The Battle of Gettysburg was a three-day battle in the American Civil War fought between Union and Confederate forces between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, which was won by the Union, is widely considered the Civil War's turning point, ending the Confederacy's aspirations to establish an independent nation. It was the Civil War's bloodiest battle, claiming over 50,000 combined casualties over three days.
The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union Maj. Gen. John Pope's Army of Virginia, and a battle of much larger scale and numbers than the First Battle of Bull Run fought on July 21, 1861, on the same ground.
The 20th Maine Infantry Regiment was a volunteer regiment of the United States Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), most famous for its defense of Little Round Top at the Battle of Gettysburg in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 1–3, 1863. The 133rd Engineer Battalion of the Maine Army National Guard and the United States Army today carries on the lineage and traditions of the 20th Maine.
Pickett's Charge was an infantry assault on 3 July 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg. It was ordered by Confederate General Robert E. Lee as part of his plan to break through Union lines and achieve a decisive victory in the North. The charge was named after Major General George Pickett, one of the division commanders under the Confederate Army's command. The assault was aimed at the center of the Union Army's position on Cemetery Ridge, which was believed to be a vulnerable point in the Union defenses. As the Confederate troops marched across nearly a mile of open ground, they came under heavy artillery and rifle fire from entrenched Union forces. The open terrain offered little cover, making the Confederate soldiers easy targets, and their ranks were quickly decimated. Although a small number of the Confederate soldiers managed to reach the Union lines and engage in hand-to-hand combat, they were ultimately overwhelmed. The charge ended in a disastrous defeat for the Confederates, with more than half of the men involved either killed, wounded, or captured. Pickett's Charge marked the climax of the Battle of Gettysburg. The failure of the charge crushed the Confederate Army's hopes of winning a decisive victory in the North and forced General Lee to retreat back to Virginia.
Culp's Hill, which is about 3⁄4 mi (1,200 m) south of the center of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, played a prominent role in the Battle of Gettysburg. It consists of two rounded peaks, separated by a narrow saddle. Its heavily wooded higher peak is 630 ft (190 m) above sea level. The lower peak is about 100 feet shorter than its companion. The eastern slope descends to Rock Creek, about 160 feet lower in elevation, and the western slope is to a saddle with Stevens Knoll with a summit 100 ft (30 m) lower than the main Culp's Hill summit. The hill was owned in 1863 by farmer Henry Culp and was publicized as "Culp's Hill" by October 31, 1865.
Cemetery Ridge is a geographic feature in Gettysburg National Military Park, south of the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that figured prominently in the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1 to July 3, 1863. It formed a primary defensive position for the Union Army during the battle, roughly the center of what is popularly known as the "fish-hook" line. The Confederate States Army launched attacks on the Union positions on the second and third days of the battle, but were driven back both times.
George Jerrison Stannard was a Vermont farmer, teacher, government official and Union general in the American Civil War.
The first day of the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War took place on July 1, 1863, and began as an engagement between isolated units of the Army of Northern Virginia under Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the Army of the Potomac under Union Maj. Gen. George G. Meade. It soon escalated into a major battle which culminated in the outnumbered and defeated Union forces retreating to the high ground south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
During the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee attempted to capitalize on his first day's accomplishments. His Army of Northern Virginia launched multiple attacks on the flanks of the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. George G. Meade. The assaults were unsuccessful, and resulted in heavy casualties for both sides.
The 8th Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater in a number of campaigns and battles, but perhaps is most noted for its actions in helping repulse Pickett's Charge during the Battle of Gettysburg.
The 17th Georgia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.
The 26th North Carolina Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed of ten companies that came from various counties across North Carolina and Virginia. It is famous for being the regiment with the largest number of casualties on either side during the war.
Thomas Algeo Rowley was a Union Army general in the American Civil War. Following charges about the conduct of his officers at Gettysburg, Rowley was tried by a court martial that was later declared biased, and he was reinstated.
George Fisher McFarland was an American educator from Juniata County, Pennsylvania and an officer in the Union Army during the Civil War. He was the lieutenant colonel of the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry and commanded the regiment in severe combat during first day of the Battle of Gettysburg.
Chapman Biddle was a member of the prominent Biddle family of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who served as an officer in the Union Army in the American Civil War. He commanded a brigade of infantry at the Battle of Gettysburg.
The 68th New York Infantry Regiment served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Also known as the Cameron Rifles or the Second German Rifle Regiment, the men were mostly German immigrants. Organized in July 1861, three months after the outbreak of war, the 68th saw service in the Eastern and Western theaters.
The Excelsior Brigade was a military unit in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Mainly composed of infantry regiments raised in the state of New York primarily by former U.S. Representative Daniel Sickles, the brigade served in several of the Army of the Potomac's most important battles in the Eastern Theater, including Chancellorsville and Gettysburg.
George Lamb Willard was an officer in the United States Army who served in the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. He lost his life leading a brigade in the II Corps at the Battle of Gettysburg. Colonel Willard was the namesake of Fort Willard.
The railway cut of the Gettysburg Battlefield was the place of an 1863 military engagement during the first Day of the Battle of Gettysburg, near the Edward McPherson farmhouse. It was an excavation in which railroad tracks had not yet been placed, but which provided a deep entrenchment. During the day, units from the Union Army of the Potomac deployed near the railway cut to contest the attacks of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. The Confederates were held off during the morning and early afternoon but were able to drive off the Union army due to superior numbers.
The 2nd South Carolina Infantry Regiment, also known as 2nd Palmetto Regiment, was a Confederate States Army regiment in the American Civil War.
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