Battles of the Civil War

by Thomas Elbert Vineyard

Little Round Top was saved to the Union army, but the cost was appalling. The hill was covered with hundreds of the slain. Many of the Confederate sharpshooters had taken position among the crevasses of the rocks in the Devil's Den, where they could overlook the position on Little Round Top, and their unerring aim spread death among the Federal officers. General Weed was mortally wounded, and, as General Hazlett was stooping to receive his last message, a sharpshooter's bullet laid him dead across the body of his chief.

During this attack, and for some time thereafter, the battle continued in the valley below, where many thousands were engaged. Longstreet and Sickles were engaged in a determined conflict, and it was apparent to all engaged that a decisive battle was being fought, and they were making a determined effort. Sickles' line was being pressed back to the base of the hill. His leg was shattered by a bursting shell, while scores of his officers and thousands of his men lay on the field to dream of battlefields no more. The coming of darkness ended the struggle. This valley has been rightly called the "Valley of Death."

While this battle was going on in this part of the field another was being fought at the other extreme end of the lines. General Ewell was making an attack on Cemetery Hill and Culp's Hill, held by Slocum, who had been weakened by the sending of a large portion of his corps to the assistance of General Sickles. Ewell had three divisions, two of which were commanded by Generals Early and Johnston. Early made the attack on Cemetery Hill, but was repulsed after a bloody and desperate hand-to-hand fight. Johnston's attack on Culp's Hill was more successful, but was at length repulsed after the Federals had been heavily reënforced.

Thus closed the second day's battle of Gettysburg. The harvest of death had been great. The Federal loss during the two days was about 20,000 men; the Confederate loss was nearly as great. The Confederates had gained an apparent advantage on Culp's Hill, but the Union lines, except as to this point, were unbroken.

On the night of July 2d Lee held council of war with his generals and decided to make a grand assault on Meade's center the following day. Against this decision Longstreet protested in vain, but Lee was encouraged by the arrival of Pickett's division and Stuart's cavalry, which had not yet been engaged. Meade had held council with his officers, and had come to a like decision to defend.

That night a brilliant July moon shed its luster upon the ghastly field, over which thousands of men lay unable to rise. With many their last battle was over, but there were great numbers of wounded who were calling for the kindly touch of a helping hand. Nor did they call wholly in vain. They were carried to the improvised hospitals where they were given attention. The dead were buried in unknown graves soon to be forgotten except by their loving mothers.

All through the night the Confederates were massing their artillery along Seminary Ridge. The disabled horses were being replaced by others. The ammunition was being replenished, and all was being made ready for their work of destruction on the morrow.

The Federals were diligently laboring in the moonlight arranging their batteries on Cemetery Hill. The coming of morning revealed the two parallel lines of cannon which signified too well the story of what the day would bring forth.

On the first day of July, 1863, Pickett's division was encamped near Chambersburg, Penn., about twenty miles from Gettysburg.

This division was composed of three brigades, commanded by Armistead, Garnett and Kemper. They had no intimation that they would be called on to take part in the battle that was going on at Gettysburg. They had been following up as the rear guard of the Army of Northern Virginia.