The Battle of Gettysburg

Craig L. Symonds

Jan 2017 · New Word City, Inc.

About this ebook

This stunning narrative of the epic Battle of Gettysburg begins with the clash of Union and Confederate armies at Chancellorsville and concludes with Robert E. Lee's retreat through Pennsylvania and escape across the Potomac. Award-winning historian Craig L. Symonds recounts the events of three hot, brutal days in July when Americans struggled battled one another across a dozen square miles of rolling Pennsylvania countryside.

Symonds details the military strategy of both sides, including the Confederate decision to invade the North, the cat-and-mouse game in Maryland and Pennsylvania, and, finally, the terrible clash of arms on the hills and fields of Gettysburg. Firsthand accounts humanize generals and individual soldiers of the Blue and Gray who fought for their lives, their homes, and their convictions.

This is the story of Gettysburg as it has never been told before.

Ratings and reviews

This is not really much about tactics and strategy in the civil war, or an orthodox military history. It does a good job of taking this battle down to the confusing detail of small units and individuals operating in the chaos of war. This battle - and many others - have been made to look rationally planned to some extent, rather than a product of bravery, stupidity and random chance by people in dire circumstances. This book should be read before /following other accounts as a counterpoint to the more orthodox histories of this decisive battle, and provides a decent read .At times it is a bit confusing in order to look at both sides without breaking up the narrative, but this is a minor issue

good book

About the author

Craig L. Symonds is a retired professor of history at the United States Naval Academy and the author of a number of highly praised books about the Civil War, including Joseph E. Johnson: A Civil War Biography and Stonewall of the West: Patrick Cleburne and the Civil War.