American History
The Battle of Gettysburg
July 1st-4th of 1863
BAckground
The American Civil War
The American Civil War raged from 1861 until 1865. (Council - overview)
A division between the Northern and Southern states had steadily been growing over the course of the century following the American Revolution, in which America claimed independance from Britain. (Council - overview) The states division is show in the picture to the right. Several issues arose, widening the gap between the North and South. Slavery was the key issue. (Council - overview) Southern states wished to maintain their rights to own slaves. The North, on the other hand, desired all slavery to come to an end. This and several other social, economic, and political issues pressed the South into secession. By 1861, the Southern states officially wanted to be seperate from the Union. Thus, the war began.
The Battle of Gettysburg occured half-way through the war in July of 1863. (Brinkley 338)
(When it is say "Battle" of Gettysburg, I wish to encompass all the skirmishes/ battles that happened on three days in July at Gettysburg.)
Civil War Leaders at Gettysburg
A. General Joseph Hooker = Union general who was replaced by Meade part way through the battle (Brinkley 363)
B. General Meade = Union general (Brinkley 363)
C. Robert E. Lee = Confederate general (Brinkley 363)
A. B. C.
Battles and Army Repositionings Leading up to Gettysburg:
In 1863, the Confederate states were split in two as the Union soldiers took control of the Mississippi River. The Confederate states of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas were seperated from the other Confederate states making it difficult to resupply and bring new recruits to the front battle lines in the East. (Brinkley 363)
Around the same time that the Battle of Vicksburg occured, Confederate General Lee proposes an invasion of Union Pennsylvania. (Brinkley 363) He hoped to divert the Union troops from bombarding the other weakened Confederates, to claim a well-needed victory in Northern territory (which would hopefully attract internation support to the Confederate cause), and perhaps even cause the North to surrender. (Brinkley 363)
Union General Meade chose to move his Union Army of the Potomac north in persuit of Lee. (Brinkley 363)(The Civil War) The armies' movements are dipicted in the picture to the above left. A Confederate named Fitzhugh Lee documented the movement of the armies headed north:
"The movement of the Army of the Potomac depended on that of the Army of Northern Virginia. As Lee proceeded north, so did
Hooker on parallel lines." (Wheeler 280)
Lee's and Meade's armies encountered eachother in the town of Gettysburg in southern Pennsylvania. (Brinkley 363)(The Civil War)
Meade had only been in charge of the Union army for three days prior to the meeting Lee at Gettysburg. (Council)
July 1st-3rd of 1863
When Lee and Meade bumped into one another, Gettysburg became the location of their battle.(Brinkley 363) Actually, neither Lee nor Meade gave the signal to begin fighting - running into eachother so abruptly caused the battle to start without their approval. (Council) Reinforcements poured in throughout the duration of the battle. (The Civil War) Meade positions the Union soldiers atop the hills south of the town, a very strategic move. (The Civil War) The Confederates, led by Lee, somewhat surround the Union soldiers.(The Civil War) Lee attempts to take the Union's location several times. (Brinkley 363) Each time he failed to overthrown the Union soldiers. (Brinkley 363) On the third day, Lee had Pickett lead the Confederate soldiers in one of the most well-remembered charges of the Civil War: Pickett's Charge.(Brinkley 363)(The Civil War) In an eyewitness account, Confederate Lieutenant Finley reflects on the charge as being "the fatal field." (Wheeler 318) For good reason, too. 15,000 brave Confederates advanced over a mile a open country up the middle of the Union lines attempting to take their stronghold.(Brinkley 363) Only about 5,000 Confederates made it to the ridge.(Brinkley 363) Those that survived were forced to retreat or surrender.(Brinkley 363)
Lee lost 2/3 of his army that day.(Brinkley 363)
On July 4, 1863, the Confederates withdrew from Gettysburg.(Brinkley 363) The Union claimed a crucial victory. Much celebration could be heard in Gettysburg that day.
"Cheer after cheer rose fromt the triumphant boys in blue, echoing from Round Top, reechoing from Cemetery Hill, resounding in
the vale below, and making the very heavens throb.." commented a witness Union soldier, Jesse Young. (Wheeler 323)
The Confederate army never again placed such a heavy threat on the northern territories. (Brinkley 363)
A Union soldier Jesse Young related this fateful day:
"The next morning was the Fourth of July, but it seemed at the time to those who were at Gettysburg a somber and terrible
national anniversary, with the indescribable horrors of the field,j as yet hardly mitigated by the work of mercy, before the eye in
every direction. The army did not know the extent of the victory; the nation did not realize as yet what had been done. The armies
were still watching each other, although the Confederates had withdrawn from the town of Gettysburg and concentrated their
troops on Seminary Ridge..." (Wheeler 325)
The battle must have been brutal and somewhat heroic. Brave men courageously gave up thier lives to make a stand for what they believed to be right.
By the end of it all, 30,000 soldiers were dead, wounded, or lost. (Council)(The Battle)
The battle's movements over the 3 days are shown below the video. For a concise overview of the Battle of Getysburg, click the video below:
Day 1 - July 1, 1863
Day 2 - July 2, 1863
Day 3 - July 3, 1863
Significance of the Battle of Gettysburg
Politically
Lee turned in his resignation to the Confederate president, Jefferson Davis, but it was declined. (The Battle)
A national cemetery was dedicated on November 19, 1863, on the battlefield where 3560 soldiers came to rest. (Johnson 269) President Abraham Lincoln addressed the crowd with his imfamous Gettysburg Address. (Johnson 269)(Lincoln's)
To hear the Gettysburg Address, click the video below:
Economically
Of all the Battles of the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg was the costliest. (Council)
Socially
The Union received a confidence boost.
Defeat coroded Southern morale. (The Battle)
It was very dishonorable to lose a flag in battle. Lee lost 23 battle flags in Pickett's Charge - This must have been an abrasion to his reputation. (Council)
The citizens who remained in Gettysburg eventually had to leave because the stench of rotting bodies was overpowering. (The Battle)
In Broader Scope of the War
The Confederates never dangerously threatened the northern territories again. (Brinkley 363)
Lee lost 2/3 of his men and was forced to turn tail and go back south. (Brinkley 363)
President Lincoln was convinced that if Meade had pursued Lee, the war would have been over. Meade, however, understood that his remaining men needed to recover. (The Battle) Either way, the war continued for another two years.
Information Works Cited
Brinkley, Alan. The Unfinished Nation: A Concise History of the American People. 6th ed. Vol. 1. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill
Companies, 2010. Print.
"The Battle of Gettysburg - History Learning Site." History Learning Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
<http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/the-american-civil-war/the-battle-of-gettysburg/>.
"The Civil War in Four Minutes: The Battle of Gettysburg." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=7ALyq3seK2g>.
Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/civil-war-
overview/overview.html?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F>.
"Lincoln's Gettysburg Address." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvA0J_2ZpIQ>.
Wheeler, Richard. Voices of the Civil War. New York: First Meridian Printing, 1976. Print.
Johnson, Rossiter. Campfires and Battlefields. New York: Civil War, 1967. Print.
Picture Works Cited
"Energy Bliss Wallpaper." - 199938. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <http://www.wallpapersonweb.com/image-199938.html>.
"South Secession Map Southern States Secede Civil War Rights." South Secession Map Southern States Secede Civil War Rights. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <http://thomaslegion.net/south_secede_southern_secession_states_rights_constitution.html>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg,_First_Day>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg,_Second_Day>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gettysburg_Campaign>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Hooker>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickett%27s_Charge>.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retreat_from_Gettysburg>.