The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a classic military siege, in which a city is usually surrounded and all supply lines are cut off, nor was it strictly limited to actions against Petersburg.
The Battle of the Crater
The Battle of the Crater, part of the Petersburg Campaign, was the result of an unusual attempt, on the part of Union forces, to break through the Confederate defenses just south of the critical railroad hub of Petersburg.
For several weeks, Pennsylvania miners in Union general Ambrose E. Burnside's Ninth Corps worked at digging a long tunnel, packed the terminus with explosives, and then on the morning of July 30, 1864, blew it up.
In the words of a Maine soldier, the sky was filled with "Earth, stones, timbers, arms, legs, guns unlimbered and bodies unlimbed."
The Battle of the Crater was graphically portrayed in the opening scenes of the 2003 film Cold Mountain starring actor Jude Law as a Confederate soldier/deserter.
The Siege of Petersburg foreshadowed the trench warfare that was common in World War I, earning it a prominent position in military history.
