As early as February 1865, John C. Breckinridge, the Confederate Secretary of War, began working with Lee and several others to maneuver a surrender short of abject defeat. Follow Breckenridge’s efforts through Appomattox to Bennett Place beyond.

William C. Davis is a retired history professor and former executive director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech University. An acclaimed expert on the Civil War he has written numerous books, including An Honorable Defeat: The Last Days of the Confederate Government. Additionally, Davis has served on a number of advisory boards, including the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, the Civil War Preservation Trust, the Museum of the Civil War Soldier in Petersburg, Virginia, the National Park Service, and the Lincoln Prize and Pulitzer Prize nominating juries.