This study of artillery at Gettysburg will influence the history of this crucial battle for years to come."--BOOK JACKET.

The battle of Gettysburg in July 1863 marked the turning point of the American Civil War. The apex of the Confederacy's final major invasion of the North, the devastating defeat also marked the end of the South's offensive strategy against the North. From this battle until the end of the war, the Confederate armies largely remained defensive. The Artillery of Gettysburg is a thoughtful look at the role of the artillery during the July 1?3, 1863 conflict. Bradley M. Gottfried provides insight into how the two armies employed their artillery, how the different kinds of weapons functioned in battle, and the strategies for using each of them. He shows how artillery affected the ebb and flow of battle for both armies and thus provides a unique way of understanding the strategies of the Federal and Union commanders.

Artillery played an important and perhaps decisive role at the July 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. Although many hundreds of books have been published on the battle, few have focused on the artillery. Silent Sentinels fills this flaring gap in the literature. This well-written and illustrated study was designed for both the casual battlefield visitor and the serious scholar. The former will use Silent Sentinels to tour the battlefield, browse existing guns, ponder the many photographs, and learn more about artillery in general; the latter will find the extensive primary sources, diagrams, appendices of numbers and losses, and informative discussion of organization and tactics an indispensable reference resource. Silent Sentinels discusses in detail every gun-type used at Gettysburg, the equipment needed to operate the guns, their organization, and the tactics employed by both Union and Confederate artillery men. In addition to a history of the artillery and how it was used, the author includes chapters on the park’s collection of 436 guns, the pieces on display at the field today, how to identify the different types of cannon, and how to identify the date and place of manufacture. Silent Sentinels concludes with a driving tour of the battlefield, specially designed with the artillery in mind. This lovely historical guide, complete with detailed endnotes and bibliography, will be a welcomed addition to the growing Gettysburg titles.

Among the myriad books examining the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863), Summer Thunder is one of a kind. A terrific resource for is visitors to the national military park, it explores the clashing armies’ deployment of artillery throughout the battle—from one position to another, from one day to the next. Matt Spruill, a retired U.S. Army colonel and former licensed Gettysburg guide, carefully takes readers to every point on the battlefield where artillery was used, and combining his own commentary with excerpts from the Official Records and other primary sources, he reveals the tactical thinking of both Union and Confederate commanders. Spruill uses a sequential series of thirty-five “stops,” complete with driving instructions and recent photographs, to guide readers around the park and orient them about where the opposing units were placed and what happened there. Detailed maps depict the battlefield as it was in 1863 and are marked with artillery positions, including the number of guns in action with each battery. Meanwhile, the passages from primary sources allow the reader to see key events as the actual participants saw them. The book also brims with information about the various artillery pieces used by both sides, from howitzers to Parrott rifles and Napoleon field guns, and the critical role they played over the course of the battle, right up its outcome. Summer Thunder devotes a chapter to each of the three days of the historic devotes a chapter to each of the three days of the historic Summer Thunder engagement between the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia. One can follow the battle chronologically in its entirety from Stop 1 to Stop 35, or concentrate on a specific day or a specific area. In fact, the maps and orientation information are of such detail that the book can be used even without being on the battlefield, making it an invaluable reference work for expert and novice alike.

This Civil War biography chronicles the life of the brave Union artillery officer who refused to retreat from Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg. Lieutenant Alonzo Hereford Cushing may be the most famous lieutenant to be killed during the Civil War. Two years out of West Point, the young artillery officer commanded Battery A of the 4th US Artillery at Gettysburg. Despite severe wounds, Cushing defended his position at Cemetery Ridge against the fearsome Confederate infantry assault. The story of Cushing’s heroic final moments were witnessed and recorded by a battlefield correspondent for The New York Times, who said “the gallantry of this officer is beyond praise.” In 2014, President Barak Obama awarded Cushing a posthumous Medal of Honor. In this biography, Kent Brown presents a lively narrative based on extensive research, including a cache of Cushing’s letters.

Gettysburg is one of the most famous and studied battles of history, and Pickett’s Charge, its climax on the third day, continues to fascinate a new generation of readers. Most accounts of the grand assault focus on General Robert E. Lee’s reasons for making the charge, its preparation, organization, and ultimate failure. Author David Shultz, however, in “Double Canister at Ten Yards”: The Federal Artillery and the Repulse of Pickett’s Charge, July 3, 1863, focuses his examination on how and why the Union long-arm beat back the Confederate foot soldiers. After two days of heavy fighting on July 1 and 2, 1863, the commander of the Army of the Potomac, Maj. General George G. Meade, correctly surmised General Lee would remain on the offensive on July 3 and strike the Union center on Cemetery Ridge. Meade informed Maj. Gen. Winfield Hancock, whose infantry lined the ridge, that his sector would bear the brunt on the morrow and to prepare accordingly. Meade also warned to his capable chief of artillery, Brig. Gen. Henry J. Hunt, and tasked him with preparing his guns to deal with the approaching assault. Shultz, who has studied Gettysburg for decades and walked every yard of its hallowed ground, uses official reports, letters, diaries, and other accounts to meticulously explain how Hunt and his officers and men worked tirelessly that night and well into July 3 to organize a lethal package of orchestrated destruction to greet Lee’s vaunted infantry in an effort that would be hailed by many historians as “The High Water Mark of the Confederacy.” The war witnessed many large scale assaults and artillery bombardments, but no example of defensive gunnery was more destructive than the ring of direct frontal and full-flank enfilading fire Hunt’s batteries unleashed upon Lee’s assaulting columns. The iron rain broke and drove back the massed attack within a short time, leaving a fraction of the attacking force to cross the Emmitsburg Road to scale the deadly Ridge. “Double Canister at Ten Yards” will change the way you look at Pickett’s Charge, and leave you wondering yet again why an officer as experienced and gifted as General Lee ordered it in the first place.

This is a detailed survey, replete with photographs and diagrams, of the field artillery used by both sides in the Civil War. In paperback for the first time, the book provides technical descriptions of the artillery (bore, weight, range, etc.), ordnance purchases, and inspection reports. Appendixes provide information on surviving artillery pieces and their current locations in museums and national parks.