While the name may sound familiar to a few of you it is no household name.. but it should be. You see, Joshua Chamberlain was a teacher. An average guy! Just like all the teachers you and I know so well. However, at one point he was also a coronel of the union army. Now, Chamberlain was not a coronel because he had proven himself through years of service or anything. Again, the guys a teacher. Chamberlain was a coronel because he was literally the first man in his home town to volunteer! So on July 3rd of 1863 he was placed three quarters of the way up a hill on the far side of Gettysburg and told whatever you do you can’t leave here. You can’t leave here because if the enemy breaches you, they are going to come down and catch us on a down hill charge. That day the 15th and 47th Alabama came trotting down and they took their first charge. Chamberlain and his men held them. They charged again, and they held their ground. They charged again and again, and by the 4th time Chamberlains men used all of their ammunition and every bit of power they had in them but they held their ground. Now they had started with over a thousand men but were now down to just 80. His men begged him to turned back. He stood no chance. But Chamberlain yelled “Charge!” It was suicide. They had no ammo left, but Chamberlain yelled “Charge!” Then 80 men flew over the wall and made history. One guy made one move 180 years ago. 80 men captured over 400 of the enemy because of this one move and historians say that single event was the turning point of the entire civil war and he is the reason that America is what it is
While the name may sound familiar to a few of you it is no household name.. but it should be. You see, Joshua Chamberlain was a teacher. An average guy! Just like all the teachers you and I know so well. However, at one point he was also a coronel of the union army. Now, Chamberlain was not a coronel because he had proven himself through years of service or anything. Again, the guys a teacher. Chamberlain was a coronel because he was literally the first man in his home town to volunteer! So on July 3rd of 1863 he was placed three quarters of the way up a hill on the far side of Gettysburg and told whatever you do you can’t leave here. You can’t leave here because if the enemy breaches you, they are going to come down and catch us on a down hill charge. That day the 15th and 47th Alabama came trotting down and they took their first charge. Chamberlain and his men held them. They charged again, and they held their ground. They charged again and again, and by the 4th time Chamberlains men used all of their ammunition and every bit of power they had in them but they held their ground. Now they had started with over a thousand men but were now down to just 80. His men begged him to turned back. He stood no chance. But Chamberlain yelled “Charge!” It was suicide. They had no ammo left, but Chamberlain yelled “Charge!” Then 80 men flew over the wall and made history. One guy made one move 180 years ago. 80 men captured over 400 of the enemy because of this one move and historians say that single event was the turning point of the entire civil war and he is the reason that America is what it is