Tag union troops pushed past confederate blockers

A pivotal moment in the American Civil War!

On May 6, 1864, Union troops led by Major General Ulysses S. Grant and Major General William Tecumseh Sherman pushed past Confederate blockers at the Battle of the Wilderness, a brutal and bloody conflict that marked the beginning of the Overland Campaign.

The Wilderness was a dense and tangled forest in eastern Virginia, about 30 miles northwest of Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy. Grant's Army of the Potomac, numbering around 120,000 soldiers, was attempting to march south and capture Richmond, while Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, with around 60,000 soldiers, sought to stop them.

The battle began on May 5, 1864, as Grant's troops advanced through the Wilderness, pushing aside Confederate pickets and skirmishers. Lee's army, however, was well-prepared and had set up a series of defensive positions, including earthworks and trenches, to slow down the Union advance.

On May 6, Grant's troops, including the II Corps under General Winfield Scott Hancock and the VI Corps under General John Sedgwick, launched a series of attacks against the Confederate lines. Despite being outnumbered, the Confederates held their ground, inflicting heavy casualties on the Union troops.

However, Grant's army was relentless, and they continued to push forward, slowly but surely, through the dense underbrush and thick fog. The Confederates, exhausted and battered, began to falter, and by the end of the day, they had been pushed back several miles.

The Battle of the Wilderness was a tactical draw, with both sides suffering heavy losses. The Union army lost around 17,000 men, while the Confederates lost around 12,000. However, the battle marked a significant turning point in the war, as Grant's army had finally broken through the Confederate defenses and was now poised to march on Richmond.

The Overland Campaign would continue for several more months, with Grant's army facing numerous challenges and setbacks, including the bloody battles of Spotsylvania Courthouse, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg. Ultimately, however, Grant's persistence and determination would pay off, and Richmond would fall to Union forces in April 1865, leading to the surrender of Lee's army and the end of the Civil War.