Introduction
The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1-3, 1863, marked a decisive turning point in the American Civil War. This titanic clash in and around the small Pennsylvania town pitted Union Major General George G. Meade‘s Army of the Potomac against Confederate General Robert E. Lee‘s Army of Northern Virginia. Over the course of three bloody days, nearly 165,000 men struggled for control of terrain that would come to define the war and the nation. Gettysburg not only ended Lee‘s ambitious campaign to invade the North and "fight the enemy on his own ground," but also marked the beginning of the end for Confederate hopes of independence.
The Road to Gettysburg
In the spring of 1863, the Civil War had raged for two years with no end in sight. Despite significant victories in the Eastern Theater, including the Second Battle of Bull Run and Fredericksburg, Lee‘s Army of Northern Virginia found itself stymied by a resilient Union Army now under the command of Major General Joseph Hooker. Seeking to regain the initiative and relieve pressure on war-ravaged Virginia, Lee launched his second invasion of the North in June, marching his army into Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Lee‘s objectives were multifold. By threatening major Northern cities like Harrisburg and Philadelphia, he hoped to relieve pressure on the Confederate garrison at Vicksburg, Mississippi (then under siege by Union forces), and potentially force the redeployment of Union troops from other theaters. A decisive victory on Northern soil might also erode Northern will to continue the war and strengthen the hand of Peace Democrats who favored a negotiated settlement. Finally, the rich farmlands of Pennsylvania could provide much-needed supplies and provisions for his ragged, under-equipped army.
As Lee moved north, the Army of the Potomac shadow boxed with the Confederates, screening Washington, D.C. while trying to discern Lee‘s intentions. When Hooker‘s cavalry located Lee‘s infantry in Pennsylvania, the Union army raced to intercept. However, just three days before the battle, a frustrated Abraham Lincoln replaced Hooker with Major General George Gordon Meade, a Pennsylvanian and West Point graduate with a reputation for competence and aggression, if not charisma. Meade would be the third commander of the Army of the Potomac in just six months.
The First Day
The battle began almost by accident on the morning of July 1, as Confederate infantry searching for supplies clashed with Union cavalry under Brigadier General John Buford on the ridges north and west of Gettysburg. Buford, recognizing the importance of the high ground south of town, dismounted his troopers and determined to hold until Union infantry could arrive.
Those infantry, I Corps under Major General John F. Reynolds, soon slammed into the growing Confederate forces on McPherson‘s Ridge and Oak Ridge. Reynolds was killed early in the fighting, but his men stubbornly held their positions as more units from both sides poured into the escalating battle. Intense fighting raged across Barlow‘s Knoll, Oak Hill, and the Herbst Woods as Union XI Corps under Major General Oliver O. Howard arrived to extend the Federal line northward.
Despite their tenacious defense, Union forces were eventually driven back through the streets of Gettysburg, reforming on the high ground and fishhook-shaped line of hills south and east of town, anchored by Culp‘s Hill on the right, Cemetery Hill in the center, and the Round Tops on the left. Lee, having arrived on the battlefield around noon, assessed his options. With the majority of his army still miles away and unsure of the full strength of the enemy, he opted against a major assault, allowing a crucial opportunity to seize the initiative slip away. As night fell, both armies girded for the fight to come.
The Second Day
July 2 dawned with roughly 50,000 Union and 65,000 Confederate soldiers in place. Meade, having arrived after midnight, set about shoring up his defenses and awaited the arrival of the rest of his army. Lee, rather than maneuvering around the Union position, chose to attack, devising a plan that called for simultaneous assaults on both Union flanks. The Confederate commander hoped to draw Meade‘s reserves away from his center, then launch a decisive thrust to split the Union army in two.
The plan, however, was poorly coordinated and badly delayed. Lieutenant General James Longstreet, whose First Corps was tasked with attacking the Union left, disagreed with Lee‘s decision and was slow to get his troops into position. The assault did not begin until 4 p.m., when Major General John Bell Hood‘s division launched a ferocious attack on the Union lines at Devil‘s Den, a jumble of massive boulders that provided excellent cover for sharpshooters and artillery.
The fighting soon spread to the Wheatfield, a trampled expanse of waist-high wheat that changed hands multiple times, and the Peach Orchard, where Union Major General Daniel Sickles had controversially advanced his III Corps without orders, creating a salient in the Union line. Sickles‘ move left Little Round Top, a crucial hill on the Union flank, undefended until Brigade General Gouverneur K. Warren, Meade‘s chief engineer, spotted the problem and dispatched units to occupy it, including the famed 20th Maine under Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.
The 20th Maine‘s desperate bayonet charge down the slopes of Little Round Top, together with a fierce artillery barrage, blunted the Confederate assault. But to the north, the exhausted Union troops could not hold the Peach Orchard, and Confederate forces poured through the gap, threatening the Union center on Cemetery Ridge. Only a gallant stand by Union troops in the Wheatfield and timely reinforcements from Meade‘s reserves prevented a breakthrough.
Meanwhile, on the Union right flank, Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell‘s Second Corps launched a series of piecemeal attacks on East Cemetery Hill and Culp‘s Hill. Though Union troops were initially pushed back, they rallied and held firm, despite the Confederates seizing some trenches on Culp‘s Hill. Darkness ended the fighting, with both sides exhausted and battered. Union forces had lost some ground but still held a strong defensive position. For his part, Lee remained determined to press the attack.
The Third Day
The dawn of July 3 found the Union Army of the Potomac holding a fishhook-shaped line stretching from Culp‘s Hill and Cemetery Hill on the right, along Cemetery Ridge, to the Round Tops on the left. Meade, anticipating renewed assaults on his flanks, planned an early morning counterattack to regain the lost ground on Culp‘s Hill. In heavy fighting, Union troops succeeded in driving the Confederates from their lodgment, restoring the integrity of Meade‘s right flank.
Lee, having failed to collapse either Union flank the previous day, now changed his focus to the center. Despite the misgivings of Longstreet, Lee ordered a massive frontal assault on the Union position on Cemetery Ridge, a direct thrust that would come to be known as "Pickett‘s Charge." The attack, preceded by a massive but largely ineffective artillery barrage, would involve some 12,500 men in three Confederate divisions, led by Major General George Pickett, and would have to cross nearly a mile of open ground.
As the Confederate tide swept across the fields toward the Union center, it was met with devastating artillery and musket fire. The Confederates suffered catastrophic losses, including all three of Pickett‘s brigade commanders. A small contingent, known as the "High Water Mark," actually managed to breach the Union lines and engage in hand-to-hand combat, but they were quickly overwhelmed. The remnants of Pickett‘s division fell back to Seminary Ridge, leaving half their number lying on the field. The assault had failed utterly, and with it, Lee‘s best chance for victory.
On the Union right, Major General Judson Kilpatrick launched a cavalry assault in an attempt to exploit Lee‘s retreat, but it was repulsed with heavy losses by Confederate cavalry under Major General J.E.B. Stuart. As night fell, both armies tended to their wounded and tallied their losses. Lee, recognizing the finality of the defeat, began planning for the retreat back to Virginia. Meade, while victorious, was too battered and exhausted to immediately pursue.
The Aftermath
The true toll of Gettysburg was staggering. The Union Army of the Potomac suffered 23,000 casualties (killed, wounded, captured, or missing), while the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia lost as many as 28,000, more than a third of Lee‘s force. The Battle of Gettysburg remains the bloodiest ever fought on American soil and marked the last time Confederate forces would invade the North.
Combined with the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4, Gettysburg marked a major turning point in the Civil War. The twin victories reinvigorated Northern morale and dealt a serious blow to Confederate hopes for independence. While the war would rage on for nearly two more years, the Confederacy was largely relegated to a defensive struggle, with dwindling manpower and resources.
In November 1863, President Abraham Lincoln traveled to Gettysburg to dedicate the new Soldiers‘ National Cemetery. There, he delivered a "few appropriate remarks" that have echoed through the ages. In just 272 words, the Gettysburg Address redefined the meaning and purpose of the Civil War, transforming it from a struggle to preserve the Union to a crusade for liberty and equality, a "new birth of freedom" for the nation.
The Gettysburg Battlefield Today
In the years following the Civil War, veterans and citizens alike recognized the need to preserve and memorialize the Gettysburg battlefield. In 1864, local attorney David McConaughy purchased 600 acres of land to prevent commercial development, and in 1895, Congress established the Gettysburg National Military Park, encompassing key areas of the battlefield.
Today, the park covers nearly 6,000 acres and receives over a million visitors annually. It is home to more than 1,300 monuments, markers, and memorials, making it one of the largest collections of outdoor sculpture in the world. Each monument tells a story, from the imposing equestrian statues of Union and Confederate generals to the humble markers of individual regiments and soldiers.
Visitors to Gettysburg can explore the battlefield via a 24-mile self-guided auto tour, with stops at iconic sites like McPherson‘s Ridge, Oak Hill, Devil‘s Den, Little Round Top, the Peach Orchard, and the "High Water Mark" on Cemetery Ridge. Park rangers offer guided tours, campfire programs, and living history demonstrations, providing insight into the battle, its participants, and its significance.
The park also features the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center, which houses extensive exhibits on the battle and the Civil War, as well as the historic Cyclorama painting, a massive 360-degree depiction of Pickett‘s Charge. Nearby, the Soldiers‘ National Cemetery is the final resting place for over 3,500 Union soldiers, and the site of Lincoln‘s Gettysburg Address.
Ongoing research, archaeological surveys, and preservation efforts continue to shed new light on the battle and its aftermath. Recent projects have included the rehabilitation of the Little Round Top landscape, the discovery of a Confederate field hospital site, and the mapping of the battle‘s "hallowed ground" using GIS technology.
Conclusion
The Battle of Gettysburg was a defining moment in American history, a crucible that tested the mettle of a nation and its people. For three days, Union and Confederate soldiers fought with incredible courage and sacrifice, leaving a legacy that endures to this day. The battlefield, now a place of solemn remembrance, bears witness to their struggle and the enduring relevance of the causes for which they fought.
To walk the fields of Gettysburg is to walk in the footsteps of history, to understand the immense challenges faced by a nation divided, and to appreciate the sacrifices made to forge a more perfect Union. As Abraham Lincoln so eloquently expressed, it is for us the living to dedicate ourselves to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced—to ensure 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.
| Battle of Gettysburg | Statistics |
|---|---|
| Dates | July 1-3, 1863 |
| Location | Gettysburg, Pennsylvania |
| Union Commander | Major General George G. Meade |
| Confederate Commander | General Robert E. Lee |
| Union Strength | 93,921 |
| Confederate Strength | 71,699 |
| Union Casualties | 23,049 (3,155 killed, 14,529 wounded, 5,365 captured/missing) |
| Confederate Casualties | 28,063 (3,903 killed, 18,735 wounded, 5,425 captured/missing) |
Sources:
- McPherson, J. M. (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press.
- Sears, S. W. (2004). Gettysburg. Houghton Mifflin.
- Wert, J. D. (2001). Gettysburg: Day Three. Simon & Schuster.
- National Park Service. (2021). Gettysburg National Military Park. https://www.nps.gov/gett/index.htm
- Civil War Trust. (2021). Gettysburg. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/gettysburg
