Gettysburg Movie- anyone who knows about the Civil War..?

Question

In U.S. History we watched the Gettysburg movie and now have a huge study guide over it all...
-my class studied the actual civil war before the movie but i just moved and came in at the wrong time- yet still have to do the work.

So, one question i can't figure out for the life of me is..
What objections does Confederate General Hood make regarding attacking Little Round Top? What alternative does Hood suggest to Lee's orders?

When i was watching the movie, i remembered Hood went to talk to Lee about a different plan because he believed the one General Lee had would fail- but i can't remember what he suggested and it is no where to be found on the internet.
Any help would be great- Thank You!

Answer 1

Hood wanted to attack further to the right. He objected to attacking a place called Devil's Den, which was rocky and full of large boulders. Devil's Den was just to the left of Little Round Top. Both Devil's Den and Little Round Top were difficult to attack with entrenched Union soldiers....altho Little Round Top was almost overran by Hood's Texans.

The way to the right was open to the Union rear with the supply trains and artillery park, which the movie didn't show, but was where Hood and his superior General Longstreet wanted to attack. An attack there would've rolled up the Union left and the battle would've been a Confederate victory.

Answer 2

Even if the Confederates had won at Gettysburg they still would not have won the war. Yes, there were no armies in between Lee and Washington. But please understand two things: 1. Washington was the most heavily fortified city on earth at the time, and was ringed by more that 70 forts. Lee would have had a hard time attacking them. The tremendous losses in the Civil war were largely due to charges against entrenched enemies (the Stone Wall at Chancellorsville, for example). Lee did not have the means to take Washington. He could have laid siege, but that would have defeated his purpose, as additional Union troops could have relieved that siege relatively easily. 2. Even if he had taken Washington, so what? The government easily could have evacuated as it did during the Revolution and the War of 1812. So he takes a city where the government has departed; what does Lee get for that? Nothing. As has been pointed out, there was a big war waged out west as well; and the South was losing that war. By 1863 the Confederacy was dying, and there was no way to capitalize on a victory at Gettysburg. The South simply didn't have the manpower or materiel to support a full scale invasion and occupation of the North which is what they would have had to have done to bring the North to the negotiating table. If the South had waged an aggressive war from the start, they could have won; but by 1863 it was too little and too late. About Lee's blame... Well Pickett's Charge WAS Lee's idea. The cream of the army fell that day; and Lee should have known better than to attempt a frontal assault on the enemy's center.

Answer 3

Gen.John Bell Hood proposes to put some cannon batteries to help his Texas Brigade to easier take Little Round Top against Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain of the 20th Maine on July 2,1863.Gen.James Longstreet says it will will take to long to move the artillery up on that hill so it was called off.

Answer 4

I think he wanted to slide around, leaving the Yankees on the top of the hill looking down at Lee's Army going down the road to capture Washington DC. Then Lee could have stopped, picked some nice high ground, dug in and had the Yankees break their hearts charging uphill at the CSA instead of vice versa.

Answer 5

To go up to the side of the hill through a gap. He was right, but Johnny would have lost the battle in a couple of days anyway (would have had to move a lot faster when they first got there, but didn't have tanks and jeeps.)

Answer 6

Go to the library and rent the movie. I am sure they will have it.