Brig. Gen. Custer's younger brother, Captain Tom Custer, spurred his horse over a hastily thrown up barricade of the still deploying Confederate cavalry and captured 3 Confederate officers and 11 enlisted men, as well as the battle flag of the 2nd North Carolina Cavalry. For his actions, the younger Custer would eventually be awarded a Congressional Medal of Honor, one of two he would earn within four days.
Barringer's Confederate cavalry had bought enough time for Bushrod Johnson's infantry division to pass nearby Namozine Church around 8 a.m. Unfortunately for Johnson, his forces took a wrong turn at a fork in the road and had to halt when his command reached a bridge over Deep Creek that was underwater from recent flooding. Although the Union cavalry drove off the Confederate cavalry, the North Carolina cavalry regiments had secured the Namozine Church road intersection long enough for Johnson to return and take the correct fork. When General Johnson approached with his infantry division, Custer's forces were forced to retire, allowing the Confederate forces to proceed across Deep Creek, an Appomattox River tributary. Then, Fitzhugh Lee and his cousin, "Rooney" Lee, second son of Gen. Robert E. Lee, separated their cavalry commands and continued their retreat. Custer later chased the fleeing Confederates but near dark he ran into substantial infantry opposition from Johnson's division at Sweathouse Creek and halted for the night. After dark, however, Wells's brigade continued to attack Fitzhugh Lee's force along Deep Creek. Brig. Gen. Barringer and many of his men were captured by Sheridan's scouts who were wearing gray uniforms and who led Barringer and his remaining men into a trap. Rooney Lee's adjutant general
Adjutant general
An Adjutant General is a military chief administrative officer.-Imperial Russia:In Imperial Russia, the General-Adjutant was a Court officer, who was usually an army general. He served as a personal aide to the Tsar and hence was a member of the H. I. M. Retinue...
, Maj. J. D. Ferguson, also was captured. Sheridan's forces camped for the night along the road from Namozine Church to Deep Creek while the Confederate infantry and remaining cavalry continued to march to their designated consolidation point of Amelia Court House, where they expected to receive much needed supplies and rations.
Colonel Wells lost 95 Federal cavalrymen killed and wounded in the engagement. Total Confederate losses are not known, but Custer's men were able to capture many of the Confederates. They took 350 prisoners, 100 horses and an artillery piece while initially clearing the road as far as the Namozine Church. Johnson reported 15 wounded from his division. After the battle, Namozine Church served as a field hospital
Field hospital
A field hospital is a large mobile medical unit that temporarily takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent hospital facilities...
and later as Maj. Gen. Sheridan's temporary headquarters.
Aftermath
On April 4, 1865, the opposing forces skirmished at Tabernacle Church or Beaver Pond Creek and at Amelia Court House. Meanwhile, Sheridan's forces occupied Jetersville, VirginiaJetersville, Virginia
Jetersville is an unincorporated community located in Amelia County, in the U.S. state of Virginia. Jetersville was named after the French Marquis, Jesse Jeter. Jeter came to Virginia in 1889 and served as the principal veterinarian to Amelia County, primarily treating farm animals...
and Burkeville, Virginia
Burkeville, Virginia
Burkeville is a town in Nottoway County, Virginia, United States. The population was 489 at the 2000 census. The source of the town name is disputed. The town is located on the crossroads of U.S. Routes 360 and 460....
which blocked Lee's access to the Richmond and Danville Railroad
Richmond and Danville Railroad
The Richmond and Danville Railroad was chartered in Virginia in the United States in 1847. The portion between Richmond and Danville, Virginia was completed in 1856...
and to the direct route southwestward. Lee had hoped to find a supply train at Amelia Court House, Virginia, 39 miles (62.8 km) southwest of Richmond, but when he and his forces arrived there on April 4, 1865, he found that the train contained only ordnance, ammunition, caissons and harnesses. After a delay for unsuccessful foraging efforts, or as some historians have argued, primarily because of the delay in bringing up a pontoon bridge needed to cross rain-swollen rivers, Lee had to order his hungry men to resume their march in the hope that they could find rations at Farmville, Virginia
Farmville, Virginia
Farmville is a town in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 6,845 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Prince Edward County....
.
On April 5, 1865, Sheridan ordered Crook to send cavalry patrols north of Jetersville to reconnoiter his left flank. Between 4 miles (6.4 km) and 7 miles (11.3 km) out of Jetersville, Union Brig. Gen. Henry E. Davies, Jr. attacked and destroyed about 200 wagons of a Confederate army wagon train and took at least 300 prisoners. Confederate cavalry engaged Davies's rear guard in a running combat through Amelia Springs but Davies's force linked up with reinforcements near Jetersville which permitted Davies to limit his losses and keep his prisoners.
On the morning of April 6, Meade thought that the Confederate army remained concentrated at Amelia Court House and, despite the suspicions of Grant and Sheridan that the Confederates had moved on, Meade sent the Army of the Potomac infantry in the direction of Amelia Court House on that morning. The Union forces soon discovered that Lee had started moving west and changed their direction of march to continue their pursuit. In the afternoon of April 6, 1865, approximately one-fifth of the remaining soldiers of the Army of Northern Virginia were cut off from the main body of Confederate troops at the Battle of Sailor's Creek
Battle of Sayler's Creek
-External links:* * : Maps, histories, photos, and preservation news...
(or Battle of Sayler's Creek
Battle of Sayler's Creek
-External links:* * : Maps, histories, photos, and preservation news...
) and killed or (mainly) captured.. The killed and captured were about 8,000 men, including Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell
Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E...
and eight other generals. This in turn was about one-sixth of the number of men who had left Richmond and Petersburg with Lee's forces.
After about five more small engagements over the next three days, with the Army of Northern Virginia melting away and Union forces surrounding them, Lee surrendered his army to Grant on April 9, 1865 at Appomattox Court House
Appomattox Court House National Historical Park
The Appomattox Court House National Historical Park is a National Historical Park of original and reconstructed nineteenth century buildings. It was signed into law August 3, 1935. The village was made a national monument in 1940 and a national historical park in 1954...
, Virginia, about 90 miles (144.8 km) west of Richmond.