Battle of Five Forks

“Hold Five Forks at all hazards.”

On April 1, 1865 General Robert E. Lee would issue Major General George Pickett the following order: “Hold Five Forks at all hazards. Protect road to Ford’s Depot and prevent Union forces from striking the Southside Railroad….” The salvation of Petersburg was in the hands of a man who finished near the bottom of his class at the United States Military Academy at West Point and had led his Division in it’s fateful assault at Gettysburg in 1863. Grant’s “caged tiger”, Major General Philip H. Sheridan was in overall command of the Federal troops which doubled the number of their opponents. The battle at this star shaped intersection known as Five Forks would later be called the “Waterloo of the Confederacy”

Why Five Forks?

What made Five Forks so important? The answer lay almost three miles North, the South Side Railroad. That rail line was Lee’s last supply artery bringing life to the beleaguered troops around Petersburg. It had been the focus of Union offensives since September 1864 and the Confederate earthworks west of the city paralleled its course. If the rail line use was disrupted Petersburg would fall.

Prelude to Attack

The armies arrived in the vicinity of Five Forks on March 30th and the Confederates lashed out against the Union troopers. Pickett’s forces bested Sheridan and the Federal cavalry south of Five Forks. At the same time Major General Warren’s Union infantry cut off any support that Pickett may have received. Pickett, now isolated, was forced to fall back to the Five Forks intersection early on April 1. There Confederate soldiers prepared their defenses, breastworks of pine logs with dirt thrown up in front, along White Oak Road facing South. April 1 saw the Union infantry link up with Sheridan at Gravelly Run Church and an impatient Sheridan explained his battle plan while the Federal foot soldiers formed their battle lines. Sheridan later said, “I was exceedingly anxious to attack at once, for the sun was getting low, and we had to fight or go back….” The Union cavalry had been dismounted and placed along the front of Pickett’s men to hold them in place.

The Attack Begins

At 4:15 p.m. the attack began and Union forces hit the Confederates from all directions almost simultaneously. The southern line melted away in the wake of the Federal onslaught, losing along the way almost a third of Pickett’s forces. Five Forks was completely overrun and the southerners retreated northward toward the coveted railroad. An overwhelming Union victory opened the way to the South Side Railroad and turned the right flank of Petersburg’s defenses.Upon hearing news of the victory at Five Forks, General Grant ordered a series of assaults to take place the next morning along the Petersburg lines. That Sunday, April 2, 1865, the Confederate lines which had held for 292 days were severed and the South Side Railroad ultimately captured. Only the shifting of troops from the Richmond defenses and the heroic actions at Forts Gregg and Whitworth gave Lee the opportunity to organize his retreat from Petersburg that night. Grant pursued Lee over the next week, and the following Sunday, April 9, 1865, they met at Appomattox Court House where Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia.

Key points around the battlefield are driving tour stops with information about the action of April 1st, 1865. Please use caution in driving to the various stops.