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Why was The Battle of Gettysburg important?

Posted on 23. Mar, 2010 by Iwind in History

Everyone will tell you that the Battle of Gettysburg was important because it was a significant turning point of the US civil war. And they are right, but to really understand why The Battle of Gettysburg was so important, it is crucial to understand what was going on at the time.

The states of the southern United States called themselves the Confederacy when they formally broke away from the United States in an effort to become their own nation. The Confederacy made this move because they felt the northern politicians were not acting in their best interest concerning the nation’s laws and regulations. The South was primarily an agricultural economy while the North relied on manufacture and industry as its financial basis. When the North began to increase tariffs upon the goods from the South, the landowners began to rebel. They felt the high tariffs were excessive and punitive. As a result, they formed an alliance and seceded from the United States, whereupon the war began.

In 1862, things were not going well for the Confederacy in their western territories. Ulysses S. Grant had forged his way across the Mississippi River, a much-needed foothold for the South — lost to the North. They had also lost New Orleans and Vicksburg looked to fall soon enough.

General Robert E. Lee knew a foray into Northern territory would go far in mending those rips in the war-torn fabric of the Confederacy. The Battle of Gettysburg became quite important as the Southern Army forged a very deep path into Northern territory, and it became a great achievement for them. It did not bode well for the North and President Abraham Lincoln wanted very much to downgrade the appearance that the North was losing the war.

In July of 1863, the Northern troops knew that the Southern troops were somewhere in the North, but it was a chance encounter in the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that alerted them to the Southern Army’s exact whereabouts. The Southern troops held the town, but the Northern troops were able to reclaim and regroup in the hills around Gettysburg.

This was a good move for the North, as they were able to receive backup support in the form of much-needed troops and supplies. Before this point in the war, the South had been out-manning and out-gunning the North in the Eastern areas, under General Lee’s command. When the Battle of Gettysburg began in earnest, the South threw themselves at the Northern troops with their usual fervor. But the ensuing battle left the Southern troops worn out and without backup for their depleted supplies and thinning troops. President Lincoln was able to call the battle a victory for the North.

But more than a physical victory, the Battle of Gettysburg was important because it held a psychological victory for the North, as well. The Southern troops were decimated, demoralized and defeated. When the Confederate troops left the area, their train of wagons and ambulances stretched 17 miles long. As many as 4,500 Southern Confederate soldiers were killed, along with some 3,100 Union troops. While it did not decide the war, the Battle of Gettysburg is important because it turned the tide of war. Two years later, the North claimed victory.

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