Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and the
Turning Point of the War
By James, Nicholas, Jamie, and Ryan.

In 1863, no one was winning
•
The south was being defensive.
•
They wanted the war to end.
•
The North wasn’t getting tired of fighting.
•
The war was being fought on Southern soil.

Winfield Scott
Union General

Winfield Scott
•
Born in Virginia, but loyal to the Union.
•
Felt the war was wrong, and wanted as little bloodshed as possible.
•
Came up with “The Anaconda Plan”

The Anaconda Plan

The Anaconda Plan
•
Military strategy thought of by Gen. Scott.
•
The plan aimed to cause economic stress in the South.
•
Thought to be the safest way to end the war.
•
Controlled shipment and trade in the South.
•
To control shipment and trade, they had to control the Mississippi.

Vicksburg
•
Vicksburg was a fortress city.
•
It was well fortified.
•
Vicksburg was an important Confederate
Base.
•
Many confederate troops were at Vicksburg.
•
Vicksburg dominated the last Confederate controlled part of the Mississippi river.
•
Union invaded for “The Anaconda Plan”

Ulysses S. Grant
Major General in the Union Army

Battle of Vicksburg
•
If General Grant could capture Vicksburg, the Union would control the Mississippi.
•
General Grant took 35,000 union troops to besiege Vicksburg.

John C. Pemberton
Lt. General, CSA

Battle of Vicksburg
•
More than three quarters of Pemberton’s army at Vicksburg had been lost in other battles.
•
He expected General Joseph E. Johnston to rescue Vicksburg, but Johnston didn’t.

Battle of Vicksburg
•
Pemberton had only 18,500 soldiers, competing against Grant’s 35,000.
•
Pemberton’s army had the advantage of the terrain and fortifications around Vicksburg.

First Battle, May 19th, 1863
•
General Grant attacked Vicksburg.
•
Pemberton’s army was ready and used their fortifications well.
•
Union moral was low. They had nearly 1000 casualties, 157 of which were deaths.
•
Only 8 Confederates died.

Second Battle, May 22nd, 1863
•
Grant attacked again on May 22nd.
•
He didn’t want a long siege.
•
This time, he got reinforcements.
•
The Union army had over 3,000 casualties, while the Confederates had under 500.

Siege of Vicksburg
•
Instead of another battle, Grant decided to besiege Vicksburg instead.
•
Union troops built trenches around the confederate territory.
•
The confederates were trapped.
•
A month later, on July 3rd, 1863, Pemberton surrendered.

The South took a big hit
•
The South took a big hit from the loss of
Vicksburg.
•
The North wasn’t being hurt at all. In fact, the
Union now controlled the Mississippi.
•
The only way to win, was to convince the
North that they were losing more than they were gaining from fighting.

General Robert E. Lee
General-in-Chief of all Confederate Armies

Robert E. Lee wanted to attack the
•
He knew that he couldn’t keep the north away from the south forever.
•
He wanted to invade the North.
•
Lee wanted to win a big battle on Union soil.
•
If the north hurt, they would want to stop the war, and leave the South alone.
•
Union attention away from Vicksburg
•
His plan was to attack at Gettysburg.

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg
•
Gettysburg is a town in Pennsylvania.
•
Pennsylvania is a northern state.
•
Robert E. Lee hoped to turn the tides by winning Gettysburg.
•
Second major battle fought on Union soil.
•
Robert E. Lee attacks Gettysburg to try and get attention away from Vicksburg.

General George Meade

George Meade
● George Meade was a General officer of the
Union Army.
● He led the United States Army in the Battle of
Gettysburg.
● Gen. Meade led the Army of the Potomac in
Pennsylvania
● Meade’s Inspirational leadership led the
Union to win at Gettysburg.

Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863
•
Gettysburg was a huge battle, ending with over 51,000 either dead, wounded, or missing.
•
Second major battle fought on Union soil.
•
Turning point in the war.
•
Union victory.
•
It was the bloodiest battle in the war

What happened after Gettysburg
•
A cemetery was built on the battlefield as a final resting place for Union soldiers.
•
Confederate soldiers were shipped off to different areas of the South to be buried.
•
A large ceremony was put in order to consecrate the battlefield.
•
Poets, speakers, and President Lincoln were called in to speak for a ceremony.

Confederacy is Losing
•
The Confederates was completely ensnared by the Anaconda Plan.
•
No control over the Mississippi river, making shipment along it impossible.
•
Huge confederate casualties.
•
Embarrassing for the Confederates, making it impossible for other help from other countries.
•
Confederacy lost its way into the Union.

The Turning Point of the War, 1863
•
The confederacy was split along the
Mississippi river.
•
They couldn’t ship supplies and goods.
•
The north had repelled Lee’s invasion.
•
The south had no way to win.