The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, is a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War.

Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directsthe actions of the Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. George G. Meade, and other forces against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Although Grant suffers severe losses during the campaign, it is a strategic Union victory.

It inflictes proportionately higher losses on Lee's army and maneuvers it into a siege at Richmond and Petersburg, Virginia, in just over eight weeks.Crossing the Rapidan River on May 4, 1864, Grant seeks to defeat Lee's army by quickly placing his forces between Lee and Richmond and inviting an open battle.

Lee surprises Grant by attacking the larger Union army aggressively in the Battle of the Wilderness (May 5–7), resulting in heavy casualties on both sides.

Unlike his predecessors in the Eastern Theater, however, Grant does not withdraw his army following this setback, but instead maneuvers to the southeast, resuming his attempt to interpose his forces between Lee and Richmond.

Lee's army is able to get into position to block this movement.

At the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House (May 8–21), Grant repeatedly attacks segments of the Confederate defensive line, hoping for a breakthrough, but the only results are again heavy losses for both sides.Grant maneuvers again, meeting Lee at the North Anna River (Battle of North Anna, May 23–26).

Here, Lee holds clever defensive positions that provide an opportunity to defeat portions of Grant's army, but illness prevents Lee from attacking in time to trap Grant.

The final major battle of the campaign is waged at Cold Harbor (May 31 – June 12), in which Grant, gambling that Lee's army is exhausted, orders a massive assault against strong defensive positions, resulting in disproportionately heavy Union casualties.

Resorting to maneuver a final time, Grant surprises Lee by stealthily crossing the James River, threatening to capture the city of Petersburg, the loss of which will doom the Confederate capital.

The resulting Siege of Petersburg (June 1864 – March 1865) leads to the eventual surrender of Lee's army in April 1865 and the effective end of the Civil War.The campaign includes two long-range raids by Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan.

In a raid toward Richmond, legendary Confederate cavalry commander Maj. Gen. J.E.B.

Stuart is mortally wounded at the Battle of Yellow Tavern (May 11).

In a raid attempting to destroy the Virginia Central Railroad to the west, Sheridan is thwarted by Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton at the Battle of Trevilian Station (June 11–12), the largest all-cavalry battle of the war.