Faith+T.+-+PC+-+SP12

Why did Lee order Pickett's Charge? - 23 February 2012

Pickett’s Charge, which occurred near the very end of the Battle of Gettysburg, was ordered by Robert E. Lee, betting on a win that was nearly impossible. Lee believed that his army was practically invincible due to his numerous victories prior. However, to understand why Lee decided to attack in one last desperate attempt, first, what Pickett’s Charge itself was needs to be understood.

Pickett’s Charge occurred on the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War. Robert E. Lee had decided to attempt to split apart the Union army because scattering them meant that the army would be easier to pick off. To do this, he would attack the Union army right through the center. Lee had wanted to scatter the Union army because they vastly outnumbered the Confederates. So cannon-fire commenced and both sides were blasting cannons at each other until the Union army decided to stop for tactical reasons, either to trick the Confederates into thinking that they had won or to save their own ammunition. He had George Pickett lead the attack because his division was still strong (Stern, 181). Believing that the Union army was damaged enough, George Pickett marched the feeble Confederate Army towards the Union Army. In the end, the Union Army brutally lost (Mitchell).

Lee believed that, from the previous two days of the Battle of Gettysburg, he was doing well for taking out some of the Union Army, that he could continue on that same forward path. However, Lee never considered the fact that his own army was not as strong as it was before because of casualty and injury. Lee was extremely enthusiastic, which led others to believe the same way. Although confidence is a good thing when fighting, overconfidence can quickly come (Stewart, 8). This “invincibility” mindset cost the Confederates many lives and yet another loss for the South (Hess). Even though James Longstreet had openly stated that he believed that Lee’s tactic would not work, Lee decided to proceed with the attack (Stewart, 8).

The main reason why Lee decided to attack through the center lines of the Confederate Army was because of the confidence that Lee had in his Confederate Army. However, this confidence turned into a bad thing as it made them think that they were unstoppable, ultimately leading to their demise.

Hess, Earl J. and Brendan Wolfe. "Pickett's Charge." __Encyclopedia Virginia__ . Ed. Brendan Wolfe. READ_DATE. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. 7 Feb. 2012 .

Mitchell, Heather. "Pickett's Charge." Cobblestone Feb. 2010: 15. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Feb. 2012.

Stern, Philip Van Doren. Robert E. Lee: The Man and the Soldier : A Pictorial Biography. New York: Bonanza, 1963. Print.

Stewart, George Rippey. Pickett's Charge: A Microhistory of the Final Attack at Gettysburg, July 3, 1863. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1991. Print.