Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg was fought on July first and ended on the third in 1863.  This battle had the largest number of casualties in the entire war and is sometimes referred to as the turning point of the Civil War.  This war ended the invasion of the north by Robert E. Lee and his army of northern Virginia.  Lee concentrated all of his troops at Gettysburg to attack the union forces and hopefully destroy them.  However, the union forces were well prepared and were able to successfully defeat Lee and his forces on the third day of battle.

By the second day of the battle the armies were completely assembled.  The second day had the most deaths of any day of the entire war.  Since the armies were complete, both sides were equally strong.  Lee attempted several heavy assaults on the union army, while the union attempted small formations and a heavy defense.  One last push was made by the confederates on the last day of the battle.  This was known as Pickett’s Charge.  12,500 Confederate troops lined up on the centerline and charged towards the Union troops.  The union was able to hold them off with their heavy artillery and long distance rifles causing the loss of the battle.