Gettysburg and Chickamauga

     From July 1-3, 1863, Robert E. Lee and George Meade's troops collided in the town of Gettysburg. Lee strayed from his original battle plan, a defensive strategy, and planned to invade Pennsylvania (offensive strategy). After three days of fighting, Lee's army retreated to Virginia. There were 51,00 casualties on both sides, making Gettysburg the bloodiest American Civil War battle ever fought. Gettysburg was an awful bloodbath that never should have happened. Both Union and Confederate families suffered incredible loses of their young brave soldiers. If you think about it, this battle shouldn't have even really occurred. If Lee had stuck with his defensive strategy, the two sides never would have collided. Also, the Confederates had a major flaw in their plan: Pickett's Charge. The Picket-Pettigrew assault was a charge by the Confederates in hopes of piercing the Union line. The Confederates were met with merciless Union gun fire, which contributed substantially to the casualty count. After the Battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln issued the Gettysburg address, dedicating the battlefield to become a cemetery for fallen Union soldiers. This address from Lincoln also reinforced why these gallant soldiers were fighting, and how the Unionists would continue their fight. Furthermore, Gettysburg was considered to be the war's turning point. This is because General Lee was so confident about his troops prior to the Battle of the Gettysburg, that he and his soldiers never recovered from the loss. They were not expecting such a fierce response from the Union army and were bewildered into their defeat.

     

    

     The Battle of Chickamauga was from September 18-20, 1863. Union General William S. Rosecrans was planning to force the Confederates out of Chattanooga. Rosecrans accomplished this, however Braxton Bragg (Confederate General) wanted to reoccupy Chattanooga, and met Rosecrans's army in Northern Georgia. During the battle, a gap appeared in Rosecrans's line. James Longstreet (also a Confederate General) exploited this weakness, and forced the Union's defeat. There were many flaws in the Battle of Chickamauga especially on the Confederate side. The major flaw came after the battle was finished, however. This flaw was the over- confidence the Confederate army gained after Chickamauga and how this army carried it on their soldiers during the Battle of Chattanooga. The Battle of Chickamauga inevitably led to Sherman's Atlanta Campaign, and here's how. Once the Confederates lost the Battle of Chattanooga their confidence wavered and broke. The Union already had control of Tennessee, although they now had Chattanooga as well (also known as the "Gateway to the South"). While Sherman had control over these major lands, he cooked up his plan for the Atlanta Campaign. 

Sources:

http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg/maps/pickettscharge.html

http://www.loc.gov/wiseguide/july03/civil.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chickamauga#Aftermath

http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-chickamauga

http://drtlibrary.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/gettysburg-battle-charge-15001.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dc/Chickamauga_Sep20_3_detail.png/400px-Chickamauga_Sep20_3_detail.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Chickamauga.jpg/300px-Chickamauga.jpg

A Link to the Gettysburg Address- http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm