Why was petersburg so important to the confederate capital, richmond?
a. it was the most vital transportation hub for the capital.
b. most of lee's army was located there when grant's army arrived.
c. its loss would cut richmond off from the rest of the nation.
d. it was the only location for reinforcements to arrive.

A.It was the most vital transportation hub for the capital.

Explanation:

The city of Petersburg was a railroad hub that supplied Richmond with supplies. For this reason, this city was so important to the capital Richmond.

Knowing that a direct attack on Richmond would be disastrous, the union moved its forces southward south of the James River to attack Petersburg, a railroad hub that supplied Richmond with supplies. Instead of a direct attack, the union chose to surround Petersburg and slowly stagnate it with the lack of supplies to Richmond.

the enslaved people onboard suffered from illness with some frequency

in 1859, brown and 21 of his followers attacked and occupied the federal arsenal in harper's ferry. their goal was to capture supplies and use them to arm a slave rebellion. brown was captured during the raid and later hanged, but not before becoming an anti-slavery icon. abolitionist and insurrectionist

explanation: