What was the reason for the Battle of Gettysburg?

Answer 1

The Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863) occurred as a result of an ambitious plan by Confederate general Robert E. Lee to force Lincoln to keep large numbers of troops in the North to prevent attacks by Southern armies. This would have reduced the forces available to invade Virginia and the rest of the South.

Crossing from Virginia (through West Virginia and Maryland) into southern Pennsylvania, Lee forced Lincoln to send the Army of the Potomac north from Washington in pursuit. The two armies collided when Lee's forces turned south seeking supplies. (The story that there were large numbers of shoes that he needed was apparently circulated at a later date.)

Answer 2

The battle occurred when Robert E. Lee attempted to circle through Pennsylvania to reach northern farms from which his troops could obtain provisions (the war was exhausting Confederate supplies in Virginia). His plan was to attack cities in the North, even Washington DC, to distract the Union forces engaged in the war.

Once aware of Lee's movements, the Union assembled a reinforced Army of the Potomac under General George Meade to confront the invaders. Gettysburg is due north of Washington DC. Union troops crossed the Potomac to the west and pursued Lee, who was heading northeast. The battle took place when Lee turned back to the south to engage Meade.

Answer 3

Many historians say General Lee wanted the land there, and because there were five roads that led into Gettysburg it was valuable property.

There are several reasons. General Lee had plans to move to the area of Gettysburg if the Union army began pressing them. Also, there are five roads that lead into Gettysburg. So any troop movement would easily lead some or all of them to use a road that lead to Gettysburg.

Many people say that the Confederates were raiding Gettysburg to look for shoes. That doesn't seem to fit the facts as one entire Confederates brigade moved through there a few days earlier.

General Hill's corps moved towards Gettysburg to locate the Union forces. General Stuart's cavalry was not there to provide screening so they were not sure where the Union were. They arrived at the edge of the town and saw enemy troops but thought they were local militia and attacked them---thus began the 3-day battle.

The First Day was when the 1st and 11th corps were attacked by Confederate 2nd and 3rd Corps. The Second Day was when the Confederate Army tried to outflank the Union Army. The Third Day included Pickett's Charge where 12,500 Confederate soldiers attacked the Union Center.

With the failure of Day 2 & 3 General Lee withdrew from Gettysburg barely pursued by the Federal Army. Thus was the Battle of Gettysburg a Federal Victory and General Lee's first major defeat of the war.

Answer 4

Confederate side

General Lee's main task was that to set up a huge strategic trap in order to destroy or to badly defeat the Army of the Potomac, giving battle at a place accurately chosen.

By what means? By means of a "strategic intimidation" in which he was a great master.

As statement of fact, on June 28, 1863, the Confederates reached the Susquehanna on a front of 40 Km. After a march of some 100 km they could now menacing both Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Their State's authority an the whole Union were panicked.

Lee's divisions were now lined up along an ample arch, whose concaveness directed southward.

The Army of Potomac coming up from the south, its Corps scattered in a long line, was marching towards the centre of the arc.

Lee, was aware about the situation in which the Army of Potomac was going to get into and, during a meeting of his staff pointed a finger on the map, indicating a little town, that of Gettysburg. Gettysburg was roughly at a point toward which all the roads leading southward were joining.

Had Lee won the battle, the Confederacy would have achieved the acknowledgment as an independent country from France and Great Britain, which would have probably intervened in the conflict.

Union side

Union's High Command gave Gen. Meade following instructions regarding the campaign in progress:

1 - to cover as far as possible Washington and Philadelphia.

2 - Should Lee had moved against one of them a battle had to be given to check the menace.

Meade confirmed he intended move toward the Susquehanna, keeping both Washington and Baltimore well covered, trying to rapidly give battle.

Since Meade was constantly kept informed about the enemy army's dislocation and movements by his cavalry, he was aware that a battle was about to be fight on the ground surrounding Gettysburg.

He therefore decided:

1 - to approve his subordinates' initiative of immediately engaging the enemy units in order to hinder or delay their deployment on the battle ground, enabling the bulk of his army to concentrate and deploy on the high ground.

2 - to held at all costs the high ground, fighting a defensive battle, thus enabling the exploitation of the position, the superior power of his artillery and the manoeuvre through internal lines.

The major objectives were:

A - Force Lee to attack through the open ground in order to inflict to the Confederate Army so heavy casualties, to convince him to give up the prosecution of his campaign of invasion and retreat.

B - After achieving this goal, to pursue the retreating Lee's Army, seeking to destroy or scatter them.

Answer 5

General Lee's plan was two-fold. Lee decided to take the war to Northern territory as a relief measure to protect the Confederate Capitol, Richmond. Also, Lee's men were in dire need of supplies not to be had in the South.

ANSWER

Because General Lee's main task was that to set up a huge strategic trap in order to destroy or to badly defeat the Army of the Potomac, giving battle at a place accurately chosen.

By what means? By means of a "strategic intimidation" in which he was a great master.

As statement of fact, on June 28, 1863, the Confederates reached the Susquehanna on a front of 40 Km. After a march of some 100 km they could now menacing both Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Their State's authority an the whole Union were panicked.

Lee's divisions were now lined up along an ample arc, whose concaveness directed southward.

The Army of Potomac coming up from the south, its Corps scattered in a long line, was marching towards the centre of the arc.

Lee, was aware about the situation in which the Army of Potomac was going to get into and, during a meeting of his staff pointed a finger on the map, indicating a little town, that of Gettysburg. Gettysburg was roughly at a point toward which all the roads leading southward were joining.

General Trimble reported he was told by Lee that most probably a great battle was going to be fought there and had the Almighty given the victory to his army, the Confederacy would have eventually gained the independence.

But the outcome was different.

Answer 6

The Battle of Gettysburg - July 1 to July 3, 1863.

To be truthful, the battle was a fluke. Lee had invaded the North, and was unsure where the Yankees were, due to Stuart's abscence. Stuart was trying to ride completely around the Union army, a feat he had accomplished before. But this time the federals were more spread out, and it took Stuart til the afternoon of the second day to arrive. But Heth's troops bumped into the federals by accident in Gettysburg, and the great battle began.

It all started as a small skirmish between a few union and confederate soldiers who met inside the city of Gettysburg while trying to find shoes. However, the battle escalated, and the union troops retreated to a group of hills in the shape of a fishook, which included big and little round top, as well as cemetery ridge. The topography made it extremely easy to cover and defend, and the battle commenced.

Robert E. Lee marched north in June, 1863, with two objectives. One was to find provisions for his troops as supplies in Virginia were running short. The second was to distract the Union armies that were preparing to move south into the Confederacy.

The battle occurred as Union forces were marching north from Washington to stop the Confederates from going farther into the North. The troops under Robert E. Lee had moved north from Virginia and across the narrowest part of Maryland, into southern Pennsylvania. They had turned east when the Union forces approached, and attacked through Gettysburg to the south. The Union forces under General Meade established defensive positions south of the city and held off two further days of attacks. When Lee could not entice the Union to leave its positions on July 4, he withdrew his forces to the west.

Answer 7

The Battle of Gettysburg is used as an example in Military Science of a "Meeting Engagement" that is a battle which takes place because two opposing armies literally march into each other without time for either side to make defensive or offensive depositions. A chance encounter. In late June of 1863 The Army of Northern Virginia under General Lee invaded Pennsylvania and split into three corps covering large portions of the state. The Army of the Potomac under the new leadership of General George Meade responded in pursuit from their positions in Frederick County Maryland. All roads in that area converged on Gettysburg and that's is where Lee's army came into collision with Meade's Army while trying to unite from the north. The simple answer is that Gettysburg was a major crossroads (eight roads converge there) which attracted all the armies to that point.

Answer 8

They had to protect the roads going from the area into Baltimore and Washington DC to prevent the Confederate forces from capturing the capital.