The Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War - Free Essay Example

There were nearly 50 major battles in the American Civil War, but which battle was the most important? Well, The Battle of Gettysburg is to be considered the most important match of the Civil War. This battle was taken place from July 1st to July 3rd, 1863. Who knew that in just three days this war would be so influential and leave such a major mark in history? The three different days all had their significances on the war; strengthening their defenses on day one, losing majority of their troops on the bloodiest day number two, and the Union stomping the Confederates on day three leaving them to never fully recover throughout the rest of the American Civil War. Each day of attacks in The Battle of Gettysburg had its own significance that shaped the major causes of this war. There were many factors that contributed to the start of The Battle of Gettysburg. The Confederate had won with a significant win over the Union at Chancellorsville. General Robert E. Lee then paraded his Army of Northern Virginia on towards Pennsylvania. Lee was aware that a victory on Northern grounds would discourage the Union and perhaps get the Federal government to settle disputes with the Confederate states of America. Lee then knew his troops needed equipment, and Virginia was pretty much necessitous, so the Army of Northern Virginia could get supplies from Pennsylvania. Lee also desired to remove the conflict out of Virginia to allow the Virginian people some relaxation from the war. So, on the morning of July 1st, 1863, with the Army of Northern Virginia, General Harry Heth was executing a revival in power regarding Gettysburg to clear the town of what he believed was a nearby militia. His troops encountered instead of nearby militia, Union General John Bufords Union Cavalr y Division. These factors are what led to the beginning of The Battle of Gettysburg. Of course, most people have heard of The Battle of Gettysburg, but does everyone know exactly what happened in this battle? Lets begin with the first day, July 1st. On this day, the progressing Confederates disputed with the Unions Army of the Potomac. This took place at the crossroads town of Gettysburg. Lee discovered that the Army of the Potomac was coming, so he had to convene his army to the crossroads town of Gettysburg. One of the Confederate divisions in A.P. Hills order inched toward the town in seek of equipment, then discovering that two Union cavalry brigades had come along the day before. As both of the large armies traveled toward Gettysburg, Confederate troops were capable of pushing the Federal troops directly through town to Cemetery Hill. Lee wished for many Union troops to arrive, so he granted commands to strike Cemetery Hill to Ewell. Ewell had insisted instruction of the Army of Northern Virginias Second round of troops after Lees number one reliable general, T homas J. Stonewall Jackson, was critically injured at the last battle of Chancellorsville. Ewell rejected to organize the strike, taken into the consideration that the Federal spot is too strong, and him being reserved would obtain him numerous adverse differentiations to the substantial Stonewall. As night arrived, a Union corps by the name of Winfield Scott Hancock arrived and expanded the defense along Cemetery Ridge to the hill, and three more Union corps arrived overnight to strengthen its defenses. Next, was July 2nd, day two. As day 2 began, the Union Army had fixed positions from Culps Hill to Cemetery Ridge. Lee had determined the enemys positions and decided against the guidance of James Longstreet- to attack the Federals where they stood. He commanded Longstreet to direct a strike on the Union left, while Ewells corps would strike the right, near Culps Hill. While his commands were to strike in the day, Longstreet did not get his troops into specific arrangement until evening. They then opened fire on the Union corps commanded by Daniel Sickles. As the next few hours past, there was intense fighting along Sickles line. Luckily, one fighter helped the Federals hold Little Round Top, but they still lost the orchard- this led to Sickles being seriously wounded. Ewells men had developed on the Union forces at Culps Hill and East Cemetery Hill in line with Longstreets evening attack, but Union forces had delayed their attack by sunset. Both armies experienced major losses on J uly 2, with more than 9,000 losses on each side. Day two had the largest amount of deaths, rolling in at 35,000 between the two armies. Lastly was day three, which was taken place on July 3rd. On this day, Union troops moved back a Confederate threat in opposition to Culps Hill after a seven-hour fight which achieved their powerful position. Believing his men had been on the verge of victory the day before, Lee recognized three divisions against the Union on Cemetery Ridge. Fewer than 15,000 troops, led by a division under George Pickett, would be assigned with marching around three-quarters of a mile through long fields to strike in Union infantry positions. Regardless of the protests from Longstreet, Lee was committed. The strikes approached in the late afternoon after a bombardment by 150 Confederate guns. Union infantry fired on the approaching rebels from the back side of stone walls. Meanwhile, divisions from Ohio, New York, and Vermont hit both enemys sides. Each troop was attacked from all sides which left not even half of the Confederates alive. As a matter of fact, only one-third of his troops survived. Th e survivors then hobbled back to their beginning spots, Lee and Longstreet hurried to get together their defense team after the last failure. The Battle of Gettysburg was officially over, but Lee still waited for an attack on July 4th. The confederates tallied up around 28,000 deaths, while the Union only had 23,000. The North was very satisfied with this victory, and the South grieved its loss of the event. The Confederates dream of its own recognition, apart from the North, was over. They knew they would no longer have the chance to become their own country, recognized by other countries. Upset by the defeat, Lee decided to resign. He then went on to offer his position to Jefferson Davis, but he declined. This example was one of the major long-term impacts on the South. For the North, the long-term impacts were that Abraham Lincoln did receive the clarification he needed to determine why the Civil War was being fought. With this clarification, Lincoln was able to present the Gettysburg Address, which established the necessity of equality. This battle is now widely known as the battle that turned the results of the Civil War in the Unions favor. The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863, is considered the most important engagement of the American Civil War. Is that not pretty crazy that out 50 major battles in the Civil War that The Battle of Gettysburg is known as the most important? It is also called the major turning point in the American Civil War, because after the Confederate was defeated, they never fully recovered. The three different days all had their significances on the war; strengthening their defenses on day one, losing majority of their troops on the bloodiest day number two, and the Union stomping the Confederates on day three leaving them to never fully recover throughout the rest of the American Civil War. Each day of attacks The Battle of Gettysburg had its own significance that shaped the major causes of this war.