Acoustic Fiddle by Ashokan Farwell The Battle of Gettysburg:A Turning Point in the Civil War

Acoustic Fiddle by Ashokan Farwell July 1, 1863I am standing at the corner of Knoxlyn Rd. and Chambersburg Pike, just three miles northwest of Gettysburg. It is here on July 1, 1863 at 7:30 AM where the first shots were fired at the Battle of Gettysburg

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The shot was fired by Captain Marcellus Jones of the 8th Illinois Cavalry

lead by Major General Buford,

on Major General Heth’s division of Lieutenant General AP Hill’s Corps.

It is here where General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia met

Major General George Meade’s Army of the Potomac.

Following the first shots, at 10:00 AM, Major General Reynolds of the Union and two brigades arrived on the scene to back up Buford’s Cavalry,

, while Major General Ewell’s division of the Confederacy arrived and joined Hill’s Corps.

Soon after Reynolds would fall after being shot in the head by a rebel sniper.

General Lee arrived with the rest of the army at 2:00 PM and ordered the attacks to continue.

Hours after the arrival of General Lee, Major General Hancock of the Union would also arrive and assume command of the fallen Reynolds Corps

and order a fortification stretching from Culp’s Hill, through Cemetery Ridge, to Little Round Top, however; Little Round Top was only occupied by a few single men with muskets.

After seeing the Union troops form a fortification, Lieutenant General Longstreet of the Confederacy, urges Lee to assume a defensive position and halt attacking to fight another day

Lee does not listen and presses the attack only to get know where

Drums July 2, 1863The Second day of battle would result in much the same way for the south as the first day did, but this time instead of being held back at Culp’s Hill and McPherson Ridge, they would be held and pushed back from here, Little Round Top, by Colonel Chambers and the 20th Maine.

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On July 2, 1863 Lee orders General Longstreet to attack the left of the union line

while General Ewell attacked the other end of the line at Culp’s Hill. Both efforts would get the confederacy nowhere.

By this time Meade had became aware that he had no troops covering Little Round Top,

so he ordered Syke’s Brigade to occupy the hill,

including the 20th Maine

commanded by Colonel Joshua Chamberlin.

The main battle occurred at Little Round Top at 4:00 PM

with the Texas Brigade led by General Hood

Hood who ordered Brigadier General Law to push forward from Devils Den and up Little Round Top.

Brigadier General Law attacked with the 15th Alabama

under the command of Colonel Oates.

Oates pushed his men up the hill only to be held by the opposing Union forces just arriving consisting of Colonel Chamberlin and the

20th Maine. Oates pressed again and again, being held off every time by Chamberlin and the 20th Maine.

At 7:00 PM in a desperate defensive Chamberlin gave the order, “bayonets!” The 20th Maine charged down Little Round Top, taking the hill from the confederacy, and claim the day.

Drums July 3, 1863The third and final day of battle caused Lee to make a decision that would haunt him for the rest of the war. I am standing here at Seminary Ridge where Lee ordered Pickett’s Charge, a one mile march from Seminary Ridge to the Union forces at Cemetery Ridge. Behind me you can see the incredible distance the Confederates had to cover while being fired upon in the open field. This march ended in disaster for the South.

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On the Early hours of June 3, 1863 Lee begins attacks on Culp’s Hill still gaining no ground.

In a desperate attempt to win the battle Lee devises a plan to have Major General Pickett march his brigade one mile from

Seminary Ridge to Cemetery Ridge

. Prior to the march the confederate artillery would shoot 140 cannons at Cemetery Ridge at 1:00 PM to weaken the Unions attack. This signaled the confederates to prepare for the attack.

. In response the Union would fire their cannons back, totaling over 250 cannons being fired, the greatest concentration of artillery for one purpose in North America. This lasted for two hours.

Once artillery fire began to diminish Pickett prepared his men and began the one mile march to Cemetery Ridge. Moments after the march began the Union artillery began firing again tearing great gaps in the confederate line.As the confederates approached the union line, union infantry opened up fire, killing and wounding several confederates. The battle progressed into hand to hand combat with bayonets, lasting for an hour. The outnumbered and beaten confederates fell back leaving 7,500 men lying on the field of battle. Lee rode out to meet the surviving men, to take blame for what had happened.

“All of this has been my fault. It is I who lost this fight.” – General Robert E. Lee

The Battle of Gettysburg marked a turning point in the Civil War, which led to the Union defeating the Confederacy and causing them to surrender at Appomattox. The battle of Gettysburg had over 50,000 casualties, and is still the bloodiest battle to date fought on U.S soil.

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