THE FAMOUS BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG

Lee, with moral running high, decided to launch another offensive against the North. In June, his Confederate army marched up the Shenandoah Valley route and into Pennsylvania. The Army of the Potomac, now under General George G. Meade, followed them north. Although neither army had any intention of fighting each other, both advanced towards the small town of Gettysburg.

Lee did not know exactly where the Union army were, because his "eyes", Stuart's cavalry, were out on a raid. The fighting started when a Confederate brigade, looking for badly needed shoes, ran into Union cavalry in Gettysburg on July 1. For the first three days of July, a Northern army of about 90,000 men battled against a Southern army of around 75,000 in the most famous battle in American history.

On the first day, July 1, both armies moved into position and prepared for battle. Union troops had set up their defences south of the town in a strong location that would have looked like an upside-down fishhook from above. The front ran for five kilometres along Cemetery Ridge, and ended at two small hills, Round Top and Little Round Top. The battle hardened

Confederate forces captured Seminary Ridge to the west of Gettysburg.

On the second day, July 2, Lee attempted to crack the Union's left flank and charge up and overrun Cemetery Hill. The charge destroyed a small Northern ar , hey were soon forced off the hill again by Union troops.

On the third and final day, July 3, Lee decided to attack the direct centre of the Union lines. After a heated artillery duel, he ordered 15,000 men led General George E. Pickett to charge the enemy defences. These men charged across an open field and ran up the slopes of Cemetery Ridge, ignoring the murderous enemy fire. Only a small portion of the troops reached the top of the ridge. Once there, they held their position for 20 brave minutes, until they were forced to flee by superior forces. One Confederate soldier said after the battle, "It ain't so hard to get to that ridge. The hell of it is to stay there." "Pickett's Charge", as it is famously named, is also often called "the high-water mark of the Confederacy". And it showed the suicidalness of frontal assaults over open ground against modern weapons.

Lee withdrew the remains of his battered army back to Virginia after the battle. Much to Lincoln's disappointment, Meade made no attempt to harass Lee's army on the way. Gettysburg was definitely the turning point in the war. Lee lost over 20,000 men, and he would never again have the manpower to launch any more major offensives.