The Confederate Alamo: Bloodbath at Petersburg's Fort Gregg on April 2, 1865

by John J. Fox III

Robert E. Lee faced the most monumental crisis of his military career on the morning of April 2, 1865. By sunrise that morning, the Union 6th Corps had punched a huge hole in Lee’s outer line, southwest of Petersburg. He needed time for reinforcements to arrive from Richmond, but how could his depleted army buy that time?
Amidst overwhelming odds, this suicide mission fell to a handful of Confederates who made a desperate last stand at Fort Gregg. Douglas Southall Freeman called this epic fight “one of the most dramatic incidents of an overwhelming day,” and yet it has been overshadowed by all the other historic events of April 1865.
Fourteen Union soldiers received the Medal of Honor for their bravery at Fort Gregg. Many battle-scarred veterans from both sides described this clash as the nastiest of their four-year war experience.

Genres: Civil War, History

327 pages, Hardcover

First published April 3, 2010

Reviews

[Heinz Reinhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well done micro-tactical history of one of the more desperately hard fought engagements in the closing days of the War Between the States.
The Confederate stand at Fort Gregg from around 330 odd Confederate soldiers against several thousand Federals was one of the actions that slowed the Federal offensive around Petersburg-Richmond long enough to allow Lee's Army of Northern Virginia to pull out and attempt to march south to align with Johnston in North Carolina. Gregg became a focal point of Confederate resistance once the Federals, finally, broke the Confederate defenses around Petersburg-Richmond, and began to push towards both strategic cities.
One could argue, and the author mentions it very briefly, that the Federal assault, which cost nearly 800 men, was a pointless waste of life, as Ft. Gregg wasn't, directly in need of seizure for the Federals to achieve their objectives. Likewise, spending the time and energy in taking it, and lives, sapped the energy of most of a Corp's offensive energy for that day.
Told from both the Union and Southern perspective, this is a well written, astutely and exhaustively researched, at times downright exciting read. Should be on every military historians bookshelf, or for those who are enthralled by tales of desperate last stands, or who are curious as to the science of small unit tactics in the middle nineteenth century.
Very highly recommended.

[Joel Manuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book about the fall of Fort Gregg which really takes off when the battle starts.

[William Olenick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe that this is the only book solely about the attack on the Confederate Fort Gregg west of Petersburg.
The book describes in detail the initial attack on the morning of April 2nd, covers the VI Corps and 24th Corps assault on the fort and its companion fort, Fort Whitworth. There are several appendices to discuss additional information about the battle and Fort.
Several maps and some pictures are included to support the text. Good read, usual only a quick note in most books about Petersburg or the Appomattox Campaign.

[Shelly♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very detailed account of the fighting at Fort Gregg on 2 April 1865. The author pulls together many accounts from survivors, along with photographs of those who fought in the battle. The appendixes provide additional information for the reader.

On April 2, 1865, the Union Army broke the line at what now is Pamplin Park. General Lee needed time to move his army across the Appomattox River and retreat, hoping to hook up with Joseph Johnson's army in North Carolina. Fort Gregg and Fort Whitworth were the rear guard of the Confederate Army, and needed to hold the fort at all peril. And they did. This is an amazing account of the men who towed the line on that last day, and the soldiers that stormed the fort. Gibbons and the Army of the James with about 5000 troops in action took on a remnant of North Carolinians, Georgians, Mississippians and Louisianians in what some would call the fieriest fighting of the war.

Highly recommend for Civil War History Nerds.

[Steven Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solidly researched and documented work on the bloody battle for Fort Gregg (and Fort Whitworth), as a part of the desperate end game struggle at Petersburg. Grant's forces had already begun to wreck the Confederate position with the crushing defeat by Sheridan and his forces over Pickett's troops at Five Forks. This is the tale of heroism on both sides, as savage fighting took place. The southern troops knew how important it was to hold their position; northern forces understood that a breakthrough would be one more step toward a real victory. A well told story. . . .

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

an interesting story, moderately well told. the final fighting scenes are decent enough, but Fox's prose can be pretty flat at times. His mention of the death of A.P. Hill for example merely mentions that he went out and got shot by a couple of Yankee troops. I don't know why he even brought it up if that was all he had to say about the death of one of the most famous Confederate battle leaders only days before the war ended. But the battle itself deserves to be remembered and this book does serve that purpose.