Petersburg National Battlefield Park, Virginia

After Grant's failure to break through the Confederate earthworks to the north and east of Richmond, he disengaged from the blood bath at Cold harbor and raced south to attack Petersburg. Lee reached his already prepared entrenchments outside Petersburg just in time. But well supplied from City Point Grant settled down to a 10 month siege with large artillery pieces and over 100,000 men. Lee's army suffered greatly that winter; as did the inhabitants of Petersburg.

Join John and his Dad as they visit one the final clashes of the North and South.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Petersburg
• Battlefield
• Civil
• War
• Virginia
• siege
• Battery
• crater
• Lee
• Grant

[scar70ify]

i wanted go see there but i cant affrid it

[Imachowderhead]

Thats not the real dictator, noone knows what happened to it

[Imachowderhead]

I go here all the time, live 3 miles from it...good memories

[a4skyraider]

I worked for two summers, at the Petersburg NB, with the USPNS in the early 80's. Back then, we actually had a six horse team, pull in full trace, a 12 pounder Napoleon. We represented the Washington Artillery, a CSA unit from New Orleans. Each man on the cannon crew would explain to park visitors, what his role was on the cannon crew. We would then fire the gun. Very nice video. Much looks the same to me, and brings back to me good memories, from two hot summers, nearly 30 years ago.

[thebearfighter]

"The Dictator" was manned by the 1st Connecticut Heavy Artillery.

[thebearfighter]

That image at 2:14 was actually taken at Fredericksburg in 1863. It's believed to have been of men of the VI Corps.

A lot of people commonly mistake it as taken during the siege of Petersburg.

[ke4bss]

The Union army had plenty of Dictators. Let's see there was Lincoln, Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, Thomas....etc.

[WillPX69]

Wonderful photography and a good tour. Thanks.