By the
early weeks of 1865 the Union
Army removed all resistance in the Shenandoah
Valley. General William Sherman
and his army moved north through South Carolina. On 17th February,
Columbia, the capital of South Carolina, was taken. Columbia was virtually
burnt to the ground and some people claimed the damage was done by
Sherman's men and others said it was carried out by the retreating
Confederate Army.
Sherman
now headed towards central Virginia to unite with General George
Meade and his Army of the Potomac east of Richmond
and with General Benjamin
Butler and his forces at Bermuda Hundred.
On 1st April Philip H.
Sheridan attacked at Five Forks. The Confederates, led
by Major General George Pickett, were
overwhelmed and lost 5,200 men. On hearing the news, Robert
E. Lee decided to abandon Richmond.
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