1) Boston Daily Advertiser, Wednesday May 11, 1864. General Grant's Advance. No Battle at Spottsylvania. No enemy in Sight. Grant's advance to Richmond. 1864 was a crucial "make it or break it" year inthe Civil War. When General Grant formulated his plans for the upcoming spring campaign of 1864, he endeavored to bring a unifying purpose to his forces. Grant's main objective was defeating General Robert E. Lee and his Army of NorthernVirginia. Defeating Lee was important because his army had been the most successful of all Confederate armies and when that army ultimately fell, the Confederate war effort would be doomed. Grant relayed the importance to capturing Lee'sarmy to General George Gordon Meade, the commander of the Army of the Potomac. "Lee's army will be your objective point. Wherever Lee goes, there you will go also." While previous Union commanders of the Army of the Potomac believed that Richmonditself was a bigger prize, Grant realized that even with Richmond in Union hands, the war would continue as long as Lee's army was still on the field and supported by the Confederate population. On May 4, 1864 Lt. General Ulysses S. Grant put