The Battle of Five Forks — April 1, 1865
The evening air was heavy with tension on March 31st, 1865. Major General Gouverneur K. Warren, commander of the Union’s 5th Corps, heard distant echoes of musket fire and cannon booming to his left. Those sounds came from the cavalry of Major General Philip Sheridan, locked in fierce combat near Dinwiddie Court House. Without hesitation, Warren sent Brigadier General Joseph Bartlett’s brigade racing to aid the embattled troopers.
But Sheridan, ever confident, waved off the reinforcements with a curt assurance: he had it handled. Still, reports soon trickled in—Major General George Pickett’s Confederate forces had fallen back under pressure, retreating north toward the vital junction of Five Forks. As the night deepened, orders from General Ulysses S. Grant reached Warren and Brigadier General Ranald Mackenzie’s cavalry: join Sheridan at Dinwiddie and prepare for a crushing blow the next day. Dawn would bring a battle that could change the course of the war.
Confederate Complacency
Meanwhile, just a few miles away, the Confederates were unprepared for what was coming.
Major General George Pickett, burdened with defending the last lifeline of Robert E. Lee’s army—the Southside Railroad—had pulled his troops into hastily dug trenches at Five Forks. Yet his defenses were fragile; cavalry trapped in dense woods, infantry protected only by shallow ditches and pine logs, and artillery poorly positioned.
As afternoon crept on April 1st, an unusual calm reigned—not because the Confederates were secure, but because their commanders were absent. Pickett, along with Major General Fitzhugh Lee, had accepted an invitation to a shad bake—an informal late lunch hosted by Major General Thomas Rosser. They relaxed, unaware of the storm brewing just beyond the trees.
Back at the lines, confusion reigned. Without their generals, the Confederate brigades stood on uncertain footing. Colonel Thomas Munford, sensing disaster, sent couriers racing to find Pickett and Fitzhugh Lee—but they were nowhere to be found.
Sheridan’s Gambit
At 4:15 p.m., Sheridan’s battle cry shattered the quiet. Warren’s 5th Corps surged forward—Ayres’ division on the left, Griffin’s in the center, Crawford’s on the right.
The air filled with the rattle of rifles and the sharp crack of musket fire. Sheridan rode among his men, a fiery figure of determination. When a soldier was hit and gasped, “I’m killed!” Sheridan barked back, “You’re not hurt a bit! Pick up your gun and move on!” The wounded man obeyed, fighting until the bitter end.
Ayres’ men stormed the Confederate breastworks, tearing through Brigadier General Matthew Ransom’s North Carolinians. Despite being outnumbered, the Southerners fought with grim resolve. Colonel Henry Rutledge of the 25th North Carolina described the desperate scene, “Like the rock of Gibraltar, they stood — surrounded, outgunned — but unyielding.”
Cavalry Thunder
Sheridan’s cavalry dismounted and charged alongside the infantry, their carbines blazing. Though initially repulsed, Devin and Custer pressed on, returning again and again to break the Confederate line.
Behind Ayres, Griffin and Crawford closed in, cutting the Confederate forces from behind. Brigadier General Joshua Chamberlain, hero of Gettysburg, led one brigade with calm courage. His men, outflanking the enemy, forced the collapse of a second Confederate defensive line.
Chaos in Command
Suddenly, Pickett heard the distant thunder of battle—not through his ears, but through urgent couriers. Racing back, he found his forces in disarray. At the critical Five Forks junction, Colonel Joseph Mayo’s Virginians were struggling to hold against the relentless Federal charge.
Pickett barked orders to reform the line, but it was too late. Union brigades swept forward, capturing prisoners and flags in a tidal wave of blue.
The Last Stand
Colonel William J. Pegram, the fierce artilleryman who had never lost a cannon through the war, stood resolute at his guns. “Fire your canister low, men!” he cried. Moments later, a bullet struck him down, ending his defiant stand.
Confederate cavalry under Rooney Lee and Richard Beale launched desperate countercharges, hoping to stem the Union flood. Rooney Lee himself led a charge, sword raised, rallying his men—but even his valor could only slow the Union advance.
The Final Charge
Warren found Crawford’s division pressing forward from the east and took the reins himself. Grabbing the 5th Corps flag, he led a thunderous charge. His horse went down beneath him, but Warren pressed on, a living symbol of resolve.
Pickett’s shattered army broke and fled, chased by Custer’s relentless cavalry. The sun dipped low as the Confederates vanished into the twilight, their hopes crushed.
Aftermath
The victory at Five Forks was crushing. Over 3,000 Confederates fell or were captured; Union casualties numbered under 1,000. But the triumph came with bitter controversy. Sheridan, frustrated with Warren’s cautious movements, relieved him of command that very night, placing Griffin at the helm.
More importantly, the fall of Five Forks severed Lee’s last supply line and sealed the fate of Petersburg. Grant, seizing the moment, ordered an all-out assault on April 2nd. The end of the siege—and of the Confederacy’s struggle—was near.
