Gettysburg
The Turning Point Battle of the Civil War
When? Where? Who?
- The Battle of Gettysburg took place over July 1-3, 1863.
- The battle took place in Pennsylvania.
- Union General: George Meade
- Confederate General: Robert E. Lee
General Rober E. Lee
Confederate General
Map of the Battle
Union and Confederate forces fight over a wheat field about a mile in width.
General George Meade
Union General
Significance of the Battle of Gettysburg
This was the second attempt by General Lee to invade the North (P.A.). It is a Union victory. The South never regains its strengths militarily. Picketts Charge, (a charge accross the field by the Confederate army), greatly diminished the strength of the Sountern army.
Several Lay Dead or Wounded
The Battle of Gettysbrug may not be the bloodiest battle of the Civil War, but it did have a decent number of casualties.
The Gettysburg Address
Lincoln gave this speech on the field where the battle was fought. It commemorated what had taken place, and that the field would be used for a final resting place for those who have their lives.
Gettysburg National Cemetary
The final resting place for those who bravely served and fought in the Battle of Gettysburg.
Timeline of the Battle
July 1st: Confederates drove Union defenders through Gettysburg to Cemetery Hill
July 2nd: Lee struck the flanks of the Union line resulting in severe fighting at Devil's Den, Little Round Top, the Wheatfield, Peach Orchard, Culp’s Hill and East Cemetery Hill.
July 3rd: On the morning of July 3rd, fighting raged at Culp’s Hill with the Union regaining its lost ground. That afternoon, after a massive artillery bombardment, Lee attacked the Union center on Cemetery Ridge and was repulsed with heavy losses in what is known as Pickett’s Charge. Lee's second invasion of the North had failed.