[center][b][u]Stonewall Jackson[/u][/b][/center]

With the aim of ending the war as soon as possible, the Union implemented its biggest recruitment push yet. Thousands were called into service.
(+400,000 conscripts to the USA)

Bolstered with reinforcements, Grant once again took his army south into North Carolina. The Army of the Potomac crossed over the border and attempted to slip past the Army of Northern Virginia, but Confederate cavalry alerted Thomas. Thomas had also received new recruits, although not nearly as many as Grant. Indeed, the Army of the Potomac now numbered more than double the Army of Northern Virginia. The battle began when Grant sent his force against the left flank of the Confederate force. Thomas, wise to that trick, pushed back and forced the Union soldiers to the right. Trapping them between the two flanks, Thomas forced the Army of the Potomac to attack his front lines head on. Taking control of the right flank himself, he gave command of the main force to General Jackson. It was a sound strategy; the center was well dug in, and the flanks would hit the Union lines like hammers. However, what he hadn't counted on was the sheer number of Union soldiers. Grant threw wave after wave of troops into the battle, and the Confederates bravely attempted to hold their ground. A Confederate captain, upon seeing that his men were on the brink of breaking, called out to his men to observe Jackson standing atop the hill, shouting "There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer". The Confederacy held for an impressive time, but the weight of numbers and superior weapons of the Union eventually forced a gap in the Confederate lines. Ordering the retreat, Thomas withdrew his men south, giving up large portions of North Carolina. Forced to abandon Raleigh and Greensboro, Thomas regrouped at Fayetteville. Meanwhile, a Union cavalry force under the command of Philip Sheridan flanked Thomas and captured Charlotte. 
(-72,400 conscripts to the USA, -36,100 conscripts to the CSA)

Sherman began to push east, heading for the town of Augusta. Lee moved north from Macon to try and slow down Sherman as much as possible, through harrying raids and by cutting off supply lines. A major breakthrough came when a Union wagon train carrying brand new rifles was captured, and Sherman found the journey east difficult, as poor food rations, exhaustion, and fear of night raids wrecked the quality and efficiency of his army. However, with no direct attempt to stop his army, he managed to capture Augusta, cutting a bloody trail through the heart of the Confederacy. Sherman was poised to saw the Confederacy in half - but not until he could reopen supply lines again.
(-13,300 conscripts to the USA, -4,600 conscripts to the CSA, -5% equipment to the USA, +5% equipment to the CSA, -1 army sublevel to the USA)

General Edward Porter Alexander and the Army of East Tennessee once again attempted to march west through Tennessee to capture Nashville. However, he was soon bogged down in fighting against a Union army, and made little headway. Although he managed to push into the Union, he was unable to reach Nashville, stopping short north of Chattanooga.
(-2,300 conscripts to the USA, -1,200 conscripts to the CSA)

During the battle in North Carolina, Confederate General Thomas Jonathan Jackson was hit by two shots in the left arm. He was evacuated from the battlefield and had his left arm amputated. However, he contracted pneumonia and, after lingering for eight days after the battle, he died. His last words were recorded to have been "Let us cross over the river, and rest under the shade of the trees", whispered with a smile on his face. The Confederate nation mourned the loss, as his action had saved the Confederacy from destruction on a number of occasions, and he had been instrumental in training the troops early in the war. His death was a severe blow to the morale of his friends Thomas and Lee.