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His army was never big enough. That's why he had to rely on complex strategic moves to confound and dislodge his enemy. Force him to give up ground before the fight even starts. It is also why he lost once he was pinned down in Petersburg. Without his mobility the fight was already lost.
True he always had a small army. Think if Longstreet had been at Chancellorsville that might have given Gen. Lee enough strenght to push the AoP into the river for the union forces were in a total panic.
The original plan was to live off the country side so why everyone want to talk abou his supply lines. The area was great for his needed supplies and some historians call this foray into Pa. just a raid.
So long as his army was moving, it lived large. Once it stopped, however, it had to live off the rations in the wagons or send out foragers. When facing an ever-growing enemy force, foraging doesn't work well.
The Pennsylvania Campaign might well be called a raid on a large scale. A learned gentleman on another forum gave and excellent definition, which I will now proceed to mangle. A campaign is a movement toward an objective wherein territory is acquired and occupied. A raid is a movement toward an objective wherein there is no thought given to acquiring and occupying territory.
Corinth and Vicksburg were campaigns. Gettysburg and Antietam were raids.
ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
True he always had a small army. Think if Longstreet had been at Chancellorsville that might have given Gen. Lee enough strenght to push the AoP into the river for the union forces were in a total panic.
Hooker's position at US Ford was too strong. Even with the army being panicked they still had fight left in them. Lee's army was just as disorganized from the attack. Sedgwick was also headed that way with the rest of the union army AND the rest of the rebs chasing after him. It would have been one hell of a mess but ultimatley, Hooker had the better supply line (as usual with the AoP) and would have come out on top. Lee knew it, that's why he DIDN'T attack.
__________________
"In mortal combat, a man may and will become so infuriated by the din and dangers of a bloody fight that his heart will turn to stone and his every de sire [be] for blood."
John Hadley, 7th Indiana after the battle at Port Republic
After Gettysburg and Gen. Lee was back in Va. He offered to resign due to heath reasons and in due course it was rejected by Pres. Davis.
Historians dismiss this as Gen. Lee being honorable in taking the blame for Gettysburg but maybe there was more truth in his resignation letter then historians want to admit.
Corinth and Vicksburg were campaigns. Gettysburg and Antietam were raids.
ole
Gettysburg and Antietam were costly raids of the south.
If you think about it, Gen. Lee's plan was to bring fear to the northern big cities of New York, Philadelphia and Washington. Gen. Lee wanted to use fear so the north will want to talk peace on southern terms. Do we not call this terrorism today.
On Day 2, when Longstreet was crushing Sickles' 3d Corps and Anderson's Division was beginning his attack against Hancock on Cemetary Ridge, Where was Lee?
Through mishandling, only 1 of Andersons 3 brigades actually made a real attack on Hancock's Line. (that 1 brigade actually made it to and penetrated Hancock's position).
There were 15,000 men available to cement Longstreet's and Anderson's flawed successes, if Lee had been as alert and aggressive as he had been on other hard fought battle fields.
Gettysburg and Antietam were costly raids of the south.
If you think about it, Gen. Lee's plan was to bring fear to the northern big cities of New York, Philadelphia and Washington. Gen. Lee wanted to use fear so the north will want to talk peace on southern terms. Do we not call this terrorism today.
No, that is called war. War has a definite purpose. A Military or political goal in which all military movements are made in an attempt to achieve that goal.
Terrorism is a cowardly act with no definite goal in mind. It rarely targets military assets but instead aims itself at the lives and fears of civilians.
__________________
"In mortal combat, a man may and will become so infuriated by the din and dangers of a bloody fight that his heart will turn to stone and his every de sire [be] for blood."
John Hadley, 7th Indiana after the battle at Port Republic
Similarly, many other commentators have questioned why, with 2/3's of his cavalry present, Lee was marching blind through Pa? Apparently nothing could be done, unless/until Stuart showed up.
Similarly, many other commentators have questioned why, with 2/3's of his cavalry present, Lee was marching blind through Pa? Apparently nothing could be done, unless/until Stuart showed up.
He seemed to be in the habit of relying too much on certain generals. Stuart is one as opn ponited out. Longstreet was another. In Gettysburg, and again at the wilderness he was afraid to move until Longstreet was up. If he had commited to a full scale engagment in the Wilderness before Longstreet was up, he could have hit the union left flank awefully hard WHILE they were still marching in column towards Spotsylvania.
__________________
"In mortal combat, a man may and will become so infuriated by the din and dangers of a bloody fight that his heart will turn to stone and his every de sire [be] for blood."
John Hadley, 7th Indiana after the battle at Port Republic
In ref. to this thread, it does seem that Lee committed more than a few glaring (in retrospect) mistakes during the 3 day battle at Gettysburg.
Although Lee always kept his thoughts and plans close to the vest during and after the war. It has always semmed to me that Gettysburg is almost the only major battle (not to say the whole campaign) where there seems to have been so much uncertainty about Lee's intentions.
To me, the most likely explanations is that either he had no particular plan; that he was in Pa. with a vague plan (expectation) that something good would, hopefully, turn up and stumbled into a major (and ultimately climactic) battle, Or that Lee simply was not mentally (or physically?) up the demands of both the campaign and battle.
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