Lee Surrenders at Appomattox: The Civil War Ends
Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant at the McLean house in Appomattox Court House, Virginia, on April 9, 1865. Lee arrived in full dress uniform with a jeweled sword. Grant showed up in a mud-spattered private's coat with lieutenant general's shoulder straps. The terms were generous: Confederate soldiers could go home, officers kept their sidearms, and any man who claimed a horse or mule could take it for spring planting. Grant ordered his men not to celebrate. "The war is over," he said. "The rebels are our countrymen again." Lee's decision to surrender rather than disperse his army into guerrilla bands was arguably his greatest contribution to the nation. It ended the war cleanly.
April 9, 1865
161 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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