Witness to Gettysburg: Inside the Battle That Changed the Course of the Civil War (Stackpole Military History Series) [Paperback]

Richard Wheeler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 20, 2006 | Series: Stackpole Military History Series

From the events that led to the clash at Gettysburg in July 1863 to the retreat of Robert E. Lee's defeated Confederates, Richard Wheeler uses the words of participants--both Northern and Southern--to bring one of the Civil War's bloodiest, most pivotal battles to life. Wheeler blends these compelling personal accounts into a startlingly vivid tapestry of war and a dramatic narrative that entertains as well as informs. This is eyewitness history at its best.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The three-day battle of Gettysburg, generally regarded as the turning point of the Civil War, is described in these pages largely in the words of participants. The confrontation between General Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and the Union army under General Meade took place in and around the town itself, and its citizens were much involved (extraordinarily, the only civilian fatality was a woman hit by a stray bullet in her kitchen). Wheeler has collected vivid accounts not only from veterans who wrote about it but from male and female townspeople (and outside observers), and presents this with the narrative skill displayed in Sword Over Richmond. With a sure grasp of strategic nuances, he explains the overall campaign that began in the broadest sense when Lee talked Confederate President Davis into authorizing a second invasion of the North. The climactic battle itself is then described in a you-are-there way that renders this enormously complicated affair understandable to nonCivil War buffs. Illustrations. BOMC alternate.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"With a sure grasp of strategic nuances, [Wheeler] explains the overall campaign that began in the broadest sense when Lee talked Confederate President Davis into authorizing a second invasion of the North. The climactic battle itself is then described in a you-are-there way that renders this enormously complicated affair understandable to non-Civil War buffs." --Publishers Weekly

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books (January 20, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811732851
• ISBN-13: 978-0811732857
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,301,370 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad but only for real Civil War buffs., August 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Witness to Gettysburg (Hardcover)

The use of actual witness accounts is an interesting technique but it creates a read which is not vey focused. Each witness, telling their own part of the grand story, takes it in their own direction. The result is a lot of tangents that make it difficult to focus on the details of the battle. This should be the fourth or fifth book on Gettysburg you read, not the first.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Witness to Gettysburg, August 22, 2005

By 

Ronald M. Abbott (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Witness to Gettysburg (Audio CD)

An excellent collection of the Battlefield stories from the people who experienced the battle first hand. It gives you a feel of being there and a better sense of what the participants and the townsfolk went through on those days in early July 1863.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Captivating Eyewitness Accounts, Superb Historical Narrative, February 22, 2005

By 

Michael Wischmeyer (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Witness to Gettysburg (Hardcover)

Witness to Gettysburg is superb history. Richard Wheeler has masterfully woven eyewitness accounts of the Gettysburg campaign into a remarkable tapestry, an evocative and haunting image of the most decisive battle of the Civil War.

Witness to Gettysburg is gripping narrative. Wheeler adroitly transitions from one account to another, from union soldier to confederate rebel, from army professionals to inexperienced civilians, from contemporary writings to memoirs penned years later. Wheeler maintains the intense drama of Gettysburg through careful selections, skillful editing, and his own insightful perspectives. Factual errors are corrected with unobtrusive comments in parenthesis.

Richard Wheeler's narrative account of Gettysburg compares favorably with the works of Shelby Foote, James M. McPherson, and Bruce Catton. Whether Witness to Gettysburg is your first reading on Gettysburg, your second, or your tenth, this exceptional compilation of eyewitness accounts will not disappoint you.

Witness to Gettysburg was originally published in 1987 by HarperCollins Publishers and reprinted in 1994 by The Blue and Grey Press. Although somewhat grainy, the more than fifty black and white illustrations are a valuable addition.