Lee Surrenders at Appomattox: The Civil War Ends
Robert E. Lee accepted the desperate measure of arming enslaved people with a promise of emancipation just days before his army collapsed at Appomattox. By refusing to launch a guerrilla campaign after surrendering, he forced an immediate end to hostilities and championed sectional reconciliation over continued bloodshed. His subsequent Farewell Address explicitly declared slavery abolished for the South's own good, shaping the post-war landscape of the defeated states.
April 9, 1865
161 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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