Gettysburg was the turning point of the American Civil War. It was the most famous and important Civil War Battle to occur over three hot summer days in July in the humble market town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Gettysburg was the confrontation between two major American Cultures the North and the South. The cause of the Civil war was the clash of these two cultures. The Confederacy …show more content…
The Southern plantation owners wanted the opposite. The South was fighting against a government that they thought was treating them unfairly. They believed the Federal Government was overtaxing them, with tariffs and property taxes, making their livelihood more difficult. The North was fighting the war for two reasons, first to keep the Nation consolidated, and second to abolish slavery. President Abraham Lincoln along with many other Northerners believed that slavery was not only completely wrong, but it was a great humiliation for America. We can see that with these differences a conflict would likely occur, but not no one could have predicted that a full-blown war would begin. One did and after three bloody and costly years for both sides, we come to the date of July.
Historians believe that of all the battles fought in the Civil war the most disturbing battle of the Civil War, the battle of Gettysburg. This three-day fight where an astounding 51,000 soldiers were killed in total by both sides. However, was Gettysburg a turning point in the Civil War? Generals Lee’s objective in the battle of Gettysburg was to draw the Union army out in the open and manipulate them with better leadership skills. General Lee thought that since he was a better general a difference of a few thousand men wouldn’t affect the …show more content…
Opposition also came from those who did not like the fact that they were fighting for the rights of slave. However, their way of thinking was misguided, the war was to restore the Union not to end slavery. As the war advanced it became increasingly more expensive to support and as the war progressed and began to cause more casualties civilian’s incapable of serving in the war had to take over the jobs left vacant by soldiers in the war. During the first day of battle some 50,000 soldiers of 15,500 were killed, wounded, captured or missing. This day ranks 12th bloodiest battle of the Civil War. The second day of battle was the largest and extortionate of the three days. This battle involved at least 100,000 soldiers of which 20,000 were killed, wounded, captured or missing. This battle ranks as the 10th bloodiest battle of the Civil War, more casualties than the Battle of Fredericksburg. June, Robert E. Lee decided to take the war north. He planned to destroy the railroad bridge at Harrisburg, then “turn my attention to Philadelphia, Baltimore, or Washington as may seem best for our interest.” After the long march, north, Confederate troops were spread from Chambersburg, through Carlisle, and into York. Towns across southern Pennsylvania were being “explored” for much needed supplies to continue the Southern offensive. While looking in Gettysburg, Pettigrew’s