Christian Wash
History Engine Rough Draft
General Ambrose Powell Hill, division leader of the fabled "Light Brigade" and eventual commander of the Third Corps under Robert E. Lee had a lot to live up to at the Battle of Gettysburg. The general was the former roommate of George B. McClellan, now Union foe, at West Point military academy and received much criticism for his tendency towards tardiness and subsequent high volume of stragglers during his marches when he raced to compensate. [1] Hill also clashed with several of his fellow Confederate generals, most notably the ever-praised Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson who had once arrested Hill in response to a quarrel between the two men. [2] These factors directly affect his account of the Battle of Gettysburg.
The Battle of Gettysburg came mere months after the devastating death of Jackson and there had been much argument over who would succeed the general. Robert E. Lee decided to split up Jackson's troops into three rather than two corps and he placed Hill in charge of the Third Corps, a position Hill would be eager to live up to. On the first day of battle Hill led his men in a march towards the town of Gettysburg, along the way they encountered Federal troops assumed to be cavalry. Not until it was too late did they realize that had in fact encountered a veteran Union force that was able to "dispute the further advance" of the Confederates. [3]Hill notes in his report "the want of cavalry had been and was again seriously felt" but the troops under him were able to push the enemy back through the town. At this point, Hill felt it prudent to cease fighting for the day and allow his men to rest. As he had long been criticized for not allowing his men mandatory rest breaks, this was a deliberate gesture on Hill's part. The next day fighting resumed and Hill describes the incredible resistance of the Union forces and the inability of his troops, guided by many able subordinates, to breach the line and he remarks they started day three in the same position they had started day two. Day three of the battle brought the famous Pickett's Charge, although Hill's report suggests this might be an ill-fitting moniker for the assault. Hill lists the troops engaged, putting no particular emphasis on Pickett's men and in conclusion of the charge, merely remarked "the assault failed and our troops fell back in disorder." This was a rather abrupt conclusion to the report on one of the Civil War's most important engagements.
[1] Robertson, James I. General A.P. Hill: The Story of a Confederate General. New
York: Random House, 1987.
[2] Bradley, Paul F. 1997. "Bad blood between confederate commanders." America's Civil War 10, no. 5: 46.Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed March 1, 2011).
[3] Hill, Ambrose P. "Report of Lieut. Gen. Ambrose P. Hill, C.S. Army, commanding Third Army Corps."In War of the Rebellion Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Part of Series I,Volume XXVII, Operations in- North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Department of the East, June 8 - August 3, 1863 Gettysburg Campaign. Washington Government Printing Office 1889. 606-608
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