With a few men he advanced to Cushing’s guns, where he fell, mortally wounded. Cushing also was mortally wounded. Garnett, who was mounted, was killed a short distance from the wall. Kemper was badly wounded. Pickett lost all of his field officers but one. The Union Generals Hancock and Gibbon were wounded at the same time. For a short time the struggle was hand to hand.
To the right of the Angle most of the brigades on Pickett’s left reached the stone wall on Hays’ front at Ziegler’s Grove, but were obliged to retreat after meeting a withering fire both in front and on flank.
The brigades of Wilcox and Perry, in the rear of Pickett’s right, did not move until after the advance lines were part way across. Because of a misunderstanding, a gap was opened between Pickett’s right and Wilcox’s left. At once Stannard’s Vermont Brigade of the 1st Corps attacked both Pickett’s right and Wilcox’s left.
General Pickett, who had reached the Codori buildings, saw that the assaulting forces were unable to accomplish the object of the charge, and ordered a retreat. It was accomplished, but with heavy losses.
Both commanding officers witnessed the retreat: General Meade from where his statue stands east of the Angle, and General Lee from the position of his statue north of the Spangler Woods.
Whitworth Guns.—These two Whitworths, imported from England by the Confederates, were the only breech-loading guns used in the battle
Engagements on the Union Left.
While Pickett’s Charge was under way, the Pennsylvania Reserves, under McCandless, charged from the stone wall on the east side of the Wheatfield and regained possession of Devil’s Den and adjacent territory held by Longstreet’s forces since the engagement of the afternoon of the 2nd. Farther south, between Big Round Top and the line held by Longstreet’s right, a cavalry charge was made by Farnsworth’s Brigade of Kilpatrick’s Division. Farnsworth was killed. Merritt’s Brigade of Buford’s Division, which reached the field on the 3rd, engaged some of Longstreet’s troops along the Emmitsburg Road. The accomplished object of these movements was to prevent Longstreet from giving assistance to the charge of Pickett on Meade’s center.