Along the way, we stopped to explore Appomattox Court House, which is both the full name of a town, and the place where Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses Grant to finally end the Civil War. It was another stirring moment on this trip of on-going stirring moments.
There is a clearing in the woods a few miles from town, which is actually billed as the last headquarters for the Confederate army. There are no buildings, and the sign says that General Lee and his advisors sat on horse blankets on the ground, finally coming to the realization that they had lost the war. Richmond had fallen, and Union troops (under George Custer, curiously enough) had gotten to their supply train before they did.
This horribly, divisive, deadly war ended with two men meeting quietly in a small town in western Virginia. Grant sent food to Lee's troops because they had not eaten in several days, allowed each of them to keep their horses, "paroled" them (they were technically POW's) and let them go home.
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| Appomattox Court House |
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| McLean House, where Lee and Grant met to sign the surrender |
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| The room where the surrender was formalized...Lee on the left, Grant on the right |
Amazing.
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