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When Grant began is campaign, he expected to have numerous battles. Grant would smash Lee's right. Lee would shift to his left and then Grant would hit him there. Back and forth the Union army mauled the Confederates until they were stalled at Petersburg outside Richmond. Then it turned into trench warfare with Union artillery bombarding Petersburg. There was still a route of supply into Richmond that sustained the Confederates through the fall and winter of 64-65.
There was the Union fiasco when they mined under the rebel lines and set off a huge explosion creating a massive crater. Some idiot general changed the plans at the last and the troops trained for the exercise were stood down and unprepared troops replaced them and the resulting chaos led to a massive waste of effort and lives on the Union part.
I believe the troops that were to go into the crater after the explosion were blacks who had been trained and were ready to carry out their duty. The Union general didn't want to offend the rebels by sending black troops against them.

I have read a few accounts about this. tthe union miners came from the Penn regiment they mined hundreds of feet when the explosion happened the confederate line was blown upwars. then the mess up happened the explosion left this crater and the union forces charged they ran into the crater allowing the reforming confederate line to shoot downward on them "fish in a fishbowl" Now this wa a mistake i forgot the general but he had already fouled up a previous battle.

It was that buffoon Burnside's corps taht was responsible for the Crater fiasco. It was Meade, who ordered Burnside to not use the black troops that had been trained for the attack. A buffoon and an incompetent left in command for political reasons.

Some things never change ,Gene .It sounds like everybody in Washington today .

the only thing that burnside did tthat was correct was when he arrested this Illinois poliyician who was running on he ground that the military needed to take over the government from lincoln. Other then that i can only recall blunders.

Burnside's most import contribution was to the world of hairstyle , where the practice of letting the hair grow down the side of the face in front of the ear became known as " sideburns " view link

A major thoroughfare that bisects Portland was named after Burnside.