Marching to Appomattox: The Footrace That Ended the Civil War

We always hear about how wars start, but how they end can be just as fascinating. That is certainly the case with America’s Civil War. After the fall of Richmond, Robert E. Lee and his Confederate troops were racing toward North Carolina for supplies and reinforcements. Ulysses S. Grant’s Union troops were determined to stop them. Both sides were certain they would prevail, yet after fi ghting with all his heart and soul, Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House. What made him do that?

Find out how geography, luck, perseverance, and compassionate diplomacy by Lee and Grant combined to change the course of our nation’s history.