Battle Of Gettysburg Research Paper

The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863, is considered the most important engagement of the American Civil War. It was fought in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in Adams County. The battle of Gettysburg was the largest battle ever fought in North America. The Union had about 82,000 troops, while the confederates had about 75,000. The Union general was George G. Meade, and the confederate general was Robert E. Lee. It was fought from July 1-3, 1863.

In May 1863, Robert E. Lee's confederate army had a great victory Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville. Since he was so confident, he decided to invade the North for a second time. Lee hoped to gain recognition of the Confederacy by Britain and France and strengthen the cause
of northern “Copperheads” who favored peace. On the side of the Union, president Lincoln had lost confidence Army of the Potomac’s commander, Joseph Hooker. Joseph seemed reluctant to encounter Lee's army after his defeat in Chancellorsville. On June 28, Lincoln named Major General George Gordon Meade to succeed Hooker. Meade right away, ordered the pursuit of Lee's army.

When Lee learned the the Army of the Potomac was on their way, he planned to place his army in the crossroads town of Gettysburg.
One of the Confederate divisions in A.P. Hill’s command approached the town in search of supplies early on July 1, only to find that two Union cavalry brigades had arrived the previous day (History.com). As the bulk of both Armies went towards Gettysburg, Confederate forces were able to drive off the federal defenders toward Cemetery Hill. Wanting to press his advantage before more Union troops could arrive, Lee gave orders to attack Cemetery Hill to Ewell, who had taken command of Army of Northern Virginia’s Second Corps after the Unit's former commander, "Stonewall" Jackson, was killed. Ewell declined to attack, saying the the federal position was too strong. By dusk, a Union corps under the Winfield Scott, had arrived and stretched the defensive line to the hill known as Little Round Top; three more Union corps arrived overnight to strengthen its defenses
(History.com).

On July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, both armies spent most of the day getting prepared for action.
Around 4 o'clock in the afternoon, Longstreet's corps—Hood's, McLaws, and R.H. Anderson's division detached from Hill's corps, attacked Sickles's 3rd Corps at the Peach Orchard and crushed it, driving the remaining soldiers through the Wheat Field and Devil's Den. While Longstreet's attack was in progress, Richard Ewell's corps launched an effort to route the Union forces holding Cemetery Hill, but his men found the steep hill difficult to climb, the Union resistance too strong, and, though their front reached the cemetery gate, they were forced to retreat. At the height of Longstreet's battle against Meade's left, Barksdale's Mississippi Brigade charged into a widening breach in the Union line, at a cleft in the ridge, and was almost into the Union rear when McGilvery's artillery battery galloped up, unlimbered, and annihilated the brigade with canister blasts (Gettysburg). Meade's old Pennsylvania Reserve division came shortly after and charged into Plum Run Valley, backing Longstreet's men into Emmitsburg Road. Both armies suffered heavy casualties on this day. About 9,000 soldiers on each side died on July 2. The combined death total from both days of fighting was about
35,000.

On July 3, Union forces pushed back a confederate threat against Culp's Hill after a seven hour firefight to regain their strong position. Lee was convinced that his men were very close to victory the day before. Because of this, Lee made the decision to send three divisions against the Union center on Cemetery ridge. 15,000 troops, led by a division under George Pickett, would be tasked with marching some three-quarters of a mile across open fields to attack dug-in Union infantry positions (History.com). Despite Longstreet's protest, Lee was determined. The attack went forward, know as "Pickett's charge." Union infantry opened fire on the advancing rebels from behind stone walls, while regiments from Vermont, New York and Ohio hit both of the enemy’s flanks. Caught from all sides, barely half of the Confederates survived, and Pickett’s division lost two-thirds of its men (History.com). As the survivors went back to their opening position, Lee and Longstreet struggled to put up their defensive line after the failed attack. As the hope of victory ran from Lee's mind, he waited for a Union counter attack until July 4, but it never happened. That night, Lee lead what was left of his army toward Virginia.

This battle was a crushing defeat for the confederacy. The Union lost about 23,000 men, while the confederacy lost about 28,000. This was more than a third of Lee's army. The hope of foreign recognition of the Confederacy went away. After the defeat at Gettysburg, Lee wanted to resign, but was refused by Jefferson Davis. This battle greatly turned the tide of the Civil War in the Union's favor