Battles Which Changed the Course of the War
Battle of Gettysburg
The Confederates had heard a rumor going around that there was a large supply of shoes, something they desperately needed, in Gettysburg. On July 1, a group of soldiers were ordered into town to locate and seize the shoes. When they entered Gettysburg, they were met by Union cavalry units that were searching for Lee’s army. The small battle soon snowballed and become one of the largest battles fought in North America. It turned into a three-day battle, in which many soldiers were lost. By the early afternoon, there were about 24,000 Confederate soldiers fighting and 19,000 Union troops. By the end of the day, the southerners had pushed the Union army back onto some hills south of Gettysburg. James Longstreet, Lee’s most trusted commander after Stonewall’s death, warned Lee that the Union positions were too strong to attack.
He urged Lee to retreat and make the Union army chase after him and fight the battle on his own ground. However, Lee refused because he had strong faith in his army after winning the Battle of Chancellorsville. Lee ignored Longstreet’s warning, and ordered an attack the next day. That next day saw some of the bloodiest fighting in all of the Civil War. The Confederate troops broke through the Union’s line and tried to seize an undefended hill just south of the union lines, Little Round Top. The 20th Maine regiment rushed to the hill in time for a heroic defense. At the end of the day, the Confederates had lost around 9,000 troops, but Lee was determined to leave Pennsylvania with a victory. He ordered 15,000 fresh troops to attack the center of the Union lines on Cemetery Ridge the next day.
Longstreet objected but yet again, Lee ignored him and carried on his plan. The next day, a great artillery duel began as the Confederates tried to soften up the Union defenses in order to attack. The thunder of their gunfire was heard in Pittsburgh, some 200 miles away. Later, General Pickett arrived with a group of soldiers to help the Confederates fight. They combined with Lee’s troops and marched toward the Union troops positioned a mile away. When the Confederates moved across the open field, a storm of bullets and artillery shells tore huge holes in their ranks. About 300 Confederate troops reached the Union defenses, but they were either driven back or killed. Of the 15,000 soldiers that carried out Pickett’s charge, less than half returned to the Confederate lines. Lee then realized that Longstreet was right and apologized for the extent of his slaughter. The next day, the Confederates retreated. Lee had lost around 28,000 troops out of 75,000. The Union had lost around 23,000 troops out of 85,000. As lee’s battered army made their way back to Virginia, word reached Richmond that Vicksburg, the Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, had fallen to the Union. The Battle of Gettysburg was historically significant because it was a large win for the Union and even though they lost a large number of troops, the Confederates lost a significant amount more and it showed Lee that his troops weren’t indestructible.
He urged Lee to retreat and make the Union army chase after him and fight the battle on his own ground. However, Lee refused because he had strong faith in his army after winning the Battle of Chancellorsville. Lee ignored Longstreet’s warning, and ordered an attack the next day. That next day saw some of the bloodiest fighting in all of the Civil War. The Confederate troops broke through the Union’s line and tried to seize an undefended hill just south of the union lines, Little Round Top. The 20th Maine regiment rushed to the hill in time for a heroic defense. At the end of the day, the Confederates had lost around 9,000 troops, but Lee was determined to leave Pennsylvania with a victory. He ordered 15,000 fresh troops to attack the center of the Union lines on Cemetery Ridge the next day.
Longstreet objected but yet again, Lee ignored him and carried on his plan. The next day, a great artillery duel began as the Confederates tried to soften up the Union defenses in order to attack. The thunder of their gunfire was heard in Pittsburgh, some 200 miles away. Later, General Pickett arrived with a group of soldiers to help the Confederates fight. They combined with Lee’s troops and marched toward the Union troops positioned a mile away. When the Confederates moved across the open field, a storm of bullets and artillery shells tore huge holes in their ranks. About 300 Confederate troops reached the Union defenses, but they were either driven back or killed. Of the 15,000 soldiers that carried out Pickett’s charge, less than half returned to the Confederate lines. Lee then realized that Longstreet was right and apologized for the extent of his slaughter. The next day, the Confederates retreated. Lee had lost around 28,000 troops out of 75,000. The Union had lost around 23,000 troops out of 85,000. As lee’s battered army made their way back to Virginia, word reached Richmond that Vicksburg, the Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, had fallen to the Union. The Battle of Gettysburg was historically significant because it was a large win for the Union and even though they lost a large number of troops, the Confederates lost a significant amount more and it showed Lee that his troops weren’t indestructible.
Battle of Fort Sumter
Jefferson Davis decided to act before the supplies arrived. “You will at once demand evacuation,” he ordered the Confederate commander in Charleston. “If this is refused, proceed in such manner as you may determine, to reduce it.” In the early morning of April 12, Confederate artillery, or large mounted guns, opened fire on the fort. The fort’s defenses were no match for these massive guns, and it surrendered the next day. On April 14 the U.S. flag flying over the fort was replaced with a southern flag. The Attack on Ft. Sumter is historically significant because it was the first battle of the Civil War.
Battle of Antietam
After the Union's devastating loss in Virginia, the Confederate's realized that they needed a victory in Union territory and they had their reasons. Reason number 1: It might prompt the North to plead for peace. 2: If Reason 1 didn't work out, at least the victory would convince Britain and France to recognize the southern independence. Reason 3: If the war was moved out of Virginia, this would give the farmers an opportunity to plant the remnants of their crops. So in early September in the year of 1862, Lee's army officially crossed the Potomac River. Fortunately for the Union, one of their soldiers found a copy of Lee's, marching orders that had been lost by a Confederate officer. Now that he knew Lee's plans, McClellan telegraphed the good news to Lincoln. McClellan caught up with Lee near Sharpsburg, Maryland. His 70,000 Union troops dwarfed Lee's army of 40,000. Again, the cautious McClellan waited 16 hours to attack. On September 17th, 1862, the battle took place. It was named after a creek that crossed the battlefield; Antietam was the bloodiest single day battle of US History. The Battle of Antietam is historically significant because it was the bloodiest single day battle in history.