First Capital of the Confederate States: Richmond, Virginia (1861–1865)

Richmond, Virginia was the first and only permanent capital of the Confederate States of America — from May 1861 to April 1865.

📜 The Move

• Feb 1861: Provisional capital = Montgomery, Alabama (Confederacy formed)
• May 1861: Virginia secedes → Confederate Congress votes to move capital to Richmond
• Strategic reasons: Industrial base (Tredegar Iron Works), rail hub, symbolic (Virginia = largest slave state)

🏭 Richmond as Capital

• White House of the Confederacy — Davis residence (now museum)
• Virginia State Capitol — housed Confederate Congress (designed by Jefferson)
• Tredegar Iron Works — primary cannon/armor producer
• Chimborazo Hospital — largest military hospital in Confederacy
• Libby Prison — infamous Union officer POW camp

🔥 The End

• April 2, 1865: Lee evacuates Petersburg → Richmond falls
• April 3: Union troops enter; fires set by retreating Confederates destroy 25 blocks
• April 9: Lee surrenders at Appomattox (90 mi west)
• No other capital: Danville, VA (brief, 3 days) — not official

🏛️ Today

• White House of Confederacy & Museum of the Confederacy (merged → American Civil War Museum)
• Tredegar → National Park Service site
• Monument Avenue (contested statues removed 2020–21)

Richmond: Confederacy's heart, industrial engine, and final flame.