This essay was written for the purpose of showing leadership in the Military
General George G. Meade and the Battle of Gettysburg
The battle of Gettysburg is the most famous and the most important battle in the Civil War. It started by a Confederate infantry brigade trying to get shoes from the town of Gettysburg. They ran into a large Federal cavalry and turned around. When they got back they told their general about the Federal cavalry and they were ordered to return the next day and get the shoes.
On July 1, 1863 two divisions of Confederates went back to Gettysburg and fighting soon occurred. Lee then sent in reinforcements totaling 25,000. The Union had less than 20,000. Many men died on both sides, however the Federals were pushed out of Gettysburg, south, towards the cemetery. The Confederates tried to attack before the Federals gained the high ground but were unsuccessful.
See-ming Lee, 1999
Lee
See-ming Lee, 2005-04-14This gave General Meade the opportunity to regroup and dig in on Cemetery Ridge.
On July 2, General Lee of the Confederates ordered an attack on the hill at 10:00 a.m., but they were very slow getting into position and the attack didn't come until 4:00 p.m. The Confederates attacked but came out fairly unsuccessful. The Federals didn't loose much ground and still had a strong defensive position. That night the Federals decided to stand their ground and wait for the attack. The Confederates decided to attack the center on the Federal line were it would be least expected.
In the early morning of July 3, the Confederates were forced from their position at Culp's Hill. Instead of retreating though, they attacked the Federals on Cemetery Ridge but were defeated and forced to retreat. General Meade had predicted Lee's plan to attack the center, so he was ready...