This paper will evaluate Lee’s military strategic capability in the context of the war and his battlefield leadership, demonstrating how his aggressive “Virginia first” strategy directly contributed to the Confederate loss. The combination of Lee wasting irreplaceable troops in frontal attacks and his refusal to help reinforce the Confederate West put the South on the road to defeat. Did Robert E. Lee Lose the Civil War for the South? We all know the Confederacy lost the American Civil War. Traditional history holds that the South was defeated by overwhelming Union manpower and resources.
This battle was the culmination of Major General William Rosecrans' Army of the Cumberland late summer (23 June - 20 September) 1863 campaign to maneuver General Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee out of Tennessee. Fought in dense forests and small open fields in northwestern Georgia, Chickamauga was one of a very few clear cut victories for the Army of Tennessee. However, Bragg was slow to take advantage of the defeat of the Army of the Cumberland and the bulk of the Federal army made it safely into the lines at Chattanooga. It soon became apparent to many of the Confederate generals that a perfect chance to destroy an entire Federal army had slipped away. Never again would the proud Army of Tennessee have a chance as had existed in the woods along the banks of the Chickamauga.
He realized the high ground south of the town of Gettysburg, with its high bluffs and rocky ledge, was good ground. He knew his battle was a delaying action, waiting for the entire Army of General John Reynolds 1 corp to arrive He dismounted his calvary troops and positioned two divisions on the ridges north and northwest of the town. He was attacked early the next morning and was able to hold them off for two and a half hours allowing the 1 corp with its infantry to reinforce the ridges. This was one of the biggest breaks for the Union forces by keeping the high ridges out of the hands of the Confederate Army, which gave the Union forces the
Historians may debate the level of destruction that union soldiers imposed on the civilian populace during the march, but Sherman’s desire to “rip the heart out of the Confederate war effort” succeeded. General William Tecumseh Sherman understood the effectiveness of bringing home the war to the people of the south. He understood how to make an impact on the southern desire to continue the fight. Sherman’s march affected the southern psyche and damaged the will to fight, while destroying valuable supplies and material. In late 1864 the American Civil War was still grinding on.
The battle of Gettysburg was one of the turning points of the Civil War in America. Before the battle occured the Army of Northern Virginia had won most of the major campaigns in the eastern theatre of war, including the first Battle of Bull Run , The Peninsula Campaign, a stalemate at Antietam, Second Manassas, Fredricksburg and finally Chancellorsville two months prior to the Gettysburg Campaign. After the loss of the battle Confederate hopes began to dissipate on European intervention, winning the war on the battlefield and becoming a self-governed nation. Never again would General Lee attempt and invasion of the north. With the victory of Gettysburg the Union Army of The Potomac gained great confidence in their ability to fight and quell the southern states rebellion by force.
This law was not passed by congress. The war’s turning point was at the battle of Gettysburg. At this battle their was thousands of deaths on each side of the battle field. It ended after three long days and nights with a victory for the union. After the battle, Lincoln presented his Gettysburg Address, which is most likely the most well known speech in American history.
The Union controlled the fort for the biggest part of the war. In 1863 and 1864 the General William Sherman led the Union soldiers to capture Jackson and Meridian, Mississippi. After the capture, General Sherman burnt both the cities. In The Battle of Meridian Sherman said, “I want this place wiped completely off the map (Hirshon 185).” These actions enraged Gen. Forrest. In March 1864 Forrest went on a month long raid to capture Union prisoners and supplies and to demolish forts and posts.
While both great generals started, their military careers the same way the rest of their careers were very different. General Lee was a great military general continuing a family tradition while Grant simply excelled at something he was forced to do. Through correspondence of letters both General Grant and General Lee agreed to end the war on April 9, 1865 in at the village of Appomattox Court House. Some believe if General Lee had more support and ammunition then he would have been the winner easily and it would not have taken four years to get the job done. The Comparison of General Grant and General Lee There were many comparisons between the two generals over the course of the Civil War.
Shortly before what would be the final Confederate assault, the Union army quickly realized that it was out of ammo, and Chamberlain ordered what can only be described as a desperate suicide mission: a bayonet charge down the hill. Miraculously, it worked and the Union line held and Chamberlain received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his bravery. I’ve taught English before, and were I to face a charging force of screaming Ribs, I would have ditched my bayonet, grabbed my Whitman, and booked it out of there. The Battle of Gettysburg may be most infamously known for the events of Day 3, when Lee (going against the advice of his generals once more), launched the bulk of his army on an enormous frontal assault on the Union center which he thought had been weakened by the previous day’s flank assaults. He was wrong.
Christa Ferrari 9/3/10 As a child I was raised by a single mother and grew up with my three siblings. My mother struggled to provide for my three siblings and me. We were constantly forced to move around due to the different jobs my mother worked. I transferred from school to school and was unable to build any substantial relationships with my peers. Twice I moved in with my father but each time was no longer than six months because of my father’s alcoholism.