This outstanding account, written by a sympathetic Union officer and witness to the Civil War's denouement, covers the last days and downfall of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia (led by the indomitable Robert E. Lee), from the fall of Richmond to Appomattox. Morris Schaff focuses largely on the Confederate Army's dramatic retreat and surrender in March and April, 1865, when Lee himself was compelled to admit defeat. Written in the form of letters, Schaff writes a first hand account of the people, places, and events that changed the course of history.