During the Civil War, soldiers would speak about "Seeing the elephant." The "elephant" was battle, combat, being under enemy fire.

Both the Confederacy and the Union had armies made up mostly of volunteers, with much fewer soldiers actually belonging to the Regular Army. Whether volunteer or Regular Army, the vast majority of these young men had never faced enemy fire. Many were away from home for the first time in their young lives. They had lived quietly and peacefully in small towns, farms, or cities. Now, they were learning to kill, and facing the great possibility of being killed. As these men trained and marched, preparing for battle, the thought of "Seeing the elephant" for the first time weighed on their minds.

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”It’s just like shooting squirrels, only these squirrels have guns.”
– A Federal veteran instructing new recruits in a musket drill.

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“Bang, bang, bang, a rattle, de bang, bang, bang, a boom, de bang…whirr-siz-siz-siz–a ripping, roaring, boom, bang!” – Confederate Sam R. Watkins describing a "fire fight." Sam Watkins was twenty-one years old and from Columbia, Tennessee when he joined up to fight in the Civil War. He kept a journal and recorded his experiences and thoughts during the war. His words give us great insight into the Civil War.   “It was eyes right, guide center! Close-up, guide right, halt, forward, right oblique, left oblique, halt, forward, guide center, eyes right, dress up promptly in the rear, steady, double quick, charge bayonets, fire at will, is about all that a private soldier knows of a battle.” – Confederate Sam R. Watkins.

I was a ploughboy in the field,
A gawky, lazy, dodger,
When came the conscript officer
And took me for a sodger.
He put a musket in my hand,
And showed me how to fire it;
I marched and counter-marched all day;
Lord, how I did admire it!
– This tune is "The Valiant Conscript" and it is sung to the music of "Yankee Doodle."

“Our men are not sufficiently impressed with a sense of honor that it is better to die by fire than to run.”
– General William Hardee of the Confederacy.

“War is at best barbarism…Its glory is all moonshine. It is only those who have neither fired a shot, nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, more vengeance, more desolation. War is hell.”
– William Tecumseh Sherman. These words are from his June 19, 1879 address to the Michigan Military Academy.

“We made a bargain with them that we would not fire on them if they would not fire on us, and they were as good as their word. It seems too bad that we have to fight men that we like.”
– Words of a Union soldier.

Perhaps some of you reading the LearnCivilWarHistory.com blog are veterans or soldiers who know full well what it is like to under fire. However, for most us, we can only wonder and imagine what it is like to be "Seeing the elephant," just as the young men of the Civil War wondered and imagined so many years ago.

Below are the experiences of being under Civil War fire as described by Captain Frank Holsinger. Try to imagine yourself in Captain Frank Holsinger’s shoes (or rather, brogans) as you read this stirring account of what it was like to be "Seeing the elephant” in the Civil War:

Excerpts from: How Does One Feel Under Fire?
by Captain Frank Holsinger, 19th United States Colored Infantry.

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"When the nerves are thus unstrung, I have known relief by a silly remark. Thus at Antietam, when in line of battle in front of the wood and exposed to a galling fire from the cornfield, standing waiting expectant with “What next?” the minies zipping by occasionally, one making the awful thud as it struck some unfortunate. As we thus stood listlessly, breathing a silent prayer, our hearts having ceased to pulsate or our minds on home and loved ones, expecting soon to be mangled or perhaps killed, some one makes an idiotic remark; thus at this time it is Mangle, in a high nasal twang, with “D—–d sharp skirmishing in front.” There is a laugh, it is infectious, and we are once more called back to life.

At the completion of Captain Frank Holsinger’s military service, he was given a brevet rank of major. Holsinger settled in Kansas.

Today marks the 146th anniversary of The Battle of Gettysburg.

The Battle of Gettysburg

After the battle of Chancellorsville, General Robert E. Lee took the Army of Northern Virginia north into Maryland and Pennsylvania.

On July 1, 1863 the Army of Northern Virginia and the Army of the Potomac began a monumental three-day battle at a small crossroads town in Pennsylvania named Gettysburg.   Gettysburg was one of the most important battles of the Civil War. At Gettysburg, the Confederates suffered more than 30,000 killed, injured, or missing. For the Union, the number came to 23,000.   Gettysburg was a Union victory.

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"Fighting the same fight, that we’re still fighting amongst ourselves … today."

"… Listen to their souls, man …"

"You listen, … and take a lesson from the dead …"

-Excerpts from Coach Boone’s speech, in the movie "Remember the Titans."

Today it still matters and it is important, to Learn Civil War History … so we can learn from it.

Barnes&Noble: The Encyclopedia of Civil War Usage

Overtime, it is natural for language to change and develop as new words are added to the dictionary. For example, your BlogMaster can sometimes be accused of being a mouse potato. The term "mouse potato" is a recent addition to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. It means I spend too much time at the computer, just as a couch potato spends too much time sitting on the couch watching television. Can you imagine asking someone from the Civil War what the words Internet and BlogMaster mean! Words also fall from use and become forgotten. Many of the words used during the Civil War are not often heard, read, or understood today.

Here’s a brief story I’ve written about a Billy Yank, only for the purpose of using some Civil War jargon. See if you can understand what my imaginary Jonathan (a Yankee) soldier is talking about. I’ll translate it further below:

The Latin farmers and I came upon somebody’s darlin, he was from the so-called seceded states and probably a Tar Heel. He had been a snake in the grass, but was now a true lead mine after meeting up with some of us Lincoln hirelings. He was a tough looking butternut, there certainly would have been no social intercourse with him and he looked liked he’d been on partial rations for too long. He was messed up good, a victim of solid shot from a smoothbore, he wasn’t lucky enough to experience a spent ball. Now he would not have to worry about contracting soldier’s disease, or becoming a pickled sardine. Maybe he served under Square Box or Lee’s Old War Horse, maybe too, Little Powell. They all had been through here. We had whipped them good and when the Long-Legged Donkey hears about it he will be glad, yes sir, Long Shanks will be joyful. By the looks of him, he could too have been part of Old Tom Fool’s Lousy 33d, but Old Jack has been sacred dust since Chancellorsville.

Anyway, we were hungry so we sot down for some Lincoln pie, old bull, and coffee, but had no desire to get some lobscouse going. Despite the miasma of this area, we’ll set up a merrimack and break out some oh-be-joyful and get corned. If we get time later on, maybe we’ll have ourselves a louse race. Better get a fire going and try to dry out our mudscows. We should be safe from Old Granny and Old Jubilee tonight. We are proud one-hundred-day-men and serving under Old Four Eyes, as far as we’re concerned there is no one better than Old Snapping Turtle because he is the biggest toad in the puddle. Maybe tomorrow we’ll open the ball. We intend to exfluncticate the graybacks. I snore, I’ll spend all night slapping gallnippers!

I only hope I won’t have to deal with Virginia quickstep tomorrow, like I did today. It sure made things all-overish for me and I almost had a conniption fit dealing with it. Sakes alive, it’s not your funeral. I’ve been like a book here, but I’ll shut pan now.

Translation:

The well-educated German immigrants fighting in the Union Army and I came upon an unidentified corpse, he was a Confederate and probably from North Carolina. He had been trying to camouflage himself, but now was dead with several wounds after meeting up with some of us Union soldiers. He was a tough looking Southern soldier, there certainly would have been no pleasant conversation with him and he looked liked he’d been on less than the daily allowance of food for too long. He was messed up good, a victim of chunks of cast iron from a cannon or other firearm without rifling, he wasn’t lucky enough to experience a projectile or bullet that did not have enough velocity to cause any damage. Now he would not have to worry about contracting a chronic ailment suffered by veterans such as morphine or opium addiction, or becoming a prisoner of war who had been imprisoned for many months. Maybe he served under General Thomas Jonathan ’’Stonewall’’ Jackson or General James Longstreet, maybe too, General Ambrose Powell Hill. They all had been through here. We had beat them good and when President Abraham Lincoln hears about it he will be glad, yes sir, Lincoln will be joyful. By the looks of him, he could too have been part of Stonewall Jackson’s 33d Virginia regiment, part of the Army of Northern Virginia, but Stonewall Jackson has been a corpse since Chancellorsville.

Anyway, we were hungry so we sat down for some hardtack, salted horse meat, and coffee, but had no desire to get some stew of hardtack, vegetables, and salted meat going. Despite the unpleasant air of this area, we’ll set up a lean-to for one night’s use and break out some hard liquor and get drunk. If we get time later on, maybe we’ll have ourselves a contest where body lice are placed on the center of a saucer or plate, and wagers are taken as to which louse will scurry and fall of the edge of the plate or saucer first. Better get a fire going and try to dry out our shoes [shoes were also often called brogans]. We should be safe from Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Jubal Early tonight. We are proud to be Pennsylvanians who signed up for one hundred days’ service after Gettysburg and serving under General George G. Meade, as far as we’re concerned there is no one better than Meade because he’s the most important person in our group. Maybe tomorrow we’ll start a battle. We intend to utterly destroy the Confederates. I swear, I’ll spend all night slapping large mosquitos! I only hope I won’t have to deal with diarrhea tomorrow, like I did today. It sure made things uncomfortable for me and I almost had a fit of hysteria dealing with it. Good heavens, it’s none of your concern. I’ve been eloquent here, but I’ll shut up now.

Webb Garrison’s Civil War Dictionary

As the third day of battle began at Gettysburg, the North and South combined had already suffered approximately 35,000 casualties. This casualty number was highest yet for a Civil War battle. Yet on July 3, the number of casualties would only increase, with more and more injuries and deaths. After this day, the normally peaceful crossroads town of Gettysburg would forever be in the lore of American history.

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On the second day of battle at Gettysburg, the management of the Army of Northern Virginia had not been at its best. It’s a fact that during the Battle of Gettysburg General Robert E. Lee was suffering from a common malady of soldiers in the Civil War…Lee had a bad case of diarrhea. Diarrhea was not a laughing matter for a Civil War soldier. Diarrhea, with its accompanying weakness and dehydration, was a leading killer in the Civil War. During the Civil War, disease killed twice as many soldiers as battle injuries.

The Confederate assaults were not coordinated, while the Union had been effective in responding with counterattacks during the second day of battle. The Union left and right flanks, Lee’s targets for destruction on July 2, remained securely in Union control. Lee’s ailment at Gettysburg may have affected his clarity of mind and judgment, but this is speculation.

Late the evening of July 2, General George G. Meade held a council with his generals. They determined to stay at Gettysburg and wait for Lee to attack, and if Lee did not attack their lines, then they would attack his lines. General Lee had tried the left and right flanks of the Union line without success. Now on July 3, he would try the center of the Union line. The Union army would be waiting.

General Lee planned a three-pronged attack upon the Union line on the third day of battle. After an artillery barrage, General George Pickett’s division was to attack the center of the Union line. Cavalry led by General Jeb Stuart (Stuart and the cavalry had arrived late at Gettysburg. Stuart’s cavalry was the eyes and ears of the Army of Northern Virginia, it was supposed to keep Lee apprised of the location of the Union army, but had failed to do this. During much of the Gettysburg campaign, Lee did not know exactly where the Union army was, and this put Lee at a disadvantage.), would take a circular route around the Union rear and attack there. General Ewell would again be attacking the Union right flank. With both ends of the Union line pinched, Lee expected to break through the Union line’s center…and win.

The center of the Union line would first have to be weakened before it could be overcome and broken. General Longstreet used a huge artillery concentration of 150 guns for a two-hour bombardment of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. The Union artillery responded in kind, so the artillery duel consisted of approximately 300 guns, all blasting away at once. This was an enormous amount of artillery in action at once, it was heard 140 miles away in Pittsburgh. The artillery fire on the third day of Gettysburg, was described as one of the loudest noises ever heard in North America.

Despite the extraordinary noise and clamor of the Confederate artillery bombardment upon Cemetery Ridge, it was for the most part, ineffective. The Confederate artillery aim was too high and many of the awful missiles soared harmlessly over the Union infantry that was safely hunkered down behind stone walls and breastworks. There was still death and destruction, but not as much as the Rebels needed before their infantry attacked the Union center. In a cunning move, the Union artillery had slackened its fire. By slowing its artillery fire, the Yankees kept their guns ready and spared ammunition for use on the Rebel infantry when it advanced. The Yankees hoped that by slowing their rate of fire, they might lead the Confederates to believe they were running out of ammunition, and that the bombardment had been successful in blowing apart Union guns and troops. However, the Union guns and troops had not been totally blown apart, and there was still plenty of ammunition.

Friday July 3, 1863 at Gettysburg was a steamer, the morning was hazy with the air humid and heavy. Around noon, the sun burned through and added to the heat. The Yankees on Cemetery Ridge were busy the night before reinforcing their defensive breastworks with limbs, stones, dirt, and whatever else, would provide them cover. The Confederate attack was soon sure to come, and troops shifted into position.

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The time spent by the Union troops on Cemetery Ridge as they waited and prepared for the Confederate attack, must certainly have been a nervous ordeal. Perhaps there was enough time and composure of mind for these soldiers to tend to a few common tasks like eating, heating and drinking coffee, tending to equipment, writing a letter (perhaps the last to ever be written) home, or praying. There can be little doubt that across the great open field and pasture that separated the men dressed in blue from their enemy, the men dressed in gray used some of the same tasks and prayers to pass their own nervous time, before whatever was to become of them all.

Barnes&Noble: Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg Into the Fight

"General Pickett rode to confer with Alexander, then to the ground upon which I was resting, where he was soon handed a slip of paper. After reading it he handed it to me. It read: If you are coming at all, come at once, or I cannot give you proper support, but the enemy’s fire has not slackened at all. At least eighteen guns are still firing from the cemetery itself. Alexander. Pickett said, ‘General, shall I advance?’" -General James Longstreet, describing events before Pickett’s Charge. Edward Porter Alexander commanded Longstreet’s artillery.

"Up, men, and to your posts! Don’t forget today that you are from Old Virginia!"

-General George E. Pickett, to his men just before Pickett’s Charge. Many of these men never returned to "Old Virginia."

"It ain’t so hard to get to that ridge – The hell of it is to stay there."

-The thoughts of a Confederate soldier, just prior to Pickett’s Charge.

At 1:45 in the afternoon, General James Longstreet ordered the attack on the Union center. Confederate infantry numbering 15,000 began to move across a half mile of open ground. Pickett’s Charge had begun. Union artillery opened fire upon the advancing Confederates, quickly mowing many of them down. Union infantry, protected behind breastworks, held their fire…waiting for the enemy lines to come closer into better range. The Confederates paused a few hundred feet from the Union line to somewhat reorganize themselves for the final assault. A small clump of trees near an angle of a stone wall became the aim of the Confederate’s advance. Now the Union artillery used canister and its shotgun-like fire tore Confederate men apart into bits and pieces. The Confederates continued to come closer to the Union line.

Despite the instant death from canister and infantry fire, which was now raining hard down on them, General Pickett’s men bravely held their lines. Pickett’s division lost 75% of its men. Incredibly, about two or three hundred Confederates from Virginia and Tennessee were able to break through the Union line. Confederate General Lewis Armistead was able to place his hand on a Yankee cannon, just before he was mortally injured. The few charging Rebels able to break into the Union line were met by deadly point-blank fire. Soon hand-to-hand fighting began. It all only lasted about half an hour, then it was over, the Confederates began their retreat from Cemetery Ridge. Of the 15,000 Confederates who advanced across the open field toward Cemetery Ridge, only about half returned across the half-mile. The "High Tide of the Confederacy" was washed away.

"It’s all my fault, it is I who have lost this fight, and you must help me out of it the best way you can. All good men must rally."
-General Robert E. Lee, to the men of Pickett’s Charge as they return to their lines after being repulsed by the Yankees.

"This has been a sad day for us, Colonel, a sad day; but we can’t always expect to gain victories."
-General Robert E. Lee, to Colonel A.J. Lyon Fremantle of the British Army, at the end of fighting at Gettysburg on July 3, 1863.

Meade and the Union had won a major victory at Gettysburg. General Lee’s invasion of the North was both incomplete and unsuccessful, but it was finished. Both Meade’s and Lee’s armies were exhausted and spent after the three-day battle at Gettysburg. Meade cautiously pursued Lee’s retreating Army of Northern Virginia, but the Confederates crossed the Potomac River and escaped. President Abraham Lincoln wanted the Army of Northern Virginia destroyed and was unhappy Lee’s army escaped back to Virginia. Lincoln said Meade’s chase after Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia was like "an old woman trying to shoo her geese across a creek."

"You will, however, learn before this reaches you that our success at Gettysburg was not so great as reported-in fact, that we failed to drive the enemy from his position, and that our army withdrew to the Potomac. Had the river not unexpectedly risen, all would have been well with us; but God, in His all-wise providence, willed otherwise, and our communications have been interrupted and almost cut off."
-General Robert E. Lee, writing to his family after the Confederate defeat at Gettysburg. This quote is from; Recollections and Letters of General Robert E. Lee, by Captain Robert E. Lee, His Son.

"In many instances arms and legs and sometimes heads protrude and my attention has been directed to several places where hogs were actually rooting out the bodies and devouring them."
-A description of the Gettysburg battlefield three weeks after the July 1-3, 1863 battle. This quote is from a letter written to Andrew Curtain, the governor of Pennsylvania, by David Willis. Willis was a banker and civic leader.

Today at the Gettysburg National Military Park, you will find many monuments and statues. The Virginia Memorial at Gettysburg was dedicated in 1917 by the state of Virginia. This statue shows Confederate General Robert E. Lee on his famous gray warhorse, Traveller. All of Traveller’s legs are on the ground, this indicates that General Lee died of natural causes.

During the night of July 1, the Confederate and Union armies continued to arrive at the crossroads town of Gettysburg. As dawn came on July 2, approximately 65,000 Rebels faced 85,000 Yankees over Gettysburg’s terrain. The Union held the high ground with a fishhook-shaped line that stretched along Cemetery Ridge. At each end of the Union line, there were hills. On the right end, there was Culp’s Hill and Cemetery Hill, on the left was Little Round Top and Big Round Top.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee wanted the high ground taken from the Federals. In a discussion with his "Old War Horse" General James Longstreet, Lee explained as he pointed towards Cemetery Hill; "The enemy is there, and I am going to attack him there."

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Longstreet had doubts about attacking the Yankees at Gettysburg. Longstreet did not think attacking the enemy on their high ground was the wisest thing, he preferred another plan. Longstreet’s idea was for the Army of Northern Virginia to turn the Union’s south flank and position itself between the Army of the Potomac and Washington. Longstreet’s plan would compel General Meade and his troops to attack on ground the Confederates had chosen. Longstreet thought the tactical defensive position was best, but General Lee preferred aggressive offensive movements, right here and now at Gettysburg. The Army of Northern Virginia would follow Lee’s plan.

It is one of the great questions of the Civil War…what if the Confederates had followed Longstreet’s plan instead of Lee’s at Gettysburg?

Lee’s strategy was for Longstreet to attack the Union’s left flank at Little Round Top and Big Round Top. Meade would have to send troops to the left flank to answer Longstreet’s attack. General Ewell would attack the Union right flank at Culp’s Hill. If this plan worked, the Confederates would overtake both of the Union flanks, gain the high ground, and win the battle…and maybe the war.

Lee wanted Longstreet to begin his attack as soon as possible on the morning of July 2. Due to various reasons (in light of Longstreet’s disagreement with Lee over the Gettysburg battle plans, some historians question Longstreet’s diligence in proceeding with his attack on the Union left flank) Longstreet did not have his troops into position until 4:00 in the afternoon. Part of the problem Longstreet had getting his men into position, was that the Yankees were not where they were supposed to be on their left flank. It was Union General Dan Sickles and the 3rd Corps who were to be in position and hold the Union left flank.

Dan Sickles is an interesting character and he deserves some attention.

Before the Civil War, Daniel Edgar Sickles was a lawyer and a legislator. From 1853 to 1855 he served as President Franklin Pierce’s London Legation (at the time, the United States did not yet have formal embassies). Sickles was elected to the New York Senate, and then served as a Democrat in the United States Congress from 1857 to 1861.

In 1859 while serving in the United States Congress, Dan Sickles shot and killed Philip Barton Key at LaFayette Park, which was located across the street from Sickles’ home and the White House. Key was having an affair with Mrs. Sickles, so Sickles killed him. By coincidence, Philip Barton Key also happened to be the son of Francis Scott Key, the composer of "The Star Spangled Banner".

Sickles chose Edwin Stanton as his defense attorney (Stanton would later serve as Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of War). Stanton used a unique and new tactic to defend Sickles. Stanton claimed Sickles was innocent of murder because he was temporarily insane when he killed his wife’s lover. The jury agreed and Congressman Sickles was found innocent.

After killing her paramour, Sickles publicly forgave his wife and took her back. This outraged the public. It seems the public understood the business of an outraged husband shooting and killing his cheating wife’s lover (Sickles had the public’s understanding and sympathy during all this drama), but for the husband to then forgive his wife and take her back, well, that was just too much for people to stomach in 19th century America. With the loss of voter support, Sickles’ political career ended.

At the start of the Civil War, Dan Sickles saw opportunity and a fresh start for himself. After all, there is nothing like a war to help turn your life around. He raised the Excelsior Brigade of New York City, and later in June of 1861, he was commissioned as Colonel Sickles of the 20th New York. The politician Sickles new military career was now successfully underway. Perhaps the former congressman (and also formally temporarily insane) Dan Sickles went off to war humming the "The Star Spangled Banner" to himself…fighting as he was to save the Union. Nevertheless, Sickles was now back on both of his feet. Would he be able to hang onto both of the legs those feet were attached to?

On July 2, 1863, Dan Sickles found himself at Gettysburg as the General of the 3rd Corps. As fate would have it, it was Sickles who had the duty of holding the crucial left flank of the Union line. The terrain at the south end of Cemetery Ridge where the politician now turned general Sickles was positioned, concerned him. It was low and exposed ground. Without orders, General Dan Sickles took it upon himself to make an unauthorized movement of his two divisions half of a mile forward to ground that was higher and along a road running from Gettysburg. Now his troops were positioned at the Peach Orchard and in an area congested with rocks and large boulders below Little Round Top. This rocky area was Devil’s Den. Sickles unauthorized move had provided his troops and himself with better ground, it was higher and easier to defend, but now his troops were no longer connected with the rest of the Union’s line. More importantly, in terms of the grand scheme of the battle, the Union crucial positions of Little Round Top, Big Round Top, and the Union left flank, were now all completely undefended.

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General Meade was furious when he learned what Sickles had done. Meade ordered Sickles back to his original position. Sickles had no time to follow Meade’s orders, at 4:00 in the afternoon Longstreet finally (Lee had wanted Longstreet to make this attack as early as possible on the 2nd) began his attack on the Union left.

The Confederate troops advanced upon the Yankees. Confederate Colonel William C. Oates and the 15th Alabama made their way to the top of Big Round Top. From there, three hundred feet above the field of action, Oates could see that if he could move artillery to the heights of Little Round Top, he could then tear the Federal lines apart. A brigade of Alabamians advanced upon the smaller of the two Round Tops, since only a Union signal station occupied Little Round Top. General Meade had sent General Gouverneur K. Warren (Warren was the chief topographical engineer for the Army of the Potomac) and a young lieutenant named Washington Robeling to Little Round Top to scout out the situation.

Warren and Robeling quickly realized the dire circumstances for the Union at Little Round Top. Dan Sickles and his men had their hands full fighting the advancing Confederates in the Peach Orchard, and even as Warren and Robeling surveyed the situation Hood’s Rebel Texan troops were busy advancing up the rocky ravine between Little Round Top and Big Round Top. Warren called for reinforcements and four regiments were sent from the Union 5th Corps. One of these regiments was the 20th Maine, led by Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.

These Union troops were desperately needed to hold Little Round Top secure. If Little Round Top fell to the Confederates, then the entire control of the Union lines would be lost, and probably so too, the Battle of Gettysburg.

Barnes&Noble: Through Blood and Fire at Gettysburg: General Joshua L. Chamberlain and the 20th Maine by Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

Chamberlain was ordered to hold Little Round Top "at all hazards." The 350 men of the 20th Maine double-timed up Little Round Top and took positions behind boulders and whatever cover they could find. With no time to spare, Chamberlain sent troops from his Company B to between the two Round Tops to cover the left flank. Soon, very soon, Colonel Oates and his Alabamians came upon them and for almost two hours, the men from Maine and Alabama fought it out in deadly fighting. The Confederates made repeated assaults and finally one-third of Chamberlain’s men were either injured or killed, and the rest were completely or nearly out of ammunition. The Confederates were now preparing for another assault. Colonel Chamberlain and the 20th Maine, and the Union left flank, were in very serious trouble. With quick thinking, Chamberlain ordered part of his remaining line to drop back until it formed a right angle with the rest of the Union line.

Chamberlain had two choices, either advance or retreat. He chose to advance and ordered his men to fix bayonets. The right of the Maine regiment held its position while the left side made a running advance down the hillside of Little Round Top towards the Alabamians. The Union advance wheeled to its right during this advance, "like a great gate upon a post" according to a witness.

The Confederates were shocked and taken by surprise with this bold movement, some surrendered and others ran. As the Confederates ran they took more fire from Chamberlain’s Company B, which had taken cover behind a stone wall. The Alabamians were now caught in crossfire. Colonel Chamberlain and the 20th Maine had held Little Round Top for the Union. The left flank of the Yankee line was secure. Later, Chamberlain would receive the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions at Gettysburg.

Barnes&Noble: In the Hands of Providence

General Sickles and his troops were still fighting the Confederates in the Peach Orchard, and they were in bad shape. The Rebels were giving them Hell. Soon Sickles himself would personally be in bad shape too. Confederate artillery was tearing into Sickles’ men and they were giving up ground as they fought in places called the Wheat Field, Devil’s Den, and the Valley of Death.

During all this, General Dan Sickles’ right leg was blown off below the knee. Sickles was carried from the field calmly smoking a cigar. He would survive his wound, but no longer would he stand on both of his own two feet. Sickles donated his amputated right leg to an army medical museum. In the years after the Civil War, Sickles would stop by the museum to visit his leg.

Union reinforcements from Cemetery Ridge had hurried to the Wheat Field and this opened a gap in the center of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. Now an Alabama brigade saw the weakness in the center of the Union line and rushed to take advantage of it. A small regiment, the 1st Minnesota, was ordered by General Winfield Scott Hancock to meet the advancing Confederates. With only 262 men in its force, the 1st Minnesota charged down a slope toward 1,600 advancing Confederates. Of the 262 Minnesotans, only 47 of them were not hurt or killed. The 1st Minnesota had 82 percent of its men fall within the first five minutes of their fight. The casualties suffered by the 1st Minnesota was the highest taken by a Union regiment in the entire Civil War. The Minnesotans were successful despite their severe losses; they had filled the gap in the center of the Union line.

Confederate General Ewell staged an attack on the right flank of the Union line just before dark. For various reasons Ewell’s attack had been delayed, this action was supposed to be coordinated with Longstreet’s advance upon the Union left flank – which itself occurred later than planned. Ewell’s attacks on Culp’s Hill and East Cemetery Hill, were repulsed.

Night came on Gettysburg’s second day of battle.