The Gettysburg Campaign, June-July 1863 (Great campaigns) - Hardcover

It was the bloodiest battle of the bloodiest war in American history. It was the "high tide" of the Confederacy. At Gettysburg men fought in places that speak of the firm nature of their combat: Devils Den, the Slaughter Pen, the Valley of Death. Others sound more innocuous, that Wheat Field, the Peach Orchard, Little Round Top - but these too resound with the life and death struggle of brutal war. It was at Gettysburg that three days decided a war and changed the future of a nation. The Gettysburg Campaign is a revised edition of one of the best histories of the events that led to, culminated in, and followed the epic battle of Gettysburg. The story begins with the grand cavalry battles and skirmishes that marked the beginning of Lee's epic invasion of the North. Historian Albert A. Nofi follows the pattern of events that led both armies to the crossroads town of Gettysburg where the terrible whirlwind of battle intensified. The awful second day of the fight is presented in grim detail with a complete accounting of savage thrust and counterthrust. The book investigates the planning that led to the panoramic charge of General Pickett's command which ended in disaster. Finally there is the grim march from the battlefield as the Confederates retreated to Virginia timidly pursued by the victorious Federals.Supplementing the telling narrative are informative and descriptive sidebars giving nuts-and-bolts information about the battle. These cover in detail such topics as strategy, tactics, logistics, and personalities giving the reader a comprehensive perception of one of the greatest events in American history. Maps cover the movements of armies to Gettysburg and the tactical ploys for each day of the battle. The Gettysburg Campaign has been reedited and redesigned to include more sidebars, a complete order of battle with strength data, and new pictures. It improves a book that has already been noted as a "must read" for anyone interested in the battle of Gettysburg and the Civil War.