The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House was part of the Overland Campaign of the American Civil War. It was fought from May 8 to May 21, 1864. After the Battle of the Wilderness, Union commander Ulysses S. Grant decided to march south to get between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. As part of the Union plans, they had to capture the important crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House. But Confederate cavalry arrived there first, followed by Confederate infantry.