E. P. Alexander on Pickett's Charge Part 2 | Eyewitness Account/Official Report 

"I have never known General Lee to bollocks a battle so badly!" - Col. Alexander's reaction to the Confederate defeat at Gettysburg. As Commanding General, Lee deserved the credit for victory and blame for defeat. Years later, General Pickett was asked why the Confederates lost ...he replied "I've always thought the Union Army had something to do with it"

History has shown that on this day General Longstreet was correct. I can't imagine the pain of knowing that it would fail but the overriding duty of obeying ones orders. Wow.

To hear voices like Alexander's place us in the midst of the events is nothing short of spectacular. Those who were there left to history a rich collection of books, letters, and other documents. Hearing them read brings the events to life as nothing else can. The people of today, it seems, would rather fall down several flights of stairs than to write or to read anything longer than a grocery list. How many of our own present-day events will be lost to our future generations because they will not be recorded and therefore preserved, in the same way? The Civil War lives in memory today because the people who were there took the time to write and record their impressions of major events. Can or will today's people do as much for the people of tomorrow?

General Longstreet is by far my favorite General. I hate to say it but shame on General Lee for ordering that slaughter. General Longstreet knew all along it was suicide. General Longstreet was a great man.

Dang,that was wonderful! Alexander`s descriptiveness illuminates the scene in the minds eye most clearly.

One has to wonder what an experienced commander as General Longstreet was thinking in those moments leading up to this tragic event , I'm certain this weighed so heavily upon him , I felt an overwhelming sense of sadness grip me in listening to this account , so many young souls lost , simply heartbreaking …

Well done, great narration! I love learning history from vivid first person source documents.

Outstanding, I enjoyed this video very much, well done sir.

I read both of Alexander’s books they are military classics as was his recognized capabilities by his contemporaries. I feel that based on past Federal performance and the political overview Lee’s decision was reasonable. The rather surprising Confederate cavalry reverse and difficult Federal success against Ewell had they been otherwise might have well contributed to a Confederate victory. Meade who I consider superlative managed an army filled with cliques and animosities incredibly well against notable interior resistance to himself and subsequent endless vituperation. Your presentations are consistently interesting and valuable as an historical resource. Thanks

I am in the process of reading his books. Your reading it with your accent was perfect.

General Lee: General Pickett you must look to your division. General Pickett: Sir, I have no division.

I have read several books by generals of both sides of the war, EP Alexander's is the best i have read so far.

Alexander is 28 at Gettysburg, yet in charge of all Confederate artillery.

You can tell how well educated Alexander was by how complete his accounts are. He finished the war as a Brigadier General.

Great video and narration. Porter Alexander was an excellent officer who had the explicit trust of Longstreet. Problems with fuses limited his effectiveness at Gettysburg. Also, the artillery chief under Lee made some curious decisions on the 3rd day. Ewells assault at Culps hill was not coordinated with Pickett, nor was there any supporting artillery fire given to Alexander as he points out. I have long been surprised st the overall lack of competence in the ANV on this day and the responsibility rests squarely with Lee, and to a lesser degree with Longstreet, though the latter was certainly correct in his overall assessment of the situation.

Very interesting. Have never heard the observation that not enfilading the Union line from the north was an oversight. Makes sense

so glad you got patreon. hope everyone supports you. i’m going on today and sign up. cancelling my pandora crap. i truly don’t know anyone more deserving of support on you tube. this vid. is one of my top five fave. now. excellent work. you nailed it to when u said you like getting the generals account of the battle. gettysburg is really truly starting to make real world sense now cause of u. keep it up virginian. wish u all the best. i’ll campaign for ya hard.

Great video. Thanks for publishing.

It was strange that Longstreet would tell his subordinate , Alexander, to advise Pickett not to make the charge , meanwhile when Pickett directly questioned him on the matter , Longstreet just turned away . While he knew in his heart this attacked was doomed to fail , he would not countermand Lee's order , but that was exactly the action he was trying to place on his subordinate's shoulders . Was he trying to diffuse the blame if the attack was indeed cancelled , or was he just passing the buck , since he wouldn't do it just letting someone else countermand Lee . Lost in the fog of war and mists of time , only conjecture is left.

Nearly 5 months later (November, 1863), Longstreet would order his men to storm Burnside's defenses at Fort Sanders, in the Knoxville Campaign. At the cost of 13 casualties Burnside repulsed the attacks, and Longstreet's casualties amounted to 813. Seems like people either forget that, or don't know.

Another well done video, thanks!!

Thank you. That was excellent.

Very nice accounts of the attack it was interesting to hear that Alexander thought the initial points of the attack shall be the cemetery Hill

Plenty of blame to go around with the Confederate leadership. However, listen again to Lonstreet’s instructions to Pendleton. He sets s condition for the artillery to achieve, not time based. But due to munitions constraints, there was obviously a limit to time and rate of fire to achieve the desired conditions. Great lesson for current leaders on setting conditions for a breach.

1988 there was a group of guys that did a union hospital that was complete with a Vietnam vet minus a leg to a land mine.These guys made muscles out of Crest toothpaste and surgeons gloves.A cow bone,real chicken(on ice) and this stuff used in Hollywood that's looks like real skin.They did an amputation using Caro syrup and raspberry koolaid and Damn it looked real.I had to keep reminding myself it wasnt real.The park service at Gettysburg was very very impressed.They could do it once a day and did it 7 times for the week we were there.I asked the Vietnam vet how he could do it over and over again and he told me what he suffered was nothing compared to what they suffered during the civil war so it was easy for him to do.Combined with a love of history and the civil war he said it was an honor to remember both sides not just one side but all in the battle.I was stunned and felt so small.Ive never forgot this...Wow!

Still hard to imagine how Lee could have ordered that charge following the Union debacle at Fredericksburg. There is some idea that Alexander’s artillery fuses were not up to snuff. The Confederates often had to make do with second-rate equipment and supplies.,

Such a sad and subtextually charged moment this exchange between Alexander and Longstreet... both in terms of historical significance with hindsight and their own apparent thoughts at the time. It's always emotional no matter how many times I read/hear it. RU-vid autoplay brings me back to this video sometimes and it gets me every time. But it's not just sadness... The accounts and portrayals of these moments still convey a strong sense of hope as they play out despite the negative outcome being a 156 year old fact. Keep it alive... you never know what the future holds.

Real sad. These brave men and loyalty to the cause. So sad.

Very well done sir, as always.

IT'S A CRIME THE WAY THEY FOUGHT THIS BATTLE!!!! MAY GOD BLESS THEIR SOULS!!!!

My next audio book is going to be Alexander’s. To bad you aren’t the narrator though. You do a great job

At a National Park, a discussion arose about the reliability and accuracy of rebel artillery fire. When we offered that E. Porter Alexander, a noted rebel artillerist, wrote about the reliable and accurate fire of rebel artillery at Gettysburg, a park ranger called him.....wait for it...a liar.

We agree with Longstreet, he knew nothing could be accomplished by ordering the men into their horrible deaths. 🌺

LEE FAILED TO TAKE THE HIGH GROUND MEADES TROOPS WERE WELL HIDDEN IN THE TREES LEE SHOULD HAVE WITHDRAWN TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY

Very good presentation ! Shelby Foote said Gettysburg was the price the South paid for having Robert E Lee.Longstreet saw the similiarity between it and Fredricksburg only the roles were reversed.Evidently many historians believe Lee was experiencing severe health/heart problems at the time.Those frontal assaults were a fools errand.Fredricksburg,Gettysburg,Cold Harbor,Franklin - all horrific failures .You think officers on both sides would have learned long before such slaughter kept reacurring

Great video......

Alexander had the benefit of hindsight and used that extensively.

Yeah!I didn't think of that.I think also General Lee was over confident .When I stood where Union Forces were dug in on cemetery ridge looking out over that wide open field I thought to myself,Lee what were you thinking"?

Alexander was an amazing officer. He was truly an asset to his army. I believe that later he was critical of some other officers' actions at Gettysburg. Is this correct?

The only Guns that were carried were Alonzo Cushing's. Even then they weren't kept but for a two maybe 3 minutes.

Last cut off. 2). Lee, being aware of this dissent, did not show any sign whatsoever of heeding said advice, nor did he assume tactical control over the most important attack of his career, with everything of great importance pending on it's outcome, when by all articles of war he most definitely should have. Did not in fact oversee the all important deployment of the support line that he referred to later as expected but did not materialize. Did not render any on the sight orders to help facilitate the coordination and more rapid employment if support when it would have been painfully obvious only half way through the charge that the expected support lines were no where near ready to be employed

Well done.

If ANYBODY questions his abilities..I'm quite sure he was running the US Army Artillery Corps in the mid to later 1870's, and the 1880's for sure.

Longstreet knew it was a mistake from the beginning, any fool could see it, but Lee couldn't. Why, because he didn't have intelligence to tell him and he thought that maybe he could pull it off. But God does not suffer a fool, and Lee was soundly defeated. I still would like to know, why its called Pickett's charge when Armistead actually led it. and died for it. While Pickett actually was released from the Confederate Army, when he had his "Shad Bake", while his troops were killed before Appomattox.

Thank God for Lee's incompetence

Gettysburg was General Lee's biggest mistake.

I like to steer away from probable outcomes of different tactics employed. I prefer in a hindsight evaluation to start as a foundation, only such facts that are indisputably true. 1). Longstreet, as his privilege as well as his duty as a core commander, did in fact, in no uncertain terms profess to the commanding general his grave concerns about expecting fruitful to come of such a tactical effort

It was a desperate gamble made by a man who knew that his only chance to win the war was to win a major battle in the North. He knew this was his only chance, and it was a slim one at best. Lee knew better than anyone that if the war continued into 1864 the South had no chance.

War is hell, especially when you lose. The confederates gave a great effort, but had no chance.

I heard that Lee said that Alexander was very good, to which Longstreet replied: "that Hunt up there and there are none better."

Good that kemper lived.

Gen Lee: do that Gen Longstreet: maybe don’t do it? Lee: no, do it Longstreet: don’t do it? Lee: shut up an do it

Longstreet was prophetic, I also think John Bell Hood had a grasp of the situation as well.Lee botched it

Interesting that though they would follow Lee many of the senior officers had little or no faith in his judgement on that day. Lee's actions during this battle show a man who had decided on a plan of action in some vain hope of success but which others could see failure.

Alexander was with out a doubt a very good artillery commander second to none. Some of the ammunition the guns used , had little effect because not timing the fuses properly.if all had been well Picketts charge could have turned out guite differently.

I've read EPA's book a few times and he was always good to lay blame on others. From the beginning of his book he blames the other young boy that the childhood fight broke out,even though it was EPA who tried to fire the pistol but it miss fired. It is like how Haskell, even though a well written account I feel it leaves alot out of their own responsibility. Blame lays on almost every Confederate commander those three days. Most important was the supporting columns that were to follow up on the attacking forces heels. From what I could find that another ten brigades were to follow up and it would have been a much different outcome. But after all said I'm glad the south lost that day.

I actually had to study Gettysburg, and draw conclusions!..And they were all in plain sight! Alexanders artillery was only partly effective due to obvious overshooting and inability to observe the target! Whatever possessed Robert Lee to attempt this i left up to the psychologists, because it made no sense at all! Longstreet saw the inevitable disaster coming, and wanted no part of it! Asking men to march, in close order over a mile of open ground can only be seen as suicide! The men marching would know it..But they still did it..Meade would have full view of it coming, the defence was arranged to cause maximum casualtys! Only Hood at Franklin was a bigger disaster! But you'd expect it from Hood..Not Robert Lee! Picket never forgave him! I see people constantly trying to justify what Lee did! They still believe Lee could do no wrong...Even in the face of the obvious!..Robert Lee bungled it horribly!

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Sometimes I wonder if the union army had been less experienced, especially on the first day.

Robert e. Lee?

Sad!

"Gettysburg is the price the South paid for RE Lee." -- Shelby Foote

I've NEVER been a supporter of Ewell, but granted, Longstreet waited how MUCH longer in the day, than he SHOULD have?? He followed nothing Lee commanded him to do..correctly. I always supported Longstreet, in they should have moved east, picked ground of THEIR choosing, then had the Battle. But, he never followed Lee's commands. I've ALWAYS said, if TJ had still been alive, Lee would had NEVER had told HIM to take Culps hill...he'd done it before Lee even arrived, and Gettysburg would had never happened. At least NOT as or WHERE we remember it to have happened. It's truly AMAZING...one MAN, could make such a difference..

ONCE A VIRGINIAN ALWAYS A VIRGINIAN EVEN NOW THAT I HAVED LIVED IN FLORIDA OVER A HALF A CENTURY

So this was not only a poorly planned assault . . . but poorly executed. Stonewall Jackson turning over in his grave . . .

It's really a shame it's called Pickett's Charge when in reality it should be called Lee's Charge.

My great great and few more grand father my moms side was wounded at Gettysburg, he was shit in the side of his neck, family say that’s why he grew his beard and curved the hair that side but he was a POW dam Yankees

It was the hairiest conflict in US history.

I would have fought for the south they are better Americans than the north east democants

Ya lost Lee , should have gave it up before the charge ,all he actually ended up doing was getting hundreds of men slaughtered . Longstreet was right , it must have been painful for him to imagine the death toll that was about to be .

I really don't understand why the Confederate artillery was so bad at their aim. Sounds like almost all the shells over flew the intended target. Perhaps it might have been better to aim for hookers headquarters farm early on and take out the entire federal armies top command! I'm sure it was not consistent appropriate to do so during the US civil war

It has been another great video! ~~ Keep up the good work! Standing by for more :):) ~Big fan