The museum exhibit at Gettysburg is one of the best we have visited. It began with an incredible film, "A New Birth of Freedom," narrated by Morgan Freeman and the Gettysburg Cyclorama which depicts the final day of the battle - Pickett's Charge. The museum exhibit that followed was full of relics, films, and photographs; both Rachel and I were overwhelmed by the impressive amount of artifacts and wealth of knowledge that was on display. We also lucked out in having the opportunity to see a special exhibit of additional artifacts on display for the 150th anniversary of the battle.
After lunch, we set out on a self-guided auto tour of the park. Monuments and cannons line the roadway and acted as a constant reminder to me of the sacrifices that were made on that ground. On the first day of the battle, July 1, 1863, the Confederate army successfully pushed back the Union troops, and on the 2nd, the Union troops held their position, leading to the 3rd and final day of the battle. On July 3, a cannonade raged for about 2 hours after which Lee ordered his men to launch a frontal attack, now known as Pickett's Charge. More than 14,000 troops marched out of the tree line across the field toward the Union line. Federal guns fell silent in awe of the vast number of men steadily marching toward them. The Union opened fire on the advancing rebels but the Confederates bravely marched on. They finally reached the Union lines where the fighting turned to hand-to-hand combat. They successfully broke through the Union lines at "the Angle" or "the high- water mark of the Confederacy," (the closest point they came to winning the war) but were quickly pushed back. The rebels were forced to retreat, Pickett's Charge had failed. Lee reportedly watched the assault from the tree line and exclaimed that "this has all been my fault." Over 50% of the Confederates who charged the Union lines didn't make it back to the tree line, including several generals. This ended the fighting at Gettysburg, but the battle was not yet over.
Thousands of bodies lay in the fields and in the buildings of Gettysburg. Four months later, President Lincoln traveled to the battle site to dedicate the Soldiers' National Cemetery. He delivered one of his most famous speeches, the Gettysburg Address, in which he so eloquently honored the fallen and redefined the purpose for fighting the war - preservation of the Union and true equality for all. There are over 3,500 solders buried in the cemetery, over half of them are unknown, several of them are simply marked by a number. I cannot find words to adequately describe the emotions that came over me as I sat on a bench and looked upon the resting place of these brave men. It was a shocking realization that these men were less than 10% of the casualties of the Battle of Gettysburg. It is a site I believe every American should see to remind them of the sacrifices that were made on our behalf and to serve as an example of what it means to truly fight for your freedom and rights.
The Virginia Memorial with a statue of General Robert E. Lee at the top. Lee watched Pickett's Charge from this location.
View of the field where Pickett's Charge occurred. The Virginia Memorial can be seen in the background on the tree line.
The gravestones which mark the resting places of the unknown soldiers who fell at Gettysburg.
I'll leave you with the words of one of the greatest men who has ever led our nation, a man who carried a burden most would crumble under:
"It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom - and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from earth."
Abraham Lincoln
Gettysburg Address
