{"id":2930,"date":"2016-12-08T17:51:10","date_gmt":"2016-12-08T17:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/?p=2930"},"modified":"2017-04-08T16:39:32","modified_gmt":"2017-04-08T16:39:32","slug":"slaughter-at-gettysburg-july-1st-3rd-1863","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/2016\/12\/08\/slaughter-at-gettysburg-july-1st-3rd-1863\/","title":{"rendered":"Slaughter At Gettysburg: July 1st-3rd, 1863"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Tom Forte<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>NOTE: \u00a0Bolded text in paragraphs refers to Google map place marks<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Introduction \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 James McPherson, historian\u00a0and author of several books including <em>The Battle Cry of Freedom<\/em>, claims that,&#8221;Gettysburg proved a significant turning point in the war, and therefore in the preservation of the United States and abolition of slavery.&#8221; His statement is well founded, as General Meade&#8217;s Union Army of the Potomac was able to inflict disastrous losses on General Lee&#8217;s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia that could simply not be replaced due to Southern manpower shortages. \u00a0Yet on many occasions over the three day battle, Confederate troops came close to victory. \u00a0However, aside from acts of valor by Union troops, there were several factors that contributed to Confederate defeat: \u00a0poor reconnaissance and communication, strong Union defensive positions, poor and insufficient equipment, and strategic errors on the part of General Lee.<br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/embed?mid=1CHbo2uDHuOcdxkE-T_E1FvgOacg&amp;hl=en\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>The First Day of Battle \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 252px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/5\/56\/GenJFRenyolds.jpg\/220px-GenJFRenyolds.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"242\" height=\"311\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">General Reynolds (Courtesy of Wikipedia)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The battle began at 7:30am on July 1<sup>st<\/sup>, 1863, when two Confederate divisions encountered a division of dismounted Union cavalry under General John Buford to the Northeast of the town of Gettysburg.[1] \u00a0The Union cavalry, though heavily outnumbered, held out until 10:00am when the Union 1<sup>st<\/sup> Corps, under General Reynolds, arrived on the scene to reinforce the hard-pressed cavalry.\u00a0 Although he was able to stave off the Confederate assault, General Reynolds was killed while ordering the men of the 2<sup>nd<\/sup> Wisconsin Regiment forward into battle [<strong>July 1: 10:40am: Death of General Reynolds<\/strong>]; \u201cForward men, forward for God\u2019s sake, and drive those fellows out of the woods!\u201d, he was then hit in the head by a sharpshooter and killed instantly.[2]<\/p>\n<p>At 2:00pm, the Confederate assault resumed, except this time reinforced by several more divisions.\u00a0 The Union had brought up reinforcements as well, but they were still outgunned.[3]\u00a0 Due to a salient (or bulge) created on the Union right flank by men under General Barlow [<strong>July 1: 2PM: Barlow\u2019s Knoll<\/strong>], the right flank was soon broken and Confederate troops began rolling up the Union line.[4]\u00a0 To add to the this disaster, Union lines along McPherson\u2019s Ridge also broke around the same time, causing the Union Army to go into full retreat.[5]\u00a0 In various states of disorder, Union troops were able to make it to Cemetery Hill to the southeast of Gettysburg.\u00a0 General Hancock, who had been sent forward by the commander of the Union Army of the Potomac, General Meade, to take command of the Union troops engaged at Gettysburg remarked that Cemetery Hill was: \u201c\u2026the strongest position by nature on which to fight a battle that I ever saw\u201d.[6]\u00a0 The next several days would prove him right.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Second Day of Battle \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 260px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/cdn.historynet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/250x200xthe-devils-den.jpg.pagespeed.ic.3mQ5j2FW2Y.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"250\" height=\"200\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Confederate Sharpshooter at Devil&#8217;s Den (Courtesy of HistoryNet)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>During the night of July 1<sup>st<\/sup>, General Meade positioned his troops in a fishhook shape in order to take advantage of the extremely defensible high ground to the southeast of Gettysburg.[<strong>July 2: Blue Lines<\/strong>]\u00a0 Early in the morning, General Dan Sickles, commander of the Union 3<sup>rd<\/sup> Corps, spotted high ground to the front of his troop\u2019s positions, and decided to order his men forward to occupy it.\u00a0 Sickles\u2019 decision is one of the most controversial of the entire war, as his corps was now massively overextended and, like Barlow\u2019s men the day before, formed an easily attackable salient in the Union lines.[<strong>July 2, Union Troops Under Sickles<\/strong>]\u00a0 In Sickles\u2019 defense, his choice to advance caught Confederate General Longstreet completely off guard.\u00a0 Due to the absence of J.E.B. Stuart\u2019s cavalry, which served as the Confederate\u2019s primary reconnaissance force, General Lee had very little idea of where the Union lines were; in fact, he didn\u2019t know that Union troops had been positioned as far south as the territory the 3<sup>rd<\/sup> Corps occupied.\u00a0 This development forced Longstreet to delay his attack until 4:00pm so he could maneuver his troops to properly assault the Union left flank.[7][<strong>July 2: Confederate Troops Under Hood and McLaws<\/strong>]\u00a0 Although he was overextended and creating a salient, Sickles\u2019 positions were quite formidable, as the terrain was both rocky and elevated, especially around Little Round Top and Devil\u2019s Den, which gave the defenders a good vantage point and ample cover, while simultaneously hampering the attackers.<\/p>\n<p>When Longstreet ordered his corps to attack at 4:00pm, things initially went well for the Confederates, although casualties were very heavy on both sides.\u00a0 After heavy fighting, Union troops were driven out of the <strong>Wheat Field<\/strong>, the <strong>Peach Orchard<\/strong>, and <strong>Devil\u2019s Den<\/strong>.\u00a0 At the time of the start of the assault, there were no Union troops on <strong>Little Round Top<\/strong>, and a brigade under Colonel Strong Vincent was scrambled to defend the hill against the advancing Confederates.[8]<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 391px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/www.gallon.com\/media\/catalog\/product\/cache\/1\/image\/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95\/a\/9\/a95.1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"381\" height=\"195\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fighting at Little Round Top (Courtesy of Gallon)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>On the extreme left flank, the depleted regiment of the 20<sup>th<\/sup> Maine was able to hold out against several Confederate regiments, winning the day with a famous bayonet charge: \u201cOur gallant line withered and shrunk before the fire it could not repel.\u00a0 IT was too evident that we could maintain the defensive no longer.\u00a0 As a last desperate resort, I ordered a charge\u201d.[9]<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 315px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/9\/93\/1st_Minnesota_at_Gettysburg.jpg\/375px-1st_Minnesota_at_Gettysburg.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"305\" height=\"222\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Charge of the 1st Minnesota (Courtesy of Wikipedia)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>North of Little Round Top, the Confederate advance was barely halted at <strong>Cemetery Ridge<\/strong> after a desperate charge by the 1<sup>st<\/sup> Minnesota; it lost 82% of its men in the process.[10]\u00a0 During the evening, attacks were also made against <strong>Culp\u2019s Hill<\/strong> and <strong>Cemetery Hill<\/strong>, but the Confederates only gained limited ground at Culp\u2019s Hill and none at Cemetery Hill.[11]\u00a0 Many historians believe that Confederate troops under General Ewell (those that attacked Cemetery and Culp\u2019s Hill) would have been better off used elsewhere on the battlefield and, if shifted south, could have been the additional force necessary to break Union lines on Cemetery Ridge; but again, due to the absence of J.E.B. Stuart\u2019s cavalry, Lee did not feel safe making a decision such as this one, and he paid dearly for it.[12] However, Lee\u2019s choice to commit his units to battle in a piecemeal (one at a time) fashion can certainly be criticized. Had Lee had his corps attack simultaneously all along the Union front line, Union reinforcements may have been sent to the wrong locations and potentially allowed breakthroughs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Third Day of Battle<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 355px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/4.bp.blogspot.com\/-Luo_V11-XPI\/UCB70QQyqWI\/AAAAAAAACEg\/1R-8kxlluNc\/s1600\/SAM_1322.JPG\" alt=\"\" width=\"345\" height=\"203\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pickett&#8217;s Charge (Courtesy of Roadboy&#8217;s Travels)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>On July 3<sup>rd<\/sup>, Lee\u2019s originally planned to renew his attack on the flanks, but that morning Ewell\u2019s small hold on Culp\u2019s Hill was lost and he decided to change his strategy.[13]\u00a0 He would instead assault the Union center, which he believed would be less heavily defended than the flanks by this point in the battle.\u00a0 General Pickett\u2019s division had arrived during the night and it, along with the division of Generals Pettigrew and Trimble, would make the assault with a force of 12,500 men.\u00a0 The attack began at 1:00pm with a massive artillery bombardment that lasted around an hour, then, at 2:00pm, the Confederates advanced.[14] [<strong>July 3: 1:00PM: Pickett\u2019s Charge<\/strong>]\u00a0 Unfortunately, due to the large amount of gun smoke and poorly made artillery shells, the bombardment was largely ineffective, and Union artillery quickly began tearing gaps in Confederate lines.\u00a0 Once in range, the Union infantry opened fire.\u00a0 One Confederate brigade was able to make it into Union lines, but it was soon repulsed and the Confederates were forced to retreat under a hail of lead. \u00a0For the Union Pickett\u2019s Charge was won and, with it, the Battle of Gettysburg.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Conclusion \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 344px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/cdn.history.com\/sites\/2\/2013\/12\/monument-gettysburg-A.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"334\" height=\"192\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Courtesy of History Channel<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Gettysburg, along with the fall of Vicksburg, is considered the turning point of the American Civil War.\u00a0 The Confederate army was never able to fully recover from its defeat, forcing it to remain on the defensive for the rest of the war.\u00a0 Even if Lee had won, it is likely he would have been forced to withdraw anyway, as his army was at ~62% strength following the battle and had no way to easily replenish his loses.[15]\u00a0 Lee\u2019s army could have been completely destroyed, by General Meade was too slow in his pursuit and the Confederate Army was able to escape.\u00a0 The battle of Gettysburg is the 4th deadliest engagement in American military history, with roughly 51,000 total casualties (23,055 Union and ~28,000 Confederate with 7,863 total deaths) after 3 days of fighting in an area just over 9 square miles.[16]\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0To this day, Gettysburg remains arguably the most famous battle of the American Civil War, and hopefully we will not soon forget it, nor the sacrifices that were made on those Pennsylvania fields.<\/p>\n<p>For a more detailed version of this post, click <a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/2016\/12\/08\/slaughter-at-gettysburg-july-1st-3rd-1863-lengthened\/\">here<\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/?p=2856&amp;preview=true\">\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>[1] Harry W. Pfanz,\u00a0<em>Gettysburg&#8211;the First Day<\/em> (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001) 51-68.<\/p>\n<p>[2] Pfanz, 69-79.<\/p>\n<p>[3] Pfanz, 115-130.<\/p>\n<p>[4] Stephen W. Sears, <em>Gettysburg<\/em> (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003) 224.<\/p>\n<p>[5] Pfanz, 269-293.<\/p>\n<p>[6] David G. Martin, <em>Gettysburg, July 1<\/em> (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo, 2003) 284.<\/p>\n<p>[7] Harry W. Pfanz, <em>Gettysburg-the Second Day<\/em> (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001) 176.<\/p>\n<p>[8] Pfanz, 208.<\/p>\n<p>[9] Joshua L. Chamberlain, \u201cGettysburg After Action Report, 6 July 1863\u201d, Combat Studies Institute, 8. <a href=\"http:\/\/permanent.access.gpo.gov\/lps68440\/chamberlain.pdf\">http:\/\/permanent.access.gpo.gov\/lps68440\/chamberlain.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>[10] Pfanz, 410-414.<\/p>\n<p>[11] Gettysburg Battle-field Commission, comp.\u00a0Pennsylvania at Gettysburg: Ceremonies\u00a0at the Dedication of the Monuments Erected by the Commonwealth of\u00a0Pennsylvania to Mark the Positions of the Pennsylvania Commands Engaged in\u00a0the Battle. Vol. 1. Harrisburg, PA: E. K. Meyers, 1893. Accessed November 28, 2016, 204, 424. [Google Books]<\/p>\n<p>[12] Pfanz, 104-113.<\/p>\n<p>[13] Gettysburg Battle-field Commission, 603.<\/p>\n<p>[14] James Longstreet,\u00a0<em>From Manassas to Appomattox: Memoirs of the Civil War in\u00a0America<\/em> (New York, NY: Da Capo Press, 1992) 392. [Google Books]<\/p>\n<p>[15] U.S. War Department, ed. \u201cThe War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies.\u201d (Cornell Library).<\/p>\n<p>[16] &#8220;10 Deadliest Battles in American History&#8221;\u00a0History Lists, WordPress, 2016. https:\/\/historylist.wordpress.com\/2008\/03\/18\/10-deadliest-battles-in-american-history\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Tom Forte NOTE: \u00a0Bolded text in paragraphs refers to Google map place marks Introduction \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/2016\/12\/08\/slaughter-at-gettysburg-july-1st-3rd-1863\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3365,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[15070],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2930","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-maps"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2930","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3365"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2930"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2930\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/hist-117pinsker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}