General Butterfield
Sergeant
- Joined
- Jun 18, 2017
- Location
- Philadelphia
Chamberlain or Oates, Who Had the More Difficult Task?
First off I'm sure this has been discussed before, I apologize if this is a repeat, and feel free to point me towards any threads of use.
I've been reading Edward Longacre's book Joshua Chamberlain: The Solider and the Man. I previously read his book on Henry Hunt which I found to be an outstanding bio. This book i'm not as crazy about he doesn't seem to like Chamberlain very much. Anyways the part I found most interesting is his take on the battle for Little Round Top. Longacre downplays Chamberlain's accomplishment and makes it seem as though Oates men had a far harder task. That the Confederates were "thirsty" "bone-weary" and had been moving through harsh terrain. On Chamberlain's side meanwhile he says "Legend has Chamberlain's regiment battling two-one odds but due to Oates' many detachments, for at least a portion of the fight on Little Round Top almost 500 defenders engaged fewer than 400 attackers."
Who do you think had the more difficult assignment? Chamberlain defending or Oates attacking? Also what do you think of Longacre's statements? Who really outnumbered who?
First off I'm sure this has been discussed before, I apologize if this is a repeat, and feel free to point me towards any threads of use.
I've been reading Edward Longacre's book Joshua Chamberlain: The Solider and the Man. I previously read his book on Henry Hunt which I found to be an outstanding bio. This book i'm not as crazy about he doesn't seem to like Chamberlain very much. Anyways the part I found most interesting is his take on the battle for Little Round Top. Longacre downplays Chamberlain's accomplishment and makes it seem as though Oates men had a far harder task. That the Confederates were "thirsty" "bone-weary" and had been moving through harsh terrain. On Chamberlain's side meanwhile he says "Legend has Chamberlain's regiment battling two-one odds but due to Oates' many detachments, for at least a portion of the fight on Little Round Top almost 500 defenders engaged fewer than 400 attackers."
Who do you think had the more difficult assignment? Chamberlain defending or Oates attacking? Also what do you think of Longacre's statements? Who really outnumbered who?
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