Customer Reviews

Roads to Gettysburg: Lee's Invasion of the North, 1863

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Beginning with June 3, 1863, the day after Robert E. Lee gave the order to begin the invasion of Pennsylvania, this book traces all troop movements by corps, both North and South, for each day leading up to July 1, the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg. Gottfried is not content with movements only, but adds a strong human touch by citing soldiers' journals and letters; thus, for example, we see the effects of weather (it rained a lot that June), the joy felt by the Confederates when crossing the Mason-Dixon Line, and even the disastrous results suffered by Hood's Division when they confiscated Union whiskey barrels and doled it out to the men near Williamsport: many became drunk and fights broke out - "It kept the sober boys busy to keep the drunk ones from killing each other," wrote John Stevens of Robinson's brigade. Although the book can obviously be read straight through, one may just as easily approach it by following first the North and then the South or a particular corps through the month, or by picking and choosing items from the detailed index and following them through the text. Thus the research possibilities are numerous. Gottfried has also written an excellent book on the brigades at Gettysburg, and taken together, the two books are thorough accounts of the lead-up to the battle and the battle itself. Included are excellent maps illustrating all the movements described in the text. Highly recommended.