Warren on July 1

I finally read through the older biography by Taylor.

Here is Warren's account of July 1 (p 121-122): "I was away from Headquarters, and part of the time on the battlefield, on the 1st. When I left it, in the evening, I took a road east of the direct route to Taneytown, in order to increase my knowledge of the ground by seeing a new route. This road diverged very much from the direction I must take to reach Headquarters, and I was compelled to leave it, and take across country through woods and fields. By this I gained a good idea of the character of the country, but was late in reaching General Meade's camp. I found him about setting off for Gettysburg, and my report confirmed him in the determination he formed, on information sent by General Hancock, to concentrate his army at Gettysburg and fight there. The provisional line of Pipe Creek, which we had marked out some time previously, was not even thought of when the opportunity at Gettysburg presented itself.

I remained behind to rest and give orders and directions to my department, and so did not accompany General Meade. Next morning I set out for Gettysburg, and arrived there I cannot say what hour."
 
With all due respect for your opinion, Hancock did not "save" Howard on Cemetery Hill. He arrived a few minutes before 4:30 and left less than 3 hours later. During that time, he helped carry out orders already issued by Howard. The only exception was to send troops to occupy Culp's Hill, which Howard knew had to be done but couldn't do until enough troops from the First and Eleventh Corps were at hand, which was right after Hancock arrived. The stories about Hancock's "saving the day" were made up after the fact in order to support his desire to be on the presidential ticket in 1864.
 
I've revised my opinion of Howard's performance on July 1 in the 2+ years since this post was written. However, I've seen no evidence to contradict the claim that Hancick was primarily responsible for sending troops to Culp's Hill, Stevens's knoll, and to the left (towards Little Round Top).
 
My point was that Howard had already issued orders to occupy all but Culp's Hill. This is what Howard says in his autobiography (and in articles), and I've never found any reason to doubt him. Hancock, however, changed his story repeatedly after July 1863, each time making himself look more important than he really was.
 
Warren was that type of general that seemed peculiar to the AoP; Uninspirede and uninspiring,i.e., he was easily lost from sight in any crowd.
 
Back
Top