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Gettysburg, Battle of
Gettysburg, Battle of (1–3 July 1863) A battle in the AMERICAN CIVIL WAR. On 1 July elements of the Army of Northern Virginia under LEE and the Union Army of the Potomac under Meade came into contact west of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Although early Confederate attacks were repulsed, the arrival of reinforcements forced the Union troops to retreat back through the town. By the following day, however, fresh Union troops in strong defensive positions on Cemetery Ridge repelled Confederate attacks. On the third day, Pickett's charge against the centre of the Union line was defeated with heavy losses, and Lee was forced to abandon his invasion of the North. He lost 20,000 men from a force of 70,000 and Meade 23,000 from one of 93,000. The retreat from Gettysburg, together with the simultaneous surrender of VICKSBURG in the west, marked the turning point of the war, although over a year and a half of heavy fighting would follow before Lee was finally forced to surrender.
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"Gettysburg, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Gettysburg, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-GettysburgBattleof.html "Gettysburg, Battle of." A Dictionary of World History. 2000. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O48-GettysburgBattleof.html |
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Gettysburg, Battle of
Gettysburg, Battle of (July 1–3, 1863) a Civil War battle in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that was the bloodiest and most decisive of the war. Combined casualties, with slightly more on the Confederate side, were more than 50,000. Numerous forces took part, principally under the command of Gen. George G. Meade on the Union side and Gen. Robert E. Lee for the South. It was a Union victory through slow attrition; Lee's army began retreating on July 4, 1863. The South made no further invasions and could never make up the losses in men and equipment it suffered here.
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"Gettysburg, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Gettysburg, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-GettysburgBattleof.html "Gettysburg, Battle of." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-GettysburgBattleof.html |
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Gettysburg, Battle of
Gettysburg, Battle of (1–3 July, 1863) Decisive campaign of the American Civil War, fought over three days near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Union army of George Gordon Meade checked the invasion of Pennsylvania by the Confederate forces of Robert E. Lee. The battle was a turning point. The heavy casualties (c.20,000 each side) prompted Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.
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Cite this article
"Gettysburg, Battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Gettysburg, Battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-GettysburgBattleof.html "Gettysburg, Battle of." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-GettysburgBattleof.html |
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