General Ulysses S. Grant, commanding the United States Army and General Robert E. Lee commanding the Army of Northern Virginia opposed each other for eleven months of the Civil War. Almost ten months of this time was spent in Petersburg, Virginia. Attempting to wear down and destroy Lee's army, Grant applied relentless pressure and continual contact in a campaign of a magnitude and concentration unprecedented before or since on American soil. The strengths and weaknesses of these two leaders and their resources ultimately determined the fate of a nation.

Explore their military movements and decision-making skills during the siege of Petersburg. Along the Eastern Front, Grant's army made their initial assaults, exploded a mine under Confederate lines a month later in the Battle of the Crater, and opposed the last offensive waged by the Confederate army under Lee at Fort Stedman. Read their correspondence referencing each of these military actions.