Battle Of Gettysburg
I have chosen to write about the battle of Gettysburg, because I found
the
American Civil War very interesting and I want to know more about
that
particularly battle mentioned above. I have seen one of many movies that
been
made over the battle of Gettysburg, it is the best and most realistic
movie ever
made over the battle. With this report I want to learn more about
the battle
than I already know, because there is a lot more in this subject
for example why
the it was at Gettysburg the bloodiest battle were fought and
why the
Confederate army lost the battle and not the Union army.
Statement of problem I
want to describe how the battle began and why it was
at Gettysburg, plus analyse
why it became the bloodiest battle under the
American Civil War. Finally I want
to estimate why the Civil War lasted about
two more years after the three days
bloody battle ended and could the war
have had another outcome if the
Confederate won over the Union. How did
the battle began and why at Gettysburg
Robert E. Lee, became more and
more courageous after every decisive victory, it
really became serious when
he won two big battles at Fredericksburg and
Chancellorsville, then his
mind started to consider turning against North and he
did and he first battle
on the movement he won at Shenadore Valley. His plan was
to march on the West
side of the Blue Ridge mountains with the purpose to hide
his movements from
the Union army. His army, whom counted 62.000 soldiers, would
go into the
state known as West Virginia and therefrom further North at Maryland
and
Pennsylvania. When he had penetrated these areas he would go for one of
the
largest town as Philadelphia or preferably Washington D.C., because if
they
could win the battle they would introduce President Lincoln for a letter
from
President Davis, a letter about making peace between the Unions and
Confederates
states. As written it was not the plan to go anyway near
Gettysburg if General
A.P. Hills division was not in such a need of shoes
and therefor they were
forced to march to Gettysburg for the needed supplies.
General Henry Heth asked
Lee for permission to march back to Gettysburg
and clear Gettysburg from the
Unions cavalry, but they did not know that
the Union cavalry counted 2.500 men
and under command of general John Buford.
What Lee did not know was that the
some Union units had spied his movements
since his last battle at Shenadore
Valley and thousands and thousands
Union troops were about to move in on him.
Now the biggest and greatest
battle was about to start and as many people think
this was the turning point
in the Civil War. Why did it became the bloodiest
battle under the Civil War
First day (July 1st 1863) Lee’s right hand, General
J.E.B. Stuart the
leader of the Confederate cavalry was in Cumberland Valley in
attempt of
finding some horses, that means that Lee was "blind" because of
missing
information about the Union army for example how many men they got and
their
positions. Stuart would first arrive late at the battles second day,
therefor
many believes that he became Lee’s scapegoat. General Heth’s men
reached the
outskirts of Gettysburg early morning and attacked General
Buford’s
waiting cavalry, which soon got reinforcement from General John
F.
Retnold’s division, who was killed that day by a sniper, he was the
highest
officer that died under the battle. Heth succeeded to delay the
Confederate army
so much that the rest of the Union army could arrive, but
the day was on the
Confederate army sides, it was a very good start of
the battle for Lee. He had
captured about 5.000 Union soldiers, two generals
and three artillery units. The
Union arrived and sealed all the range of
hills and the Confederate genereal’s
was not save with that, they would
rather have them on open land, but Lee
insisted, that here was the enemy and
here the battle should be fought Second
day (July 2nd 1863) General E. Lee
became ill, he had diarrhoea and there was
trouble with his heart which he
have had for several months and that was also
what killed him seven years
later. One of his best generals, James Longstreet
was worried about the
situation, he thought that it would have been better if
they pull away and
from Gettysburg and go ahead Washington D.C. and there they
could pick the
spot where the battle should be fought. He was also mad over
Lee’s attack
plan and according to some he inhaled the attack on purpose. Six
hours after
the attack was been ordered by Lee, Longstreet moved his troops in
position
and found out that the enemy had become reinforcements also here some
people
believe that due to the slow charge of six hours could be a reason why
the
Confederate army lost the battle. The second day the Union won, but it
was
close to a defeat because the Confederate army used some very smart
tactics
created by Lee which he had learn under the war against Mexico some
years
earlier. The history tells about a very famous battle that was fought
at Little
Round Top. Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain, 33 years old and
professor at the
university Bowdoin College was ordered to hold the Union
outer left flank at any
cost, till the last man if needed. Understaffed the
20th Maine held it’s
position until they ran out of ammunition, then ordered
Chamberlain a bayonet
assault against the Confederate army and forced them
away from Little Round Top.
This meant that the Confederate army didn’t
get access further up the hills,
if they had they could have attacked the
Union from rear. In 1893 Chamberlain
got The Congressional Medal of Honour,
the highest distinction in America. Both
armies had caused great damage to
each other and there was a lot of wounded and
missing soldiers, there is no
exactly status for day two only for all three
days. Third day (July 3rd 1863)
The Final day, General Lee had a plan, since the
Union had put a lot of
it’s soldiers on the flanks there wouldn’t be so many
in the middle so
therefor he ordered nine brigades about 15.000 units, protected
by artillery
to storm 1? mil over open field, in perfect order. This would
mean that there
would be fired at them for the Unions artillery and by all sides
from the
soldiers, since the Union was lying at all the hills formed as a
fishhook.
General Longstreet is against it cause he know that over half of them
would
die before they would reach the Union and as he sees his proud men goes
he
says this quotation: "My heart is heavy. I could see the desperate
and
hopeless attack and I could see how this hopeless massacre would end. The
day at
Gettysburg, is the worst day in my life" James Longstreet,
General, C.S.A. The
Union canons were fired almost at the same time again
after again, it is said
that the noise could been heard in Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania almost 140 mils away.
As the Confederate brigades got closer
more and more was killed when the canons
were fired, although they were
pretty close in succeeding, they got some of the
Unions canons in a small
period, but too many were killed in the way over the
field. Lee had to face
it, his plan failed and he had no other option than order
a retreat. Over
50.000 men were killed in the battle of Gettysburg you can see
at enclosure 1
the exact numbers of casualties. The Confederate army did never
completely
recover from this defeat and that is why they lost the Civil War.
The
Union did not chase the Confederate army after Lee’s retreat they
felt that
wining the battle was enough. Why did the war last two more
years.