Petersburg

The Siege of Petersburg lasted for nine and a half months, making it the longest continuous military campaign of the Civil War. The siege resulted in over 70,000 casualties, and the suffering of civilians caught in the middle of the fighting was immense. Thousands of soldiers from regiments of the U. S. Colored Troops fought bravely, and the defeat of Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia was apparent by the end of the siege. On April 3, 1865, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant cut off all of Petersburg's supply lines, ensuring the fall of Richmond. Six days later, Lee surrendered. The Siege of Petersburg was a turning point in the Civil War, and it is now a national battlefield where visitors can learn about this significant event in American history.