142 Years Ago

[Silver Creek Slim]

"July 1, 1863 - The Battle of Gettysburg begins

The largest military conflict in North American history begins this day when Union and Confederate forces collide at Gettysburg. The epic battle lasted three days and resulted in a retreat to Virginia by Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Two months prior to Gettysburg, Lee had dealt a stunning defeat to the Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville. He then made plans for a Northern invasion in order to relieve pressure on war-weary Virginia and to seize the initiative from the Yankees. His army, numbering about 80,000, began moving on June 3. The Army of the Potomac, commanded by Joseph Hooker and numbering just under 100,000, began moving shortly thereafter, staying between Lee and Washington, D.C. But on June 28, frustrated by the Lincoln administration's restrictions on his autonomy as commander, Hooker resigned and was replaced by George G. Meade.

Meade took command of the Army of the Potomac as Lee's army moved into Pennsylvania. On the morning of July 1, advance units of the forces came into contact with one another just outside of Gettysburg. The sound of battle attracted other units, and by noon the conflict was raging. During the first hours of battle, Union General John Reynolds was killed, and the Yankees found that they were outnumbered. The battle lines ran around the northwestern rim of Gettysburg. The Confederates applied pressure all along the Union front, and they slowly drove the Yankees through the town.

By evening, the Federal troops rallied on high ground on the southeastern edge of Gettysburg. As more troops arrived, Meade's army formed a three-mile long, fishhook-shaped line running from Culp's Hill on the right flank, along Cemetery Hill and Cemetery Ridge, to the base of Little Round Top. The Confederates held Gettysburg, and stretched along a six-mile arc around the Union position."
http://www.historychannel.com/tdih/tdih.jsp?category=civil

Slim

[St. George]

As an aside - the Army uses a 'Professional Reading List' of  tactical, logistical and leadership-oriented books.

Michael Shaara wrote "The Killer Angels", and it's on that List at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Its most common use is as a Leadership Study.

Thanks to the inclusion at that institution - many other soldiers have had the opportunity to read it as they progress through their careers.

You may have seen in in 'film' form as "Gettysburg".

I strongly suggest you take the time to locate a copy to read - as this may be one of the only chances that you'll have to read - and understand - about a major Civil War battle - without the hyperbole added to those books written after that war.

Alas - Michael Shaara died without another book - but his son - Jeff Shaara - 'filled in the blanks' and wrote what would be both 'ends' of a trilogy - covering the protagonists first met in his father's book.

They are: - in order - "Gods and Generals", "The Killer Angels", "The Last Full Measure".

In reading them - you'll get a sense of time and place and can almost 'see' events unfold through the eyes of those soldiers and Officers.

Scouts Out!

[Silver Creek Slim]

I own both "Gettysburg" and "Gods and Generals" on DVD. I will try to locate these books. Thanks, St. George.

Slim

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

I'm having a difficult time getting through "The Last Full Measure." Not because it is poorly written, it's actually very well written. It's just that the reader can see what's coming, and for me there is a created sense of doom that casts a pall all the way back to the beginning of the "war."  The South never really had a chance, not with Lincoln as President.


AnnieLee

[St. George]

In its way - the American Civil War was the "Dawn of Modern Warfare' - at least until the development of the machinegun...

What the South faced early in the War was an untried Federal force - filled with green troops and in many cases - elected leadership with little or no actual Military training.

The South had charismatic and bold leaders, overall enthusiasm and confidence in their abilities -  and fine Cavalry, besides.

On the other hand - the North had one helluva lot of soldiers...

Plus - they had the manufacturing facilities to equip them - though sadly - they wound up equipping a large portion of the Confederacy because of unseasoned troops and inept Officers.

But 'that' would change - and quickly - as units were blooded and Officers learned their trade.

While the South's resources slowly dried up, and her leadership was killed or wounded so badly as to be lost to the fighting force - the Federals became a killing machine, with an extremely efficient 'logistical tail', and thus was born 'our' way of fighting wars...

I agree - "The Last Full Measure" has a sense of sadness surrounding it - strong men - difficult decisions - the sense of inevitability...
I think it's because we're more attuned to the entirety of the War, and it's lasting effect on America - what with our interest in History and all.
I wonder what folks whose interest is more 'peripheral' might think.

Scouts Out!

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Today is the anniversary of Pickett's Charge, if I remember correctly.

I stood there a week ago, looking out over those fields. While my mind lacked the capacity to imagine the numbers of men crossing those fields to die, one gets a sense of enormity while standing there.

Gettsyburg has been called the turning point of the war, but if Lee had not made that blunder there, would the outcome have been any different? As St. George said, the Federals had overwhelming numbers (they also instituted the draft, didn't they?) They had the manufacturng base, and just as important as the other two, they had a navy.

When I wander into "what if" territory, the only chance for success for the South would have been to take Washington, and they were given that opportunity the week of Gettysburg.

But from my relatively small amount of reading, I don't think they wanted Washington. They wanted to be left alone to go their separate way. The war has been called "The Second Revolution," and in my mind, the title could be justified. But I was also taught that it's only called a Revolution if the insurrection succeeds.This one did not, and as a result, the political landscape of our nation changed.

Still thinking, on this day in history, combining Pickett's Charge with the eve of Independence day...

The war started before the ink was dry on the Constitution. There were those standing firmly in the camp of States' Rights, and those in favor of a strong, centralized Federal government. It is the nature of government to grow, wrote the Founders, and thus Thomas Jefferson wrote of the tree of liberty being watered from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. A little revolution now and then was a good thing in Jefferson's mind, for such activity would keep federal government pruned back.

The "Civil War," by whatever name is used for it, marks the triumph of centralized Federal Government. It had grown to the point where a "little revolution" was no longer possible to hold government in check. The "Federals" won that war, in more ways than one.

And yet, the battles continue to this day. Just read Supreme Court decisions and you'll see them.


AnnieLee, who's American History class was taught by a man from North Carolina.

[St. George]

What they 'wanted' at that precise moment in time - was shoes.

Then - they met Buford's Cavalry and he held the best ground and in essence - it all went downhill from there.

Gettysburg is a very easy battle to 'what if' - since it was so pivotal.

What if the South had had better Logistics and hadn't been suffering from the Blockade?
What if Lee wasn't smarting from the Defense of Richmond and felt the need to 'prove' himself?
What if Lee didn't somewhat believe his own press about the invincibility of the Army of Northern Virginia?
What if Lee hadn't been ill?
What if Stuart had done his job as opposed to grandstanding by riding once again - around Federal forces - as opposed to providing the battlefield intelligence so badly needed by Lee?
What if Lee had listened to Longstreet - probably the most pragmatic and 'modern' warrior he had - about the distance to cover in the stifling July heat, the emplaced Artillery - the massed troops able to reinforce at will, the stone wall and the lessons they'd learned at Fredericksburg?

What if Buford's scouts had turned their horses and followed a different path that morning?
What if Buford hadn't been a Regular with an instinctive grasp of terrain?
What if Chamberlain - the quintesssential citizen-soldier - hadn't read his Tactics and didn't 'see' the battle unfold and didn't have a blooded, hard Maine Infantry outfit under his command?

All these 'what ifs' are rehashed over and over at the Service Schools a few times a year by enthusiastic young Officers - and though 'some' scenarios can be built - most don't hold up due to the variables.

On that day - at that moment - due to Fate or to Serendipity - the cards fell on the Federal side.
Unfortunately for the Confederacy - with an over-confident leadership and full of itself - they met the exactly 'wrong' men in opposition - men who knew their jobs and could fight and were well-supplied and even better positioned.

Too many good men died that didn't have to - many on this day - during the abortive uphill charge across open terrain.

One day - should you ever get the chance - either find and attach yourself to a group doing a 'Staff Ride' - or find (and pay)  a really 'good' Battlefield Guide to lead you across the battlefield step-by-step.
He can stop and point out otherwise-unseen terrain features and explain who made decisions 'where' and how they unfolded during the fight.
You'll really come away with a feel for the engagement and a new-found respect for the soldiers of both sides.

As for the battle 'continuing' - 'Shenandoah' had this to say in their song - "Sunday in the South".

A ragged rebel flag flies high above it all
popping in the wind like an angry cannon ball
The holes of history are cold and still,
but they smell the powder burnin' and they probably always will...

Sure would be nice if folks all accepted what happened as being a rich and formative part of our collective history and they didn't try to re-write, disparage it, over-explain it or downplay the valor of our forebears on either side.


Scouts Out!




 

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Apologies if I wasn't clear when writing about the ongoing "battles" St. George, for I was not refering to the folks who fly a Confederate flag and talk about the "South rising again."

By "battles" I mean the continuing struggles between an expansionist central government vs. the liberty of people as individuals and States Rights. The Civil War was pivotal in that area of our collective history, but the struggle didn't end with Appomattox.

AnnieLee

[St. George]

As far as 'that' issue's concerned - not to worry at all - I didn't read it as such.

Perhaps the real 'what if' should be - what if Reconstruction had been handled differently?

Perhaps if it had been - the post-war 'Western Migration' would have been slowed if returning soldiers were able to remain and rebuild, instead of them returning to an oppressive government and its policies and deciding that the West and its unknown dangers held more promise for them than their ancestral homes .
Had that happened - I wonder what would've been experienced and written about of the Old West - as many of its leading 'players' would've been somewhat delayed in their arrival upon the scene.
On the other hand - cutting a sixty-mile-wide swath through a primarily agrarian region has left still-visible scars and that, too - leaves its mark on the collective soul, so maybe the way West would've been followed at any rate.

Given the independence-loving character of the American people - I doubt it ever will come to a resolution - so, while it's perhaps a flawed system of Government - it allows for discourse and compromise and free elections - and that's way ahead of other countries' way of doing business.

Scouts Out!

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Here are a couple of views from Little Round Top. The pics were taken last Sunday, a week before the anniversary. In the first pic, on the center right, by the big grouping of rocks, those tiny things are cars on the road. It gives you a perspective of the heights the Confederate soldiers had to climb. The second pic is the view to the right of the first one. It shows the open expanse of ground that had to be traversed before the climb began.





AnnieLee

[St. George]

Thanks for posting those pictures, Annie Lee - taken at this time of year -they give the perspective seen by the soldier.

This is one of the purposes of the Army's 'Staff Ride' - an exercise to view a battlefield to 'see' the actual ground as seen and appreciate 'why' certain decisions could be made.

Today - with our one-over-the-world satellite and aerial views - it's hard to impress upon young leaders just what it took for their forebears to fight - but when they're thus exposed - they realize that there's a helluva lot more to warfare that never changed - despite the technologies available.

Have a nice Independence Day, everyone - and reflect on what it cost in order for us to be able to celebrate it.

Scouts Out!

[Silver Creek Slim]

Great insight! 
Thanks fer the pics, Cuz. It sure gives ya a better perspective.
We watched Gettysburg this weekend in an attempt to commemorate the battle.

Slim

[St. George]

Once again, it's time to reflect...

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Trailrider]

And 138 years ago today my grandfather was born in Chicago (what was left of it after the fire)!