Gettysburg A Turning Point Essay

bloody and costly years for both sides we come to the date of July 1,

On July 1, 1863, the biggest battle of the Civil War started. This most famous and most important Civil War Battle occurred over three hot summer days, July 1 to July 3, 1863, around the small market town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Before the battle, Union general Ulysses S. Grant started a siege of Vicksburg which would shut down the Mississippi River. Meanwhile, major cities in the North such as Philadelphia, Baltimore and even Washington were under threat of attack from General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia which had crossed the Potomac River and marched into Pennsylvania. The Union and Confederate army both had around 75,000 soldiers. With both armies on a collision course, the days leading up to the war were

     On the third and final day of the battle, General Lee needed a Confederate victory.

What comes to mind when you hear the words “The Battle of Gettysburg”? To me, I think of the event itself. The United States was two years into the Civil War, when the bloody battle in Pennsylvania broke out. General Lee, also known as the general of the Confederate army, plotted an attack at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle started on July 1st, 1863 and continued on for 3 straight days. In just those 3 days, it turned the Civil War around. A turning point is an action or event that alters the outcome of a situation. Why was the Battle of Gettysburg a turning point? The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point for three reasons; geographic advantage, the many losses and

At this point in the Battle of Gettysburg, both North and South sustained large numbers of casualties. The Southern casualties roughly totaled 7,000 of 22,000 troops. The North suffered even more by losing 15,000 soldiers. Both sides needed to re-evaluate their battle strategies. Lee thought victory for the South was possible with better timing and artillery. Conversely, Meade and his other Union generals decided to stay in their current position and continue the battle (King 22).

The three-day Battle of Gettysburg, starting on July 1st in 1863, would be known to be one of the most memorable and important battles in history. It would become the major outcome of the Civil War. The day of the outburst of the Battle of Gettysburg was a hot humid day on the first of July. It was between two sides. One side was the Union, which was the Army of Potomac Commanded by General George G. Meade, along with other notable commanders such as John F Reynolds, Winfield Scott Hancock, Daniel E. Sickles, George Sykes, John Sedgwick, Oliver O. Howard, Henry W. Slocum, and Alfred Pleasonton (“Battle of Gettysburg,” 2016). The other side was the Confederate Soldiers called the Army of Northern Virginia who was commanded by General Robert E. Lee, along with other notable commanders as well, which were James Longstreet, Richard S. Ewell, A. P. Hill, and J.E.B. Stuart (“Battle of Gettysburg,” 2016). Between these two sides, the Army of Potomac had a great advantage with 93,700 men and 372 guns, while the Army of Northern Virginia were outmanned and outgunned with only 70,100 men and 280 guns. The Army of Potomac’s mission was to defeat the Army of Northern Virginia as well as to make sure Washington, D.C. remained safe. It may seem like the Army of Potomac would be the clear winner at the Battle of Gettysburg yet the Army of Northern Virginia had a strategy that would help to attempt to beat the Union which was to go on the aggression and confront them. This would

Two hours later, General Meade ordered the First 11th Corps to Gettysburg with Major Reynolds to lead them on their way. Major Reynolds summoned Major General Abner Doubleday, who was acting commander of the First Corps at this time, to headquarters. Between the hours of seven and eight AM, they went over to inspect dispatches from General Meade and Buford. Major Reynolds also sent Captain Joseph Rosengarten, to tell the townspeople that there was to be a battle here soon, but instead of listening, they threw mud in his face. He briefly told Major Reynolds what had happened and he replied jokingly, “You must be mistaken; they have been throwing mud in your eyes.” (Pfanz,73)

The Battle of Gettysburg was one of the most important battles of the U.S. Civil War and one of the most important battles of all the U.S. history. It was a battle between the Confederate Army of North Virginia, commanded by Robert E. Lee and the Union Army of the Potomac under General George Meade. I played the Gettysburg Simulation Game on www.military.com. I really enjoyed it and thought it was very interesting. I found it a great way to learn U.S. history.

The Battle of Gettysburg was clearly one of the biggest battles in the Civil War. General Robert Lee led his Northern Virginia Army to victory at Chancellorsville and was feeling a great deal of confidence ("Battle of Gettysburg"). He then decided with this confidence he would try a second attempt at invading the North. The reason Lee took his troops north was because he wanted to take the pressure off of the Virginia farms. Lee also thought that if he won any battles on northern territory, that it could possibly put pressure on President Lincoln to settle the war ("History Place - Battle of Gettysburg").

The battle ended when the Confederates withdrew from Gettysburg on July 4-5th, 1863 because they failed to sustain any break in the main Union line after three days of violent and ferocious attacks.

Gettysburg was a major victory for the Union because of the amount of Confederate losses. “20,000 - 25,000” (Document B). This was a major victory for the Union because the Confederacy had so many deaths compared to the Union’s 23,040 deaths. This took a toll on the South because they don’t have as many people to draft into the war as the North does. Therefore, they can’t replenish their troops as fast as the Union can.

General Meade sent in his reinforcement troops and took many troops from the Union right in order to stop the 1st corps advance. Meade’s reinforcements took positions to fill up the gaps in the center of the Union line, to defend the Union left flank on Little Round Top and to engage Longstreet’s 1st corps as Sickles’ 3rd corps were

As the Confederates began to advance on Gettysburg, the Union held the advantage because they were at higher ground. The Confederates staged three attacks, one north of town, one on Devil's Den and Little Round Top, and one on Cemetery Ridge. The day of July 4, 1863, the Confederates were forced to retreat. This was a huge setback because the Confederates goal had been to continue to move towards Washington, but after the Battle of Gettysburg the Confederate Army was forced to turn around and begin retreating. (Doc A)

The battle of Gettysburg took place between July 1st - 3rd 1963. In the May of 1963 Lee had been given the go ahead for a north invasion. Lee hoped that a victory in the north would help increase the peace movement which was gathering some support there. This, along with the weakening of the Union army, may initiate talks of surrender by the Federal Army. On June 30th come of the Confederate army marched into the town of Gettysburg but wee driven back by a Union cavalry which was already there. So, the next day the Confederates attacked with more force, with troops from the wast, north and east. This drove the Union army back and up onto Cemetery Hill. This however, resulted in giving the Union a good position for defence. On July 2nd Lee ordered more attacks and an attempt to storm Cemetery Hill. This was unsuccessful, but resulted in 9,000 casualties. At 1.00pm on July 3rd Confederates opened fire on the Federal line and major duel continued for two hours. Then the infantry moved forward which is known as "Pickett 's Charge" . The Confederate army was driven back and the battle was considered a Union victory. The battle left the Confederates with around 28,000 casualties and the Union with

An interesting turn of events would soon favor the Federal Army as General J.E.B. Stuart and his cavalry were north and east of Gettysburg causing a lot of fear in the North but consequently were not performing adequate reconnaissance, the result was that General Lee did not know where General Meade and the Army of the Potomac were or what their strength was (Freeman, 147). When Confederate General Henry Heth moved into