Why Is Gettysburg A Turning Point
Pooja Mistry
5/24/09
Battle of Gettysburg There was a lot of controversy as to why the U.S. Civil War had started. Many believe that it was merely a difference between the two cultures such as the north and the south. While the North was fighting to abolish slavery, the South was fighting to sustain slavery. The Confederate General, Robert E. Lee had proven to be invincible after his victories at Chancellorsville and Fredricksberg, and was finally defeated at Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg turned the tide of the war permanently against the South and became a major turning point in the war. This battle gave the union a greater advantage for winning the war and on July 1, 1863 shots were fired outside Gettysburg that marked the beginning of what would become one of the largest and most significant battles in the world. …show more content…
They had a great moral due to their general Robert E. Lee who was defeating the union in previous battles. Throughout the war the south was mainly playing a defensive role and the north would try to choke the south with their Anaconda Plan. The battle of Gettysburg however, was the south’s most northern battle and it gave the confederate army a chance to play more of an offensive role and possibly capture the union’s capital (Document A). If the confederacy had actually achieved this, there would have been a great chance that European countries would have aided the south and they could have won the war. But unfortunately for the southerners this was not the case and their defeat at the battle of Gettysburg and allowed the union to have a greater chance at winning the war. This single battle became a turning point of the civil war because it gave the northerners a chance at victory and made it much easier to defeat the
5/24/09
Battle of Gettysburg There was a lot of controversy as to why the U.S. Civil War had started. Many believe that it was merely a difference between the two cultures such as the north and the south. While the North was fighting to abolish slavery, the South was fighting to sustain slavery. The Confederate General, Robert E. Lee had proven to be invincible after his victories at Chancellorsville and Fredricksberg, and was finally defeated at Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg turned the tide of the war permanently against the South and became a major turning point in the war. This battle gave the union a greater advantage for winning the war and on July 1, 1863 shots were fired outside Gettysburg that marked the beginning of what would become one of the largest and most significant battles in the world. …show more content…
They had a great moral due to their general Robert E. Lee who was defeating the union in previous battles. Throughout the war the south was mainly playing a defensive role and the north would try to choke the south with their Anaconda Plan. The battle of Gettysburg however, was the south’s most northern battle and it gave the confederate army a chance to play more of an offensive role and possibly capture the union’s capital (Document A). If the confederacy had actually achieved this, there would have been a great chance that European countries would have aided the south and they could have won the war. But unfortunately for the southerners this was not the case and their defeat at the battle of Gettysburg and allowed the union to have a greater chance at winning the war. This single battle became a turning point of the civil war because it gave the northerners a chance at victory and made it much easier to defeat the