Warm-up  Why might Lee decide to take the war to the North?  Why abandon a Southern strategy that had thus far succeeded?  What did he hope to gain?

Before the Battle  Confederates inflict bloody defeat on Union at Fredericksburg, VA. (12/13/62 )  North defeated again in the Battle of Chancellorsville, VA (April 30-May 6, 1863)  General Stonewall Jackson is shot by his own men in an accident and dies of Pneumonia (May 1863)  Lee decides to invade North in Spring-Early Summer ‘63:  to gain supplies  pull Union forces away from Vicksburg, MS  invasion in North would hurt Lincoln’s political power.

General George Meade Was given command of the UNION Army of the Potomac 3 days before Gettysburg Why was this a problem?? He planned to fight further north than Gettysburg

Union Troops

Confederate Troops

Day 1  Confederate soldiers led by A.P. Hill went on a search for shoes in Gettysburg, attacked by Union troops  90,000 Union troops took the field against 75,000 Confederates  Confederates take control over the town of Gettysburg

Day 2  Lee orders General James Longstreet to attack at Cemetery Ridge  Confederate soldiers attack at an unprotected Union hill known as Little Round Top  Union leaders send Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain and his men to defend Little Round Top  Because Chamberlain was running low on fuel, he ordered his men to attack the Confederates with fixed bayonets. This surprise attack left Confederates surrendering in droves.

Battle of Gettysburg  Generals from each side gathered in war councils during the night  They were planning their strategy for the next day  General Meade decided to stay put and let Lee come to him  Longstreet tried to talk Lee out of attacking again  Felt the position was too strongly defended  Lee didn’t listen--Felt the Union army was battered and would collapse  He believed one final assault would do this

Battle of Gettysburg  Friday, July 3rd: Day 3  The Union army opened fire with heavy artillery around 4:30 am---the break of dawn  Lee and his army was surprised  They were pushed back off of Culp’s Hill and from their trenches  Lee regrouped and attacked around 8am.  This led to a vicious 3 hour fight  Time and time again the Rebels charged the hill-- time and time again they were pushed back  Union troops counter attacked and moved the rebels back from the hill

Battle of Gettysburg  Around 11am an eerie quiet arose from the field--the battle stopped for a while  Lee regrouped  Lee planned to charge the hill with 15,000 soldiers  Again, Longstreet opposed this plan  The rebels moved into position into the woods opposite of Cemetery Ridge  Poised for their charge  Meade moved part of his army off the hill  Trying to anticipate what Lee would do  He was correct earlier, but guessed wrong this time  He left 5,750 men to face 15,000

Day 3  Lee felt could break Union defenses, because Union weakened  Lee ordered an artillery barrage at the middle of Union lines mid afternoon  PICKETT’S CHARGE - Longstreet, confident the barrage had silenced Union guns, ordered Confederate troops to attack the center of the Union lines.  Northern artillery resumed its fire and crippled the Confederate attackers.  Lee sent General Jeb Stuart’s forces to surprise attack Union General Meade’s forces.  Stuart’s forces were stalled due to a conflict with Union forces led by Robert Gregg.

Battle of Gettysburg  1pm: 170 Confederate canons opened fire to pave the way for the charge  Heaviest artillery barrage of the war-BUT…  Many of the shells missed their targets and flew harmlessly over the Union lines  The Union returned artillery fire, but at 2:30 they slowed their rate of fire  Tried to fool the Rebels into thinking their canons were destroyed  It worked!!! Brilliant!!!

Devil’s Den

Battle of Gettysburg  Lee was forced to abandon his dead, and retreated that night and the next morning back to Virginia  Loaded the wounded onto wagons  Meade, allowed Lee to retreat--did not pursue  Out of fatigue and caution  Lincoln was furious!!!  “Meade missed a golden opportunity to end the war right there!!!”

After the Battle  More than 23,000 Union casualties and 28,000 Confederate Casualties  Lee gave up hopes of invading the North and retreated back to Virginia  Lee turned in his resignation which Jefferson Davis did not accept  The North won the Battle of Vicksburg (May 18-July 4th, 1863)

Result of Gettysburg  The tide of the war was now permanently against the South  They would never fully recover from this battle  Casualties  Union: 23,049  Confederate: 28,063  Over 52,000 men lost in the 3 day battle

Result of Gettysburg  The North celebrated the 4 th of July with the victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg.  Aftermath – The citizens of Gettysburg were faced with the daunting task of burying all of the bodies  Over 50,000 men were left dead or wounded  Most of the Confederate dead were left on the field in their shallow graves for eight to ten years until southern charity groups had most of the bodies taken away to cemeteries in the South.  Lincoln agreed to come and say something for the soldiers  Gettysburg Address – name of the speech Lincoln delivered talking about the war and equality

With a partner… be prepared to share your answer  The Battle of Gettysburg Most historians believe that the Civil War hinged on the battle at Gettysburg. And many of question Confederate General Robert E. Lee's decision to abandon Virginia, where he had been so successful, to embark on a more risky invasion of the North. What do you think? Did Lee make a costly and foolish blunder by taking his army to the North? Or was this a reasonable decision that just happened not to work out in the end?

Siege at Vicksburg, MS May 18 - July 4, 1863  The Confederates were in high spirits because of victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville  The Union needed to change the tide  Soon, they captured New Orleans and Memphis  Battle of Vicksburg, MS – Grant tried several times to overtake it  Came up with a new plan:  Attacked Jackson, Mississippi and then turned west and attacked Vicksburg from behind enemy lines (South)  Meanwhile, Sherman confused Confederates by attacking from the North

Map of Vicksburg  A loss at Vicksburg would mean that the Confederate territory would be cut in half.

The Siege  For 6 weeks laid a siege – a military encirclement of an enemy position in order to force it to surrender.  On July 4, 1863, the Confederates surrendered at Vicksburg  this split the Confederacy into 2 parts!

After Vicksburg and Gettysburg, the situation looked like this: DateBattle NameCausalitiesWinner April 12-13, 1861Attack on Fort Sumter, SCNoneCSA July 21, 1861First Manassas a.k.a. Bull Run, VA4,700CSA Feb Fort Henry/Fort Donelson, TN17,655USA April 6-7, 1862Shiloh a.k.a. Pittsburg Landing, TN34,445USA August 28-30, 1862Second Manassas aka Second Bull Run, VA22,180CSA Sept. 17, 1862Antietam a.k.a. Sharpsburg, MD23,100USA Dec. 13, 1862Fredericksburg, VA17,929CSA April 30-May 6, 1863Chancellorsville, VA24,000CSA July 1-3, 1863Gettysburg, PA51,000USA May 18 – July Siege of Vicksburg, MS19,233USA

The Aftermath In the United States The victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg increased the morale of the United States and its armies. Many people now felt that the war might be won. In the Confederate States The losses at Vicksburg and Gettysburg decreased the morale of the Confederate States and its armies. For most of the remainder of the war the Confederates would be fighting on the defensive.