The Monitor and the Merrimac

The Battle of Hampton Roads pitted two ships that either were or had been in the United States Navy against each other. Both of these ships, the Monitor and the Merrimac, were ironclads, technological wonders of their time. This confrontation, with the Monitor on the side of the Union and the Merrimac, which went under the name CSS Virginia, on the Confederate side, was a result of the Union naval blockade of the Southern cities of Norfolk and Richmond. The Monitor was absent from the first day of fighting, so the Merrimac was only opposed by traditional wooden hulled vessels of the Union Navy. After destroying two ships, the Merrimac was set to destroy the USS Minnesota, but her captain, Franklin Buchanan, decided to wait until morning for more favorable tides, as the Minnesota had run aground, and wasn't going anywhere. In the morning, however, the crew of the Virginia discovered that, in the night, the ironclad Monitor had taken up a defensive position of the Minnesota. Both ironclads engaged in a naval battle, though neither was able to cripple the opposing ships. After three hours, both ships returned to their respective ports. This could be considered a Union victory, for the blockade remained in effect.

Pearl Harbor

From the presentation, I learned that, even though the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise attack, the Americans still had ample warning, if they had only listened. According to the DVD, the alarm was tripped at least three times, including one instance where a Japanese periscope was sighted. I've always known about the tragedy of Pearl Harbor, but I never knew how much warning we had. This attack was unique, though, in that it was on US soil. Besides the war of 1812, 9/11 was the only other attack on US soil when it was a nation. I wonder, though, how the Japanese leaders expected us to react. However they expected us to act, the attack threw America into a prowar frenzy in a conflict that many wanted to stay out of. With Pearl Harbor, the Japanese tilted the tide of the war, possibly away from their favor. Another fact I learned, though not from the DVD; St. Ambrose's feast day is on December 7.

Gettysburg Part 2

On the third and final day of fighting at Gettysburg, the Confederates, determined to break the Union lines, attempted to charge the middle at Cemetery Ridge. This came to be known as Pickett's Charge. This Confederate move confuses me. Why would they attempt such a desperate move on only the third day of fighting? The Union laid siege to Vicksburg for months, a won due to their patience. To me, this charge was foolish, and wasted the lives of many young soldiers. Thousands of men marched right into the Union guns. Even Longstreet himself doubted that the charge would work. The success of the charge relied entirely on an ineffective artillery barrage. The decision by Lee to use the charge not only lost the battle, but also destroyed any hope of the Confederacy for independence.

Gettysburg Part 1

Though Gettysburg would turn out to be a critical Union victory, the first two days of fighting hinted at a Confederate victory. General Lee, who had had success at the Battle of Chancelorsville, and who had also lost Stonewall Jackson to friendly fire, had under him three corps of men, led James Longstreet, Richard Ewell, and J.E.B. Stewart. On the Union side, Joseph Hooker had been replaced according to Lincoln's orders by George Meade. On the first day of fighting, the Union forces were laid out in defensive positions on ridges around the town. However, the Confederates managed to push back their lines, and they were forced to retreat to the hills south of the town. However, the Confederates also missed an opportunity to take Cemetery Ridge due to misgivings of Ewell. The second day was also the bloodiest. The Confederates hammered at the Union lines, though the Union held their ground. The Confederates were also impeded by a continued absence of Stuart. Finally, at the Battle of Little Round Top, the Union left flank managed to charge in a hinge formation towards the Confederates, successfully driving them back despite their almost complete lack of ammunition.

Abraham Lincoln

What I find most fascinating about Lincoln is that he didn't receive a majority of the votes for the presidency. If it wasn't for the division in the Democratic Party, our arguably greatest president may never have been elected. Lincoln is a classic example of the old saying that tough times make great men. Even with Lincoln's election, by all rights he should have been one of our more obscure presidents; he had surrounded himself with potential political opponents, many of whom thought that they should be president. And yet, Lincoln went down in history as our greatest president. Despite his almost complete inexperience in the political theater, he acted with a decisive and forceful hand when dealing with the Secession. He refused to wait for Congress to declare war or not, and took the fight to the confederacy. Through his actions, Lincoln effectively retied the Union together, reestablishing the nation that we know today.

Secession

What I found most interesting about this episode was that, while there was huge support for the secessionist cause in the South, there were still many who either completely opposed secession, or had little confidence in their chances of success, such as Texas Governor Houston. I also found interesting that when the statistics are added up, the confederacy had a better chance of gaining its independence than the original thirteen colonies did. However, despite these odds, the colonies gained their independence, and the confederacy didn't. There were more people in the colonies that opposed the Revolution than there were people in the confederacy that opposed secession, and yet the results contradict the statistics. My best guess is that the results of both wars hinged on single battles; Saratoga for the Revolution, and Gettysburg for the Civil War. By some small chance, both ended in favor of the Union.