Battle Of Gettysburg Essay

The Battle of Gettysburg was a key battle in the Civil War. It gave the Union hope because they thought General Lee was undefeatable. But it also weakened both sides greatly. The Battle of Gettysburg was started when General Robert E Lee was invading the North for the second time. At the same time the Army of the Potomac lead by General George G Meade were moving troops to intercept Lee before he got too far north. The battle itself was a total accident though. When the two of the armies brigades were passing through a crossroads at Gettysburg. A skirmish broke out which turned into a three day battle. From July 1-3 in 1863. On the first day the Iron Brigade battled General Heath’s. The Iron Brigade one of the best in the Union lost nearly

To this day it is largest battle ever fought on American soil. The battle brought big changes to Gettysburg for months after words even into the late into next year. The citizens of Gettysburg dug graves and hospitalizing troops from both sides until January 1684. In 1863 not long after the battle the citizens pleaded to the governor for the state to purchase part of the battle field as a cemetery ground for the soldiers whose graves were scattered upon the land. David Willis a lawyer from Gettysburg coordinated everything with the state to founded the 17 acre Soldier’ National Cemetery. Eventually on October 27th 1863 the spot where the cemetery would be placed was chosen. The spot that was chosen was where the Union retaliated Pickett’s Charge. The cemetery was designed by the landscape architect William Saunders. On November 19th 1863 four months after the battle the cemetery was dedicated. This is when President Lincoln gave his famous 272 word speech that is known as the Gettysburg address. The interesting fact is that Edward Everett the key speaker gave a 2 hour speech before Lincoln and he is not nearly as well known. The cemetery would be the grave of over 3,500 Union soldiers and only a handful of Confederate troops because the cemetery was mainly for Union troops and because the Confederates would bury their troops in Virginia, Georgia and the