Gettysburg - The second and third days

"It's all my fault." - General Robert E Lee, July 3rd, 1863.

Unlike Bobby Lee, I don't consider it my fault that I didn't blog yesterday. I did originally intend to do this as a three part narrative, but a quite frankly fantastic 2nd day on the battlefield meant I didn't return home till about 11:30 that night, and thoroughly exhausted. So, instead, I'm just going to round things up via another mega-blog, aka Washington DC style. I assure you though, it's worth the wait. I have MOVIES, as well as photos. So stick with it.

Now, where were we? Let's consult the map.


When we left the battle at the end of the first day, the Union army had managed to hold onto the high ground. Namely, the area beginning down at the Round Tops, stretching up along Cemetery Ridge to Cemetery and Culp's Hill and finishing at Spangler's Spring. The Confederates had occupied a line mirroring the Union position along Seminary Ridge, through the town of Gettysburg and over to Benner's Hill.

Robert E Lee decided that the position to the north, at Cemetery and Culp's Hill, was too strong to assault. He would instead attack the Round Tops, and try and flank the main Union position along Cemetery Ridge. If his troops could seize Little Round Top, the natural height of this position would mean it would overlook the entire Union line. Rebel cannon on this hill could then fire at the Union forces, forcing them to pull back. The plan of attack called for what is known as an echelon attack. Essentially, the manoeuvre called for the attack to open against the Round Tops and the Devil's Den. After battle had been joined, the attack would begin further north, at the Peach Orchard. Again, once battle had been joined here, it would proceed even further north, to Cemetery Ridge. Think of it like a wave at the beach, how it curves in, allowing you to surf across the face of the wave. The idea behind it is that the enemy commits his reserves to your intitial attack(s), then allowing you to punch a hole farther down his line. Lee was hoping that the Union would commit enough troops to stop the attack against the Round Tops, that if he did not break through there, he would break through further north, at Cemetery Ridge.


This photo of the Round Tops was taken from Cemetery Ridge, the main Union position. Little Round Top is to the left, almost directly above the barn, while Big Round Top is to the right. You can see how much higher than Cemetery Ridge they are, or indeed, any other point for miles around. Whoever controlled those points would win the Battle of Gettysburg.


This is another photo of the Round Tops, from where the Confederate attack began, down near the Devil's Den. Although not more than a couple of hundred feet above the surrounding area, they would still prove to be a formidable obstacle for the Confederates to attack. The ground was heavily wooded, and rocky. And that doesn't even take into account the quality of the Union defenders.

So, on the second day of our sojourn, Saturday, we concerned ourselves with visiting the area along Cemetery Ridge, the Round Tops, the Devil's Den and the Wheatfield. For this day the old man and I had the good fortune to meet up with a person I met through of all places, a Warhammer forum. Like myself, David Englehart is a Civil War fanatic, and a member of a unit called Sykes' Regulars. They take part in battlefield re-enactments and living history demonstrations, designed to educate future generations about the Civil War, the life of a soldier and the conditions under which they served. As a result, David is most knowledgeable about all aspects of the Civil War, particularly Gettysburg, so the scene was set for an enormously enjoyable day - especially since both David and I have similar opinions about George W Bush. David's badges on his jacket probably express our sentiments better than I can though.



Anyways, we ventured down to Little Round Top, scene of some of the most crucial fighting of the war. Given the crucial location of this position, it was imperative that the Union have some high quality troops to defend it. They had them too, although they had to double-quick up the face of Little Round Top to reach it in time. A brigade of infantry under the command of Colonel Vincent formed up minutes before the Confederate advance arrived. On the leftmost flank of the entire Union army, the 20th Maine regiment of 350 men under Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, won everlasting fame for itself when it fought off more than double that number of Confederates. Towards the end, when they were out of ammunition, Chamberlain ordered his men to fix bayonets and charge down the hill. Stunned to see the Federals charging them, the exhausted Rebels turned and ran for their lives. Chamberlain's charge won him the Medal of Honour and saved the Union position on Little Round Top.


This is a photo of the 20th Maine's position on Little Round Top. The Union soldiers defended from behind the stone wall to the right, while the Confederates attacked from the left.


This is a photo of Little Round Top from the location known as the Devil's Den. The position of the 20th Maine is round to the right of the hill, facing due south, This photo is taken from the west, and shows the bare, rocky slopes that the Confederates had to try and take, while ultimately they were unable to do.

The Devil's Den refers to a location at the base of Little Round Top, which is strewn with gigantic boulders and rocks. While it made for excellent defensive terrain, it did make it nearly impossible to move troops through with any sense of cohesion. Sharpshooters from both sides infested the area, trying to snipe enemy officers. Although the Confederates succeeded in capturing the Devil's Den, they were unable to take Little Round Top itself.


This is the Devil's Den, taken from the heights on Little Round Top. The stone wall in the foreground was erected by Union soldiers. The Den itself is the large boulder strewn area in the distance. Some of these rocks would be over 3 metres in height, making it very difficult to move through the area on foot today, let along while trying to keep in some semblance of formation.


The Union placed cannon within the area, most of which were captured when the Confederates captured the Devil's Den, and turned against the Union position on Little Round Top.


This is one of the most famous photos of the war. It is purportedly of a Confederate sharpshooter, killed in the Devil's Den. He would have used the rock wall to hide behind, while shooting at Union troops on Little Round Top.


And here is the same location, almost 150 years later. It is certainly a sobering experience to stand in a place such as this, where some poor southern boy lay dead, his image forever capturing the violence and brutality of warfare.

Despite the Confederate failure to seize the Round Tops, the attack continued on regardless. Further north at the Peach Orchard, a small Union corps under Dan Sickles had occupied the position. Confederate troops quickly smashed this exposed position and continued west, heading across the Wheatfield, trying to take Little Round Top from the north, or at the very least, cut it off from Cemetery Ridge. However, in the Wheatfield they encountered a rare sight on a Civil War battlefield - US regular infantry.

I should explain. By and large, the armies of the Civil War were composed of volunteer soldiers, amateurs, to put it bluntly. However, the soldiers of the regular army also served, although their numbers were tiny compared to the volunteers, as the regular army prior to the Civil War was tiny, numbering barely 15,000 men. In the entire Union army at Gettysburg, some 100000 men, there were only 2 brigades of regulars, numbering approximately 2500 men. It was these troops that the Confederates encountered in the Wheatfield. They stopped the Confederate advance in its tracks, but soon came under heavy fire as more and more Confederates came rushing up in support. Forced to retire, they did so in good order, firing as they went. Their actions bought precious time for the Union, and ended the Confederate chances of taking Little Round Top.


The Wheatfield, facing west. The Confederates attacked the regulars from the clearing in the distance and from the woods on either side, forcing them to retire to the area behind me.


The monument to the regulars on Cemetery Ridge.

Eventually the Confederate attacks petered out. The Union retained control of the high ground. Lee had expended the bulk of his best troops, and achieved no territorial gain. A more prudent commander would have cut his losses at this point, and withdrawn, while the army was still reasonably intact. But Lee had yet one fresh division, that of George Pickett. And there had been one moment of hope - near the close of the battle, a Confederate brigade had managed to seize a portion of Cemetery Ridge, north of the Round Tops and the Wheatfield. But there was no reinforcements following behind it. With Union forces converging on its location, the brigade was forced to retreat. Lee intended to try and repeat this achievement tomorrow.

But Lee's attack would have to wait. After finishing our walk around the battlefield, that night David, the old man and myself headed into Gettysburg to see the sights. Having been here numerous times before, David knew all the best haunts - after an excellent meal at the Farnsworth House (try the game pie, it's to die for) we went to an excellent bookshop, where I managed to pick rather cheaply 2 excellent tomes that can't be had in Australia. We also visited an art shop, which was packed with some fantastic work from various Civil War artists. Numerous rare prints and even some originals. Undoubtedly the highlight for me though was visiting some of the stores that act as quartermasters to the re-enactors. The items for sale at these places and the people that frequent them are their own little subculture.

You can purchase authentic shirts, pants, boots, canteens, haversacks, cartridges, rifles, hats and a bevy of other things besides. While to a layman it may all look the same, to a hardcore re-enactor, every detail must be correct. No-one would wear a hat with a vinyl interior, or machine stitched sewing. That will be leather thank you very much, and hand-sewn at that. No shirt could possibly be Civil War garb unless it was 100% wool. And only a total and utter farb would carry a rifle with the manufacturer's name stamped into the breech.

(Farb refers to any item or person that isn't authentic, ie. a soldier dressed in Union gear with soft drink in his canteen, wearing your wristwatch, still wearing your modern eyeglasses, that sort of thing.)

I found it fascinating. We went to a few stores - we all went to Regimental Quartermaster last night, while Dad and I visited S & S Sutler today, which is widely regarded as the best, and most authentic purveyor of Civil War goods there is. The quality certainly looked flawless.


David and I enjoying a Guinness after a long day of battle.


Two Irish singers who entertained the crowd at the tavern we were at with a host of Irish, Civil War and (upon request) Australian tunes. Great stuff - the act was seriously top notch.

After such a long day, Dad and I bid farewell to David, who had to return to hearth and home for Sunday. After a good night's sleep, Dad and I were ready to tackle the final part of the battle, namely that of Pickett's charge.

For Lee was true to his word. He had failed to drive the Union from the Round Tops. Cemetery and Culp's Hill remained too strong to attack. Therefore, only one option seemed open to him - a direct, frontal assault against the Union centre. And that's what he did. He directed 15000 men, including the fresh division of George Pickett to march across the mile of open ground between Seminary Ridge and Cemetery Ridge. His chief subordinate, Longstreet, objected strenuously. "No 15000 men ever made can take that ridge" he insisted. But Lee would not be swayed. For 2 hours, over 150 Confederate cannons pummelled the Union position along Cemetery Ridge in the largest artillery bombardment of the war.




By a fortunate coincidence, we happen to have some cannon here. Confederate ones, at that. They were engaged in a live-fire exercise today (minus the cannonball of course.) This is about the approximate position of where the Confederate cannons were placed. In the last photo you can see where the Round Tops are in relation to the cannoneers.

Despite the bombardment, the Confederate assault was always doomed to failure. The distance was too great, and the Union position too strong. As soon as the Confederates stepped out from Seminary Ridge, they came under fire from long-range Union artillery from all parts of the field. As they got closer, they encountered short-range artillery fire, the dreaded canister rounds. A canister was a large iron canister loaded with 40-50 musket balls, the effect being to turn a cannon into a gigantic shotgun, with appalling consequences for any infantry caught by the blast. Finally, they had to deal with the muskets of the thousands of Union infantry defending behind a stone wall on top of the ridge. A few hundred Confederates managed to break through the stone wall and capture some cannons, but they were quickly wiped out. It was an unmitigated disaster, and Lee admitted as much to the survivors when they returned when he said, "It's all my fault." Out of the 15000 sent in, only some 7000 returned. The next day, Lee ordered a retreat to Virginia. The Battle of Gettysburg was over. Out of the 175000 troops engaged, almost 50000 were casualties.


A view of Cemetery Ridge from Seminary Ridge. You can see where the Union line was, by where the monuments are. We walked from Seminary Ridge to Cemetery Ridge, to get a feel of what it would have been like to try and cross the ground. It's unbelievable how far it is, and almost impossibly to try and understand why Lee thought it would ever possibly succeed.


Seminary Ridge from Cemetery Ridge. You can see the Confederate position by where the treeline is. The fences in front are replicas of where actual fences were during the battle. These slowed the Confederates during the charge, and proved devastating when artillery shells hit them, as shards of wood would go flying everywhere.


This is a closer shot of the Union positions on Cemetery Ridge, taken from behind the fence along the Emmitsburg road. It was amazing as Dad and I got closer - we almost pictured we could see the Union troops rising up from behind the stone wall, preparing to fire their muskets. It was incredibly eerie, and deeply moving.


In fact, deeply moving is probably the best way to describe the entire visit to Gettysburg. It has been a unique, and a once in a lifetime experience for me. It was odd, but not surprising I guess - when I first saw the battlefield I felt like I'd known it all my life. It was also fantastic to meet up with David, he was an excellent host and most informative on all matters Gettysburg and military.

Now, for those of you who aren't as interested in the military aspects, here is all the random photos from the battlefield. Including, for the first time ever - THE ALTERNATIVE ENDING TO GETTYSBURG - FIGJAM STYLE!


Dad trying to get snipers to give away their position in the sharpshooter's nest. You're not supposed to stick your hand over the wall as well Dad.


I found this on the wall of a Gettysburg tavern, and needless to say, was stunned.


The house at S&S Sutler's - complete with dud Confederate cannon shell.


Monument to the esteemed Irish Brigade. The lump in front is supposed to be an Irish wolfhound.


Dad with a dog on the steps of a house. Didn't seem lifelike...and yet, it was.


And FINALLY...me! Now, I know I promised this for Little Round Top, but unfortunately Dad and I found it to be infested with Yankees, dug in all over the summit and the slopes. Their officers had a pretty tight hold on the place as well. (Translation - It was swarming with tourists and park rangers, and I didn't want to get thrown out of the park.)

So, Dad and I scaled the rocky slopes of Big Round Top, which were almost deserted. And there, we took the following pictures.




These were taken below the summit, charging up the slopes towards the bluebellied yankees.


The summit is reached! Glory to the Confederacy!

And of course, we have the unofficial videos, as promised. Click the titles to view the movies. Good night all! Next blog will be from the Big Apple.

The Confederate Charge

The Confederate Victory