The Battle of Gettysburg is one of the greatest battles of the Civil War (1863-1865), which was fought on July 1-3, 1863. It is quite commonly accepted as a turning point in this war. The commander-in-chief of the Union troops was General Robert Meade, while the Confederate troops were commanded by General Robert E. Lee. It is assumed, although the data are sometimes divergent, that the Union engaged about 95,000 in this battle. people, while the Confederation - approx. 75 thousand. people. The Battle of Gettysburg was preceded by the Battle of Chancellorsville, which was completely lost by the Union's troops, which undoubtedly did not have a positive effect on the morale of the "blue people". Despite having slightly smaller forces, the initiative in the Battle of Gettysburg was shown very clearly by Robert E. Lee, who wanted to destroy the Union troops. It should be added, however, that the beginning of the battle was not to his liking, as he was not able to bring all the forces at his disposal into the fight in the first hours. Moreover, the hilly and wooded terrain favored the defenders (Unia) rather than the attackers (Confederation) in several places. On the second day, Lee repeated attacks on enemy positions, but they did not bring a decisive solution. Also, the frontal attack carried out by General Pickett's army on July 3 (3rd day of the battle) ended in a defeat - what's more it was paid for with bloody losses on the side of the South. The battle undoubtedly ended in a great defeat for the Confederation, but the data on the losses on both sides are unclear. American studies most often indicate that General Lee lost about 27-28 thousand of the wounded, killed and missing. people, and General Meade - about 23 thousand. people.
The American Civic War (1861-1865) was fought between the United States of America (USA), called the Union during this war, and the Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly known as Confederation. The main cause of the outbreak of the war, among many others, also of considerable importance, was the announcement of the Confederation's secession (secession) from the Union. Of course, both in the North and in the South, when the war broke out, the army began to be built. In the case of the Union's army, the main type of armed force - when it comes to numbers - was the infantry. The infantry was formed into regiments that were divided into companies. The full-time US infantry regiments had 700-1000 men, especially at the beginning of the war, but in practice the force of the regiments was from 300 to 400 men. It is worth adding that the regiments were formed into brigades with the strength of about 1500-2000 people, and those into divisions. The basic weapon of a US infantry at that time was a rifle with a rifled barrel, often made by Spencer, with a caliber of 14.73 mm and an effective range of up to 500 meters. On top of that, of course, was the bayonet. It is worth adding that the Union's infantry was perceived as inferior to its Confederate counterpart. It often gave way to its morale and will to fight - especially in the initial period of a conflict. Often, especially at the division or corps level, it was also less well-commanded. On the other hand, it was better equipped, often also better nourished, and often outnumbered the enemy. With time, also, especially after 1863, the qualitative difference began to blur very much. It is worth adding that during the entire Civil War, the Union mobilized approx. 2.1 million people for arms, of which approx. 350-400 thousand. people died, and you can also find data that over 500,000 died. Union soldiers.
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly known as the Confederation, were established in 1861, announcing their separation (secession) from the Union, ie the United States of America. This event, as well as many others, also of considerable importance, led to the outbreak of the bloodiest war in the history of the United States, known as the American Civic War, which was fought in the years 1861-1865. Of course, both in the North and in the South, when the war broke out, the army began to be built. In the case of the Confederate army, the main type of armed force, in terms of numbers, was the infantry. Confederate infantry from the very beginning of the war was formed into regiments, and several regiments formed a brigade. It is worth adding that in the course of the Civil War, it was the individual states of the CSA that formed the regiments, hence the names of the regiments with the state from which they come from can often be found. The size of the regiment was not uniform and at the beginning of the war it ranged from about 1000 to about 2000 people. With time, along with the battles fought, these full-time numbers drastically decreased and, for example, at Gettysburg (1863), the 18th Regiment from North Carolina had only about 400 people - let us add that it was no exception in the forces of General Robert Lee. The basic weapon of a CSA infantry soldier was a rifle with a rifled barrel. Added to this was, of course, a side weapon - apart from a bayonet, it could have been a cleaver, a long knife, etc. It is worth adding that the Confederate infantry clearly (especially in the years 1861-1863) dominated the EU infantry by the will to fight, morale, familiarity with weapons and general combat value. It was also often fought by great commanders, such as General Robert Lee or James Longstreet.