Today, 160 years ago, the Confederate Army was defeated at Gettysburg by Union forces. The Battle started on July 1st, and would last 3 days. General Robert E. Lee, a very mid general, would unsuccessfully try to rout the Union army from strong positions just outside the town of Gettysburg in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. After assaulting the flanks of the Union on July 2nd, Lee believed that the Union center had to be weak. He committed General James Longstreet's corps (along with elements outside his command) to assaulting the U.S. forces on Cemetery Ridge.
The main forces responsible for the attack fell on George Pickett's Division, as well as brigades from Hill's Corps. General Longstreet opposed the attack, but Lee insisted that the plan would go ahead. No one could talk him out of it.
What followed was a massive artillery barrage (that didn't amount to much), followed by the actual attack. 10,000 to 12,500 soldiers assaulted Cemetery Ridge that day, and only about half of them came back. While I feel bad for the conscripts and young kids involved in the attack that lost their lives, I absolutely loathe the Confederate cause: Seceding from the United States to protect the institution of slavery (Yes, this was the undeniable primary cause, just read the individual states declarations of secession and look at how many times "slavery" appears in them). This was a much needed turning point in the war for the Union, and was another nail in the coffin for the blighted cause of the Confederacy.
As the attack was thwarted, Union troops could be heard yelling out "Fredericksburg! Fredericksburg! Give them Fredericksburg!" This referred to a battle the year before where the union lost and faced a similar situation where they were the ones making a ridiculous assault on a well defended position.
I think I visited the actual battlefield when I was really little. I need to head back up there now that I know what happened there and where everything is before they pave it all over.
I think I visited the actual battlefield when I was really little. I need to head back up there now
