Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Junior
Major
History/Social Studies Certificate
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Dr. James Humphreys
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
This paper examines the viability of the famous military action at the Battle of Gettysburg known as “Pickett’s Charge.” It argues that the charge was not a stratagem capable of success, based on the testimonies of men on the ground on both sides of the fight, such as General James Longstreet, Major Henry Livermore Abbott, and Brigadier General Richard Garnett, as well as articles on the subject from historians from reputable publications such as Smithsonian and Defense Horizons. The finding of this paper is that, barring a miracle for the charging Confederates, that the charge was a severe miscalculation that ought not to have been implemented. By highlighting this perspective, this paper contributes to the broader discussion of the Civil War and attempts to center the origin of this failed stratagem on General Robert E. Lee, who planned and ordered the charge, rather than convenient scapegoats who are not so lionized in the post-Civil War past.
Fall Scholars Week 2025
American Military History
Included in
The Wave Has Rolled Upon the Rock: The Viability of Pickett's Charge
This paper examines the viability of the famous military action at the Battle of Gettysburg known as “Pickett’s Charge.” It argues that the charge was not a stratagem capable of success, based on the testimonies of men on the ground on both sides of the fight, such as General James Longstreet, Major Henry Livermore Abbott, and Brigadier General Richard Garnett, as well as articles on the subject from historians from reputable publications such as Smithsonian and Defense Horizons. The finding of this paper is that, barring a miracle for the charging Confederates, that the charge was a severe miscalculation that ought not to have been implemented. By highlighting this perspective, this paper contributes to the broader discussion of the Civil War and attempts to center the origin of this failed stratagem on General Robert E. Lee, who planned and ordered the charge, rather than convenient scapegoats who are not so lionized in the post-Civil War past.