The Generals of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg• July 1 - 3, 1863

• Thought by many to be the turning point of the war

• Casualties numbered about 51,000

• Ended Lee’s invasion of the north

• 120 Generals fought at Gettysburg – 67 Union and 53 Confederate. Of these 10 were killed – 5 on each side. Many more died in subsequent battles.

The Battle of Gettysburg• The two armies met almost

by accident, neither expecting the other

• Concluded with Pickett’s Charge in which 12,500 Confederate soldiers attacked the center of the Union line but failed to break it

• News of the Union victory electrified the north

Robert E. Lee• Commander of Confederate army

during Civil War. Venerated by most of his soldiers

• Had been offered the command of the northern armies by Lincoln

• Invaded Pennsylvania in the hope of stimulating peace with North

• Invasion proved a costly mistake

• After the war Lee said that taking a military education was the greatest mistake of his life

George Meade• Born in Spain

• Had just been appointed Commanding General of the U.S. Army 3 days before Battle of Gettysburg

• Rushed his troops to Gettysburg and fought a defensive battle, thoroughly defeating Confederates

• Criticized by Lincoln for not following –up on the battle by pursuing Lee’s retreating armies

• Nicknamed Old Snapping Turtle.

James Longstreet• Lee’s most important general who

called Longstreet his “Old War Horse”

• Many have referred to him as the best general on either side

• At Gettysburg he disagreed with Lee’s tactics, especially the disastrous Pickett’s Charge

• During the War, Longstreet lost 3 of his children in one week due to illness, which changed him from a fun, sociable soldier to a quiet, withdrawn commander.

John Buford• Led the first union force which

met the invading Confederates at Gettysburg

• Played a critical role in the battle, selecting the field of battle and holding his position until help arrived. Told his men that if the Rebels seized the high ground We will have the devil to pay.

• His cousin, Abraham Buford, was a cavalry General for the south

• Died of illness 5 months later

• Trivia: His aide, Myles Keogh, was killed with General Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn

George Pickett• Was a famous hero of the Mexican-

American War (1847)

• Known for his pranks and sense of humour

• Lee’s plan was to drive the union

soldiers from their defensive position by launching a massive charge

• The assault became known as Pickett’s Charge, a bloodbath in which thousands were killed or wounded

John Reynolds• A key general in the Union Army,

he died on the first day of fighting – probably shot by a sharpshooter

• Was a close friend of General Armistead of the south

• He was loved by his men and respected by his peers

• Trivia: His fiancée, Kate Hewitt, had agreed with Reynolds that if he was killed in the war, she would join a convent – which she did

J.E.B. Stuart• One of the most colourful cavalry

commanders of the Civil War, he fought in many key engagements

• Known for his daring exploits and flamboyant uniform, Robert E. Lee called him “the eyes of the army”

• During the battle he and his men were separated from the main force while on a scouting mission and was criticized for his absence

• He was killed in battle less than a year later

George Armstrong Custer• At 23 was one of the youngest and most

colorful generals in the Union army

• As a cavalry commander his daring charges, the Custer dash, became legendary

• He led his men into battle against Stuart’s cavalry and routed them at Gettysburg

• Custer’s brigade lost more men than any other – 257

• In 1876 he and 267 of his men (including 2 brothers and his nephew) were killed by the Sioux at the famous Battle of the Little Bighorn

Ambrose Hill• Having served in the Mexican-

American War and the Seminole Wars he was one of the Confederate’s ablest commanders, although he was frail and frequently ill

• At Gettysburg he was criticized for attacking before Lee’s army was ready

• Two of his wife’s brothers were also generals for the south

• He was killed in battle just a week before the end of the war

Winifred Scott Hancock• One military historian wrote, "No other

Union general at Gettysburg dominated men by the sheer force of their presence more completely than Hancock

• Became known as the “Thunderbolt of the Army of the Potomac”

• After General Reynolds was killed, Meade sent him ahead to take command of all the troops in the field

• During the worst of the battle Hancock could be seen on horseback encouraging the troops. He was seriously wounded but survived

• After the war he ran for President in 1880

Lewis Armistead• He also served in the Mexican-

American War

• He was close friends with General Hancock of the north

• He fought in a number of battles before Gettysburg

• During Pickett’s Charge he thrust his sword through his hat and told his men to follow him to the union lines

• Shot three times he died two days later in a field hospital

Abner Doubleday• He fired the first defensive shot in the

Battle of Fort Sumter

• His finest hours came at the outset of this battle. While waiting for reinforcements he successfully led 9,500 men against 10 brigades

• When Meade temporarily replaced him with a more junior officer, Doubleday was enraged. When he returned to battle, Doubleday was wounded in the neck

• Doubleday's indecision as a commander in the war resulted in the uncomplimentary nickname "Forty-Eight Hours.

• Doubleday is often mistakenly credited with having invented baseball, although he never made such a claim

John Hood• Hood had a reputation for bravery and

aggressiveness that sometimes bordered on recklessness. Arguably one of the best commanders in the Confederate States Army

• Hood became increasingly ineffective as he was promoted to lead larger commands later in the war

• Ordered by Longstreet to attack the Union stronghold at Devil’s Den. He was wounded by an artillery shell in this action, rendering his arm useless for the rest of his life

• After the War: He and his wife died in 1879 of yellow fever, leaving 10 children orphans

Daniel Sickles• One of the most colorful and

controversial Union generals

• Disobeyed Meade’s orders to defend the southern end of Cemetery Ridge - resulted in the destruction of his Corps

• He was severely wounded in the battle, losing his leg to a cannonball

• Before the War: killed the son of Francis Scott Key (writer of “Star Spangled Banner”) in a duel, but got off after pleading temporary insanity

William Pender• Was one of the youngest and

ablest Confederate generals (29 yrs old)

• He was recognized for his bravery in both the Indian Wars and earlier Civil War battles

• He was wounded at least five times during the Civil War

• His last and gravest wound was on the second day at Gettysburg when he led an attack on Cemetery Hill. He later died in hospital.

Joshua Chamberlain• Although he wasn’t promoted to

general until after the battle, Chamberlain is one of the greatest heroes of Gettysburg.

• A college professor from Maine he volunteered for military service

• As a colonel at Gettysburg he and his men held the line in the face of overwhelming odds, preventing a collapse of the union army during a pivotal point in the battle

• For his heroism he was awarded the Medal of Honour and later promoted to General

The Gettysburg AddressA. Lincoln

• Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

• Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

• But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.