| Little Round Top |
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| battles of the gettysburg campaign of the american civil war | |
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See Also: Battle of Gettysburg, Second Day Little Round Top is the smaller of two rocky hills south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania . It was the site of an unsuccessful assault by Confederate troops against the Union left flank on July 2 , 1863 , the second day of the Battle Of Gettysburg . Considered by many historians to be the key point in the Union Army's defensive line that day, Little Round Top was defended successfully by the brigade of Colonel Strong Vincent . The 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment , commanded by Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain , fought the most famous engagement there, culminating in a dramatic downhill Bayonet charge that is one of the most well-known actions at Gettysburg and in the American Civil War . GEOGRAPHY AND TACTICAL IMPORTANCE Little Round Top is approximately two miles (3 km) south of Gettysburg, with a rugged, steep slope rising 150 feet (46 m) above nearby Plum Run to the west (the peak is 550 feet (168 m) above sea level), strewn with large boulders. The western slope was generally free from vegetation, while the summit and eastern and southern slopes were lightly wooded. Directly to the south was its companion hill, {Link without Title} Round Top , 120 feet (36 m) higher and densely wooded.Adelman, p. 7. There is no evidence that the name "Little Round Top" was used by soldiers or civilians during the battle. Although the larger hill was known before the battle as Round Top, Round Top Mountain, and sometimes Round Hill, accounts written in 1863 referred to the smaller hill with a variety of names: Rock Hill, High Knob, Sugar Loaf Hill, Broad Top Summit, and granite spur of Round Top. Historian John B. Bachelder , who had an enormous influence on the preservation of the Gettysburg battlefield, personally favored the name "Weed's Hill," in honor of Brig. Gen. Stephen H. Weed , who was mortally wounded on Little Round Top. Bachelder abandoned that name by 1873. One of the first public uses of "Little Round Top" was by Edward Everett in his oration at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery on November 19 , 1863 .Frassanito, pp. 243-45. Thus, a famous exchange in the novel '' The Killer Angels '' is an anachronism: "Chamberlain said. ‘One thing. What's the name of this place? This hill. Has it got a name?' ‘Little Round Top,' Rice said. ‘Name of the hill you defended. The one you're going to is Big Round Top.'" Historian Harry W. Pfanz described the tactical importance of Little Round Top:Pfanz, p. 205. MOVEMENT TO BATTLE Around 4 p.m. on were unexpectedly in the Devil's Den area and they would threaten Hood's right flank if they were not dealt with; second, fire from the 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters at Slyder's farm drew the attention of lead elements of Brig. Gen. Evander M. Law 's brigade, moving in pursuit and drawing his brigade to the right; third, the terrain was rough and units naturally lost their parade-ground alignments; finally, Hood's senior subordinate, General Law, was unaware that he was now in command of the division, so he could not exercise control.Harman, pp. 55-56. Eicher, p. 526. In the meantime, Little Round Top was undefended by Union troops. Maj. Gen. George G. Meade , commander of the Army Of The Potomac , had ordered Maj. Gen. Daniel Sickles 's III Corps to defend the southern end of Cemetery Ridge, which would have just included Little Round Top. But Sickles, defying Meade's orders, moved his corps a few hundred yards west to the Emmitsburg Road and the Peach Orchard, causing a large salient in the line, which was also too long to defend properly. His left flank was anchored in Devil's Den. When Meade discovered this situation, he dispatched his chief engineer, Brig. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren , to attempt to deal with the situation south of Sickles's position. Climbing Little Round Top, Warren found only a small Signal Corps station there. He saw the glint of bayonets in the sun to the southwest and realized that a Confederate assault into the Union flank was imminent. He hurriedly sent staff officers, including Washington Roebling , to find help from any available units in the vicinity.Desjardin, p. 36. Pfanz, p. 205. The response to this request for help came from Maj. Gen. George Sykes , commander of the Union V Corps . Sykes quickly dispatched a messenger to order his 1st Division, commanded by Maj. Gen. James Barnes , to Little Round Top. Before the messenger could reach Barnes, he encountered Col. Strong Vincent , commander of the lead brigade, who seized the initiative and directed his four regiments to Little Round Top without waiting for permission from Barnes. He and a staff officer galloped ahead to Reconnoiter and guided his four regiments into position. On the western slope he placed the 16th Michigan, and then proceeding counterclockwise were the 44th New York, the 83rd Pennsylvania, and finally, at the end of the line on the southern slope, the 20th Maine . Arriving only ten minutes before the Confederates, Vincent ordered his brigade to take cover and wait, and he ordered Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain , commander of the 20th Maine, to hold his position, the extreme left of the Army of the Potomac, at all costs. Chamberlain and his 385 menPfanz, p. 232. The 20th Maine had 28 officers and 358 enlisted men. waited for what was to come.Desjardin, p. 36. Pfanz, pp. 208, 216. BATTLE July 2 , 1863 |
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