Pickett Where was Pickett.....

alexjack

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.......during the Charge? I know he was a divisional commander and so I suppose wouldn't have been leading from the front but if I remember correctly Trimble, also a divisional commander, lost a leg during the Charge and was captured so presumably he must have been well to the fore. Was this simply a matter of choice?
 
He was behind his division observing the charge, he was forward from the original spot where the charge began. When he saw the charge faltering he went off to get reinforcements from Anderson's Division to support the attack, but they did not move.

Anyways Trimble had a very aggressive personality, he liked being in the fight, and he was itching to get back in after suffering his crippling wound at Second Manassas.


Their was some speculation that Pickett's wound at Gaines Mill had discouraged him from leading from the front.

But while a Divisional Commander leading from the front is heroic, its not really the job of a divisional commander, the brigade commander's are too lead from the front, while the divisional leaders are supposed to observe and lead from the back.
 
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.......during the Charge? I know he was a divisional commander and so I suppose wouldn't have been leading from the front but if I remember correctly Trimble, also a divisional commander, lost a leg during the Charge and was captured so presumably he must have been well to the fore. Was this simply a matter of choice?

Most accounts place Pickett around the Codori farm along the Emmitsburg Road (Garnett's Brigade hit the Road in this area). Most likely, he arrived at this area around when Armistead passed through). From here, he could observe his men making the final assault and call for reinforcements if necessary. Pickett was in the right spotfor a division commander.

Trimble had never commanded a division before and was really acting like a brigade commander would. He was hit in the leg prior to reaching the Emmitsburg Road, as was Pettigrew.

R
 
Most accounts place Pickett around the Codori farm along the Emmitsburg Road (Garnett's Brigade hit the Road in this area). Most likely, he arrived at this area around when Armistead passed through). From here, he could observe his men making the final assault and call for reinforcements if necessary. Pickett was in the right spotfor a division commander.

Trimble had never commanded a division before and was really acting like a brigade commander would. He was hit in the leg prior to reaching the Emmitsburg Road, as was Pettigrew.

R

Yes, and the leg Trimble was hit in was the same one he got wounded in at Second Manassas, Trimble complained that had his leg been amputated at Manassas, he would of made it further at Gettysburg.
 
Yes, and the leg Trimble was hit in was the same one he got wounded in at Second Manassas, Trimble complained that had his leg been amputated at Manassas, he would of made it further at Gettysburg.

Far enough to have been killed between the road and the Union lines. I forget where I saw it, but I remember reading that something like 75% of all of the casualties from the attack came between the road and the Union line on the ridge.

R
 
Far enough to have been killed between the road and the Union lines. I forget where I saw it, but I remember reading that something like 75% of all of the casualties from the attack came between the road and the Union line on the ridge.

R

thats where the canister fire and infantry basically could fire in unison, so i can see why,

I had three relatives in Pickett's Charge and they were all wounded in the area you just described.
 
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It's a Virginia thing, just like the Stonewall Brigade was the best Brigade in the ANV.......lol.
Would the outcome of the charge been any different if another general ,instead of one who lacked the experience and was more chivalry than substance,had lead the attack.,say either of the latter two?
 
No, charge should have never been made in the first place. Let's say the Texas brigade was fresh and little used on the 2nd, even if they did a little better there was no support sent to hold the breakthrough. Honestly it's a miracle they made it to the wall.
 
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Far enough to have been killed between the road and the Union lines. I forget where I saw it, but I remember reading that something like 75% of all of the casualties from the attack came between the road and the Union line on the ridge.

R
I'm surprised it's that low. This was the part of the advance most exposed to effective infantry fire as well as artillery.
 
Would the outcome of the charge been any different if another general ,instead of one who lacked the experience and was more chivalry than substance,had lead the attack.,say either of the latter two?

No. No general was going to make a difference simply by his presence.

Ryan
 
[QUOTEote="rpkennedy, post: 1577352, member: 4684"]No. No general was going to make a difference simply by his presence.

Ryan[/QUOTE A cavalry charge in style of the Light Brigade right down the center followed by three divisions.Would not work either ,right?.Did Meade have reserve divisions in back of those in the line? Back in Richmond ,what was the response to the loss at Gettysburg? To much exceptions from the people for the army, esp,. just after the victories which the army had served up.
 
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These are necessarily estimates, perhaps educated, but still estimates. :wink:

Ryan
Thanks for your response.
I understand that. Still, I had supposed very few deaths or wounds occurred in the first yards of the assault.
 
Would the outcome of the charge been any different if another general ,instead of one who lacked the experience and was more chivalry than substance,had lead the attack.,say either of the latter two?
Are you assuming Pickett "lacked the experience and was more chivalry than substance"?
If so, you are mistaken.
Pickett was an experienced officer who had served in the Mexican War and was recognized for his gallantry in the Battle of Chapultepec. At the beginning of the war he was a Captain in the US Army. After reigning his commission and offering his services to the South, becoming a Colonel. He was promoted to Brigadier General in January 1862 and saw heavy action during the Peninsula Campaign. He was wounded in the Battle of Gaines' Mill. On his return following convalescence, he was made a division commander under Longstreet.
As you can see, he did not lack command experience.
Sadly, his reputation as a soldier is often overshadowed by claims that he was an empty headed lightweight and a dandy, probably based largely on his fastidious appearance and long, curly hair.
The only difference replacing Pickett in that July 3, 1863 assault would be to assign a different name to Pickett's Charge.
 
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