Hey Skylar, About Gettysburg

[Jackie S]

I think that Robert E Lee should have been tried for Murder.

He insisted on using outdated Napoleanic Tactics, (where armies simply lined up about 100 yards apart and blasted away with extremely inacurrate smooth bore muskets), against weapons that made such tactics suicidal.

The American Civil War was the first major conflict where the Rifled Musket, firing the Mine Ball, was used. This meant that soldiers could accurately use aimed fire up to 500 yards with the Rifled Musket and Mine-Ball round. The addition of the "cannister round", (a can filled with a multitude of lead balls), turned the standard 6 pounder artillery cannon into a huge shot gun that could literally sweep large holes in the ranks of marching soldiers for up to 200 yards out. The Northern Troops had no less than 30 of them lined up, waiting.

Lee, against the advice of several of his Generals, (mainly General Longstreet), insisted on carrying out Picketts Charge, thinking that the Northern Troops, when confronted with the awesome sight of 15,000 Confederates marching toward them, would do as they had been known to do in previous engagements, panic and run. But instead, The Northern Troops, Under General Hancock, took to barracade, and simply mowed down the marching divisions as they made a vane attempt to cross that field.

Lee sent 15,000 men into a slaughter house. His utter stupidity in this act was shown at it's height when, after the massacre, he told Gen Pickett to re-assemble his Division. Pickett simply said, "General Lee, I have no Division".

Lee showed his culpibility in their deaths because his Troops had done the same thing to the Union Troops at Fredricksburg. The Confederates, barracaded behind a sunken road, and simply mowed down entire Union Companies as the marched forward. Lee should have learned a lesson. He obviously was too blinded by his previous training, and lack of regard for the effectivness of the "modern" weaponry, to understand the graveness of using such tactics.

Fascinating stuff. Old men having young men slaugtered because of arrogance, and stupidity.

[pantsontheground]

Its spelled fascinating.

[Jackie S]

Corrected.

[AdventureAdams]

I got a thread with my name in it! * does a tiny little happy dance*

While I was in the field I also thought "Wow, what a bold move" but you gotta understand that the confederates had such a hard on for Lee, they felt like he could do no wrong. They were willing to look the other way because they thought Lee would truly win the war, even after this huge set back.

[I B Hankering]

Originally Posted by SkylarCruzWantsYou

I got a thread with my name in it! * does a tiny little happy dance*

While I was in the field I also thought "Wow, what a bold move" but you gotta understand that the confederates had such a hard on for Lee, they felt like he could do no wrong. They were willing to look the other way because they thought Lee would truly win the war, even after this huge set back.

The men were sure of themselves as well. Time and again, Union troops broke under pressure from Lee's army.

@ Jackie, it wasn't until Cold Harbor that Civil War generals truly understood they were fighting a different war than Napoleon and Wellington had fought.

[Laz]

Historically generals usually fight the current war based on the last wars tactics until they learn the hard way that technology has made those tactics obsolete. That usually takes some time and a lot of lives.

[AdventureAdams]

I like this thread. I'm not going to say I am a huge civil war buff ( that's my atf- he is a American war enthusiast) after all my historical outings with him I respect Lee for the great leader he was, dude was super smart and was successful at what he did (-ya know- til he lost the war lol)

[cptjohnstone]

Wrong

Lee did send Pickett but Jeb Stuart's cavalry of 3 brigades were going around the hill to come up from the other side. However, for some reason, a young Union cavalry general by the name of George Custer stop them with about 100 men.

Else we would being singing dixie at baseball games

I believe it was public tv that did a special on the civil war and I have study it for 50 years. Anyway the South was still in the war until the spring of 1864. Lee was keeping the Union away from Richmond and they were not able to get to Atlanta until, for some stupid reason, Jefferson Davis changed generals and Sherman was able to break through.

Had this not happened, Lincoln would have lost the election of 1864 or so they say

[AdventureAdams]

Originally Posted by cptjohnstone

Had this not happened, Lincoln would have lost the election of 1864 or so they say

Ahh... what could have been

Have you fellas ever seen the "C.S.A" mockumentary?

[Jackie S]

Hey Guys and Gals, as I pointed out, Lee had the experience of what his troops did to the Union Troops at Fredricksburg, he should have known better.

Besides, it is reported, though not confirmed, that when Lee told Longstreet that he surely believed that the Union Troops would panic and run, Longstreet answered, "that's Hancock up there, he ain't runnin".

It is said that General Hancock spent the entire time of Pickett's Charge on his horse, inspiring his men to pour it to the advancing Confederates, untill a bullet took him down. Even then he refused to be taken from the field, telling his aids, "there are times when a Commander's life does not matter".

As a child of the South, (born in Alabama), I have always had mixed feelings about The War Between The States. But I am thankful that the Union prevailed and the United States of America stayed that way.

By the way. Notice I did not say Civil War. It is a misnomer to call that war a "civil war". A true civil war means one faction fights another for the controle of a Country. Since the South declared its self independent, and was perfectly fine with letting the North be, what we had was not a true civil war. It was in truth a war between two different Countrys, one fighting for it's independence from the other. Hense, "The War Between The States".

An example of a true civil war is what happenned in Russia when the Communist battled the Whites, (loyalist), for controle of Russia.

[JD Barleycorn]

Skylar, one of my former teachers was the screenwriter for C.S.A. He teaches film at a major university.

One thing that no one is talking about are the CSA cannon, specifically the fuses. Lee's cannons had just gotten in a shipment of exploding cannon balls from the armory and they never got a chance to test the fuses. Lee bombarded the Union line on Cemetary Ridge for hours before the assault. In fact it is referred to the largest use of artillery in the history of the world at that time. The problem is that the the shells were detonating past the Union line. From where the CSA batteries were located it looked they were on target but in fact they did little damage. If the fuses had been tested (altitude and humidity changes performance) then the Union line would have likely taken heavy losses and considering that some of the CSA soldiers made to the stone wall Picketts charge would probably have been sucessful. Could Pickett have held is a matter of debate but it is also probable that Union line would have collapsed for the remainder of the day. At that point it would have been better than even odds of a Confederate win. Sometimes it is the little things that count.

[I B Hankering]

Originally Posted by Jackie S

Hey Guys and Gals, as I pointed out, Lee had the experience of what his troops did to the Union Troops at Fredricksburg, he should have known better.

Besides, it is reported, though not confirmed, that when Lee told Longstreet that he surely believed that the Union Troops would panic and run, Longstreet answered, "that's Hancock up there, he ain't runnin".

It is said that General Hancock spent the entire time of Pickett's Charge on his horse, inspiring his men to pour it to the advancing Confederates, untill a bullet took him down. Even then he refused to be taken from the field, telling his aids, "there are times when a Commander's life does not matter".

As a child of the South, (born in Alabama), I have always had mixed feelings about The War Between The States. But I am thankful that the Union prevailed and the United States of America stayed that way.

By the way. Notice I did not say Civil War. It is a misnomer to call that war a "civil war". A true civil war means one faction fights another for the controle of a Country. Since the South declared its self independent, and was perfectly fine with letting the North be, what we had was not a true civil war. It was in truth a war between two different Countrys, one fighting for it's independence from the other. Hense, "The War Between The States".

An example of a true civil war is what happenned in Russia when the Communist battled the Whites, (loyalist), for controle of Russia.

Author Shelby Foote was a Mississippian. He wrote a fine, three volume history about the military actions during the war. It was called The Civil War: A Narrative.

[Jackie S]

Shelby Foote did quite a bit of the narrative on The Civil War series that ran on PBS a few years back that was produced by Ken Burns. he has a "matter of fact" way of putting things.

JD, Lee also failed to heed the advice of his Artillery Commander, Porter Alexander. Alexander told him that there were delays in getting re-supplied after the bombardment, and he should not send in the Infantry without Artillery support. Lee sent them anyway, knowing that Jeb Stuart's Calvary was coming around the rear. Of course, as was pointed out, Stuart never made it either.

In General Pickett's memoirs, he stated his absolute distain for what Lee did with the words, "That old man destroyed my Division".

[Whirlaway]

Is it springtime at Gettysburg yet........

On this day, 1865: Lincoln meets with Generals U.S. Grant and William T. Sherman at City Point, Virginia.

[AdventureAdams]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

Is it springtime at Gettysburg yet........

On this day, 1865: Lincoln meets with Generals U.S. Grant and William T. Sherman at City Point, Virginia.

Do they do re-enactments at Gettysburg on the battle's anniversary?