Confederates Briefly Retake Fort Stedman: Lee's Last Offensive
Confederate General John B. Gordon's pre-dawn assault briefly captured Fort Stedman outside Petersburg, Virginia, in a desperate gamble to break the Union siege lines. Federal reinforcements counterattacked within hours, retaking the fort and capturing nearly 2,000 Confederates in the last major offensive of Lee's army. The failed assault convinced Grant that Lee's forces were too weakened to hold Petersburg, accelerating the final campaign that ended the war within two weeks.
March 25, 1865
161 years ago
Key Figures & Places
American Civil War
Wikipedia
Confederate States of America
Wikipedia
Union (American Civil War)
Wikipedia
Virginia
Wikipedia
Battle of Fort Stedman
Wikipedia
American Civil War
Wikipedia
Union
Wikipedia
Confederate
Wikipedia
Virginia
Wikipedia
Walter Raleigh
Wikipedia
Siege of Petersburg
Wikipedia
Battle of Fort Stedman
Wikipedia
What Else Happened on March 25
Liu Yu didn't just conquer Guanggu — he executed every member of the Southern Yan royal family he could find. The 410 siege was personal: Murong De's dynasty ha…
The refugees weren't building a temporary shelter — they were hammering wooden pilings into a malarial swamp. Attila the Hun's armies had driven them from the m…
Refugees fleeing barbarian invasions established Venice at high noon, seeking safety among the shifting mudflats of the Venetian Lagoon. By choosing this isolat…
The pope walked 1,400 miles to meet an emperor who'd been mutilating his predecessors. Constantine became the 88th pope in 708, then did something no pontiff wo…
Pope Constantine ascended to the papacy, inheriting a church deeply embroiled in the Monothelite controversy. His subsequent journey to Constantinople to meet E…
He didn't want to be emperor in the first place. Tax collectors in 715 had dragged Theodosios III from his minor bureaucratic post and forced the purple robes o…
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.