Gettysburg: Turning Point of the War
Gettysburg: The Turning Point of the War
On July 1, 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac engaged the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia which had advance into the north. This would be the battle of all battles; it would be the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. Three days of warfare resulted in a Union victory at the cost was 51,000 American casualties. The Southern reason for rebellion was to break away from the Union and become a separate country, the Confederate States of America. Up to this point the rebels were winning battles with the successful leadership of their Southern generals. The Union was in trouble; their armies were getting beaten even while out numbering and being better supplied than their foes. The North, by winning this battle, had crushed the rebel 's spirits and had stopped the seemingly invincible Army of Northern Virginia, and had ended the Confederate army terrorizing of the Union. Now history tells that Gettysburg was an important battle, but many people do not know the significance of the end results of this massive battle. Gettysburg was the major turning point in the Civil War. Some historians argue that Vicksburg and Sherman 's march to the sea also were major turning points of the war; they were. The loss of Vicksburg meant losing the Mississippi River. Having the Union in control of the river split the CSA and stopped the flow of men and supplies to needed places in the Southern struggle. The North 's control of the river allowed for an increase in Union war resources. Sherman 's march to the sea was extremely demoralizing to the South 's will to continue fighting. Sherman and his men carved a sixty-mile wide swath of destruction in the Confederacy 's heartland. Later, this hurt the Confederacy greatly, but up to this point the South was at its high tide and thinking a great push into the North would break the Union 's will to fight and a peace treaty would come soon. The Confederate army had been doing what
On July 1, 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac engaged the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia which had advance into the north. This would be the battle of all battles; it would be the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. Three days of warfare resulted in a Union victory at the cost was 51,000 American casualties. The Southern reason for rebellion was to break away from the Union and become a separate country, the Confederate States of America. Up to this point the rebels were winning battles with the successful leadership of their Southern generals. The Union was in trouble; their armies were getting beaten even while out numbering and being better supplied than their foes. The North, by winning this battle, had crushed the rebel 's spirits and had stopped the seemingly invincible Army of Northern Virginia, and had ended the Confederate army terrorizing of the Union. Now history tells that Gettysburg was an important battle, but many people do not know the significance of the end results of this massive battle. Gettysburg was the major turning point in the Civil War. Some historians argue that Vicksburg and Sherman 's march to the sea also were major turning points of the war; they were. The loss of Vicksburg meant losing the Mississippi River. Having the Union in control of the river split the CSA and stopped the flow of men and supplies to needed places in the Southern struggle. The North 's control of the river allowed for an increase in Union war resources. Sherman 's march to the sea was extremely demoralizing to the South 's will to continue fighting. Sherman and his men carved a sixty-mile wide swath of destruction in the Confederacy 's heartland. Later, this hurt the Confederacy greatly, but up to this point the South was at its high tide and thinking a great push into the North would break the Union 's will to fight and a peace treaty would come soon. The Confederate army had been doing what
Bibliography: Beringer, Richard E., Hattaway Herman, Jones Archer, and Still William N. Why The South Lost The Civil War. University of Georgia, 1986. Davis, Kenneth C. Don 't Know Much About History. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Underwood, Robert. (Editor) Retreat From Gettysburg: Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. New York, Oxford University, 1986 Being for the most part contributions by Union and Confederate officers Shaara, Michael. The Killer Angels. Crown Publishers New York, 1974 Great background information on the battle very detailed story of Gettysburg Wills, Garry. Lincoln at Gettysburg. Literary Research, 1992 Lincolns views on the result of Gettysburg