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Thursday, December 31, 2015

Aftermath

CSS Shenandoah
After the major Confederate armies under Lee and Johnston surrendered in April, 1865, the other Southern forces still remaining in arms gradually followed suit. President Jefferson Davis was captured on May 10, and held prisoner for two years before being released without trial. The Battle of Palmito Ranch on May 13 was likely the last land battle. In it a Union regiment in Texas was defeated by Confederates who had not yet surrendered. The very last Confederate surrender was of the CSS Shenandoah. She was a commerce raider cruising in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and it took her a long time to hear of the Confederacy's demise. She was on her way to try a raid on San Francisco when she captured a vessel that had certain news of the country's fall. Her captain sailed her around the world to Liverpool, England, where he surrendered the Shenandoah to a Royal Navy captain on November 6, 1865.

Although the aftermath of the Civil War played out for many years through the Reconstruction era, this is where our 150th anniversary account must come to an end. Thank you to all the thousands who have read this blog over the years! The site will stay online for the foreseeable future, as a resource for any who may be interested.

If you enjoyed our posts here, please visit our new website at DiscerningHistory.com. There you can find blogging on the Civil War, and many other topics, as well as other resources including videos, DVD series and audio tours.

Thanks for reading!