Battle of Gettysburg
by Krysta CardinaleThe Battle of Gettysburg waged on for three days from July 1, 1863 to July 3rd. This battle was not only the bloodiest battle in American History, but also considered by most as the turning point of Civil War.
Amidst Confederate leader, General Robert E. Lee’s victory in Chancellorsville of May 1863, he decided it was a good time to make his second attempt forging onto Northern Soil. General Lee wanted to make an impact on Union politicians and leaders that they were not going to win this war and give the rumored peace movement in the north a voice. Lee thus began his campaign north through the Shenandoah Valley on June 3rd.
President Lincoln immediately pushed General Joseph Hooker to pursuit the northern moving Confederate brigade. However, Lincoln decided to replace Hooker due to his defeat in Chancellorsville and his hesitant reactions to Lee’s advancements. George G. Meade took the reigns from Hooker and the pursuit of General Lee. By June mid to late June General Lee and his men were deep into Pennsylvania.
On June 29th Meade set up the Potomac Army eight miles west of Gettysburg in Cashtown. One of Lee’s general’s spotted Union troops in town at Gettysburg. Unsure of the depth and strength of this seen militia, Lee wanted to wait until his entire troop made it to Gettysburg before engaging in battle. However, Confederate LT. General A.P. Hill led his brigade on a reconnaissance to determine the size and strength of the enemy.
The Civil War Battle of Gettysburg began on the morning of July 1, 1863. The Union Calvary Division reinforced by two divisions of the infantry defended the low ridges at the northwest of town. The Confederacy prevailed in breaking through and sending this line retreating to the hills in the southern portion of Gettysburg. The Union then reformed their lines on the high ground of Cemetery Hill. This first day of battle had only 19,000 Union men against about 25,000 Confederates.
On the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, both sides had almost their full force intact and their lines established. The Union strength numbered about 90,000 men whereas the Confederacy had roughly 75,000. General Meade had his formation assembled in a fishhook structure. General Lee spent the day on the offensive, sending fierce attacks on both the left and right flanks of the Federal troops. Steadfast fighting went down all day at Little Round Top, the Wheatfield, Devil’s Den, and the Peach Orchard on the Union’s left. To their fight the tough battling was also underway at Culp’s Hill and Cemetery Hill. Even though the Federal forces suffered heavy losses they stood their ground and defended the assaults successfully.
On the third and final day of the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg, fighting continued to rage on Culp’s Hill while cavalry battles were waged to the south and the east. General Lee decided to create an aggressive main assault on the middle of the Union line in an attempt to break through and end this battle. He sent approximately 12,500 men on this assault at Cemetery Ridge. This strategy failed and only produced a devastating amount of casualties for the southern forces.
Who Won the Battle of Gettysburg?
In what was perhaps the most defining battle of the Civil War, the Confederate Army suffered a staggering loss that spelled the turning point of the war at the battle of Gettysburg near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania from July 1-3, 1863. Meade and the Union forces sent the Confederates on a long retreat back to Virginia. By the end of the battle, the last Confederate stronghold at Vicksburg, Virginia had fallen to the Union army, giving it complete control of the strategic Mississippi river.
On November 19th following the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg, President Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address on the battle grounds. In his infamous speech Lincoln commemorated the men who fought in the battle, totaling in over 51,000 casualties from both sides. The speech only last about three minutes, but became one of the most famous speeches in history.
The victory at Gettysburg gave the Union army the boost it needed to forge ahead with its eventual takeover of the South. Lincoln was elected to a second term as president in 1864 and, after a series of Union victories throughout the South in the months that followed, including the capture of Atlanta; Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865.
The end of the fighting did not signal the end of the war, however. The peace process was thwarted by the assassination of Lincoln on April 14, 1865. He died the following day. The Confederate states were readmitted to the Union where, by the end of 1864 the 13th amendment to the U.S. Constitution had been passed banning slavery throughout the country. The following year blacks were given citizenship rights and by 1870, black men had been granted the right to vote.
The reunification of the country did not heal old wounds, however. The abolition of slavery did little to curb hatred and prejudice in America. Though granted equal rights on paper, African-Americans were still treated like second-class citizens in parts of the South, spearheading the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.
Wounds from the war ran so deep in the South that from 1876 until 1964, the states of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas remained staunchly anti-Republican, awarding no electoral votes to the Republican Party. That trend almost completely reversed during the second half of the 20th century and now many Southern states are Republican strongholds.
Though the battles are long over and the wounds long healed, the Civil War is an event that will live on in the American consciousness. It is a cornerstone of American history and has been preserved and celebrated from the local to the national level, with nearly every battlefield having been preserved as either a national or state park in commemoration of the single worst conflict ever to touch down on American soil. Many families have roots that run back to the conflict and though the years may pass, the legacy of the war will never fade with time.
