Question

Why did the Confederates burn Richmond as President Davis and his cabinet fled?

Answer 1

The Confederates burned Richmond as President Davis and his cabinet fled to make sure the Union Army could not use Confederate resources.

During the American Civil War, Richmond became the capital of the Confederate States of America.

On April 2, 1865, more than 25% of the buildings in the city were destroyed by fire after the withdrawal of the Confederate soldiers, who burned all the Confederate resources to make them unusable for the Union.

On April 3, 1865, Ulysses S. Grant and the Union Army captured Richmond, and the state capital was then transferred to Lynchburg. The Army of North Virginia, commanded by Robert Lee retired and surrendered six days later before Grant in the Appomattox Court House, becoming the symbolic end of the war.

Answer 2

Answer:

• To make sure the Union Army could not use Confederate resources.

Explanation:

Amid the Civil War, Confederate powers promised to keep the Union Army out of Richmond, Virginia, at any expense. That included consuming the city to the ground as Northern troops drew closer.  

When the pulverization started, the city was for the most part deserted. Flares spread through vast pieces of Richmond, at long last put out the next day after the Mayor and his outstanding constituents achieved Union lines east of the city to surrender. On April 4, President Lincoln visited the remnants and on April 9, Confederate General Robert E. Lee marked his surrender reports, successfully finishing the war.