Cavalry Charger
Major
- Joined
- Jan 24, 2017
I recently watched a History channel documentary on Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" which in part alluded to the CW and specifically to the Battle of Gettysburg.
Some of the ideas expressed in that program were as follows:
Sun Tzu: No nation has ever benefited from prolonged war. Suggested the ACW is Sun Tzu's nightmare scenario.
Sun Tzu: Those skilled in war bring the enemy to the field of battle. They are not brought by him. At the time of the Battle of Gettysburg Lee decides the time is right to invade Union soil. According to the program Lee's plan was to destroy as many military posts as possible in Maryland and Pennsylvania while Union armies continued to defend Washington D.C. One key target is Camp Curtin outside of Harrisburg, the largest military supply depot in the North. Lee's motive is described as political, with potential victory designed to cause Northerners to lose faith in the war. This was described as a strategy Sun Tzu would have admired. The cavalry skirmish at Gettysburg leads to the erroneous belief the Union army is amassing there and Lee orders his whole army to mobilize, abandoning the original plan and giving up strategic aim. It is stated he allows operational developments to drive strategy and that he should have used his resources to find out what was really happening rather than use them on what he thought was happening.
Sun Tzu: Move only when you see an advantage and there is something to gain. Only fight if a position is critical. Union forces awaiting reinforcements withdraw to Cemetery Hill. Lee gives Ewell an order to "attack when you think it is practicable". Lee does not order him to attack. Ewell decides not to attack. His troops are exhausted and he wants them to rest. Sun Tzu: If the orders are unclear it is the fault of the General. The commentator suggests Lee gave unclear and ambiguous orders to his subordinates. Union troops strengthen their position.
Sun Tzu: When the enemy occupies high ground, do not confront him. If he attacks downhill do not oppose him. Longstreet is said to have grasped the situation from Sun Tzu's perspective. He wants to abandon the idea of attacking the Union high ground. He wants to go around Cemetery Ridge and then east right towards Washington D.C. The Union army would need to come off Cemetery Ridge and attack the Confederates where they were which would likely have secured the Confederates a victory. Lee says "no - the enemy is there and I am going to attack him there." Longstreet is stunned. The commentator said Sun Tzu would have told his men to assess the situation, adjust their forces and find another way to attack the enemy. Second day at Gettysburg is hell on earth and sees some of the bloodiest hand combat of the war.
Sun Tzu: There are some armies that should not be fought, some ground that should not be contended. Commentator suggests one thing you never want to do in war is throw good money after bad. Use an attack to exploit a victory, never use an attack to rescue a defeat. Longstreet understands this. The Confederates are outnumbered, do not have the high ground, and have suffered terrible casualties in the last two days of fighting with no real chance of pushing the Union off the high ground. He makes his suggestion again to move around Cemetery Hill. Lee feels his men have sacrificed too much to turn back and gives the order to attack. George Pickett leads the charge after asking Longstreet twice if he should he go, to which Longstreet never replies knowing the attack is suicidal. Sun Tzu believed in using the intellect rather than force and never using force if you could do otherwise.
I found the program a really interesting study on this ancient text in the context of more modern warfare. There were a lot of interesting comparisons and much knowledge to be gained. As I haven't read the full text yet I plan on doing so soon. I wonder what it might teach about other battles of the CW?
Some of the ideas expressed in that program were as follows:
Sun Tzu: No nation has ever benefited from prolonged war. Suggested the ACW is Sun Tzu's nightmare scenario.
Sun Tzu: Those skilled in war bring the enemy to the field of battle. They are not brought by him. At the time of the Battle of Gettysburg Lee decides the time is right to invade Union soil. According to the program Lee's plan was to destroy as many military posts as possible in Maryland and Pennsylvania while Union armies continued to defend Washington D.C. One key target is Camp Curtin outside of Harrisburg, the largest military supply depot in the North. Lee's motive is described as political, with potential victory designed to cause Northerners to lose faith in the war. This was described as a strategy Sun Tzu would have admired. The cavalry skirmish at Gettysburg leads to the erroneous belief the Union army is amassing there and Lee orders his whole army to mobilize, abandoning the original plan and giving up strategic aim. It is stated he allows operational developments to drive strategy and that he should have used his resources to find out what was really happening rather than use them on what he thought was happening.
Sun Tzu: Move only when you see an advantage and there is something to gain. Only fight if a position is critical. Union forces awaiting reinforcements withdraw to Cemetery Hill. Lee gives Ewell an order to "attack when you think it is practicable". Lee does not order him to attack. Ewell decides not to attack. His troops are exhausted and he wants them to rest. Sun Tzu: If the orders are unclear it is the fault of the General. The commentator suggests Lee gave unclear and ambiguous orders to his subordinates. Union troops strengthen their position.
Sun Tzu: When the enemy occupies high ground, do not confront him. If he attacks downhill do not oppose him. Longstreet is said to have grasped the situation from Sun Tzu's perspective. He wants to abandon the idea of attacking the Union high ground. He wants to go around Cemetery Ridge and then east right towards Washington D.C. The Union army would need to come off Cemetery Ridge and attack the Confederates where they were which would likely have secured the Confederates a victory. Lee says "no - the enemy is there and I am going to attack him there." Longstreet is stunned. The commentator said Sun Tzu would have told his men to assess the situation, adjust their forces and find another way to attack the enemy. Second day at Gettysburg is hell on earth and sees some of the bloodiest hand combat of the war.
Sun Tzu: There are some armies that should not be fought, some ground that should not be contended. Commentator suggests one thing you never want to do in war is throw good money after bad. Use an attack to exploit a victory, never use an attack to rescue a defeat. Longstreet understands this. The Confederates are outnumbered, do not have the high ground, and have suffered terrible casualties in the last two days of fighting with no real chance of pushing the Union off the high ground. He makes his suggestion again to move around Cemetery Hill. Lee feels his men have sacrificed too much to turn back and gives the order to attack. George Pickett leads the charge after asking Longstreet twice if he should he go, to which Longstreet never replies knowing the attack is suicidal. Sun Tzu believed in using the intellect rather than force and never using force if you could do otherwise.
I found the program a really interesting study on this ancient text in the context of more modern warfare. There were a lot of interesting comparisons and much knowledge to be gained. As I haven't read the full text yet I plan on doing so soon. I wonder what it might teach about other battles of the CW?