Darden Leadership Ride Elective Course: Spring 2013, Class 5 (Final Wrap-up)

[@susanschaffner4422]

I watched the entire presentation. And I learned a lot, after so much reading it was enjoyable to hear Prof. Gallagher share the breadth of his knowledge.

[@indy_go_blue6048]

IMO Dr. Gallagher has a lot of the same "IT" that RE Lee had. He's so enthusiastic about history and the Civil War he's a delight to listen to. I'd love to have attended this or to sit in on some of his other lectures. He keeps me awake at 4 am; most of the others like McPherson put me to sleep at 7 in the evening. (Mac's a damn good historian but he's drier than the Sahara in July.)

[@12rwoody]

Ethan Rafuse's talks on KZbin are also very good.

[@leftyshawenuph4026]

I get the impression that Lee was humble, and maybe a little soft spoken. People were moved by his presence alone. Gallagher is NOT like this. To me he comes off as a little arrogant. No one can deny that he is educated, and informed by many different sources on the subject, but I have heard him say, on multiple occasions, that MANY other experts and historians disagree with his particular opinion(s), but that (and I'm paraphrasing), "They are wrong and I am right". I have to adamantly and enthusiastically disagree with your comparison of him to Lee.

[@rafaelespinoza6530]

🎉😂❤😮😮😅😮😢😂❤

[@Mark-qq9cd]

Dr. Gallagher is a rock star! Certainly to me. I’ve learned so much from his writing and lectures.

[@pagejackson1207]

I love Dr’Gallagher’s “Rides”. Videos!, I would love to discuss one point with him - that being the practicality of Meade pursuing Lee into the passes of South Mountain. I believe that Meade’s logistical tail lead from Gettysburg on the Baltimore Pike (via the Baltimore Pike) to Emmitsburg, MD. Emmitsburg was the railhead supporting the logistics needs of the AOP during the battle. The distance from Emmitsburg to Gettysburg was approximately 13 miles and all supplies had to be unloaded from train to wagon and then moved to Gettysburg. A direct pursuit of the ANV would have necessitated a dramatic lengthing (it was 13 miles to Cashtown alone) of Meade’s logistical tail. All of which would be performed solely by wagons! It’s my understanding that many in the AOP were already suffering from a shortage of food, etc by July 3rd. If that’s true then it is highly unlikely that, the AOP could have been properly supplied if Meade pursued the ANV directly into the mountains. Meade moved his army south staying between Lee and Washington and moved his logistical railhead to Frederick, MD which was much close to Falling Waters, MD where the ANV ultimately crossed the Potomac.

[@mcfail3450]

Gary every time someone who isn't named Robert E Lee makes a bad choice: "they should have known better and had all this hindsight." Gary every time someone named Robert E Lee makes a mistake: "he acted how he should have given the information he had!"

[@vanzell1912]

I’m a big fan of Gallagher, but his Darden videos are superior partly because KZbin DOESNT RUIN THEM WITH ADS.

[@davess357]

Gary just kicks ass. Wonderful instructor.

[@scottscottsdale7868]

The much more recent book called Meade at Gettysburg. That book is based on the papers of the corp and the author suggests that Meade could not effectively pursue because their horses where completely knackered and would not have been able to take them. As I write this perhaps Sedgwick was fit enough to pursue.

[@indy_go_blue6048]

For a good laugh about "haunted Gettysburg" 1:31:30.

[@roddixon368]

It would have been interesting to look at the damage these resupply trains did to 19th Cent. roads and the minor river crossing points.

[@mikehjt]

I had some quibbles but all in all, an excellent series of talks, very lively and entertaining, especially when the students followed Prof Gallagher's lead in being light in places. BTW, I use "Prof Gallagher" just to indicate respect I've gained for him having seen a number of his talks here on KZbin.

[@mikehjt]

Quoting the ANV's losses is not enough. You need to ask 'Did Meade know just how badly hurt the ANV?' Meade had a reasonable idea of how badly his army had been hurt, at least in terms of brigades, divisions and corps that were combat ineffective, but that is harder to assess of the enemy army. The 3rd (or hypothetical 4th) day are one thing, but once Lee is on his way to the Potomac, there's no real excuse for Meade not conducting a vigorous pursuit because there Meade still won't have a good handle on how hurt the ANV is, but he'd know they were strung out.

[@smizdeazy]

excellent teacher of the war. my favorite author

[@mikehjt]

The Spanish nation waged a guerrilla war, the original 'guerrilla war', against Napoleon's occupation. The difference isn't that the so-called Confederacy was trying to be a nation but, as Prof Gallagher mentions, but that the Spanish were fighting solely for nationhood while the Confederacy was fighting for nationhood _with_ slavery intact.

[@limalonges1]

agree with tendollarword, I wish I had him when I was young

[@CharlieChung007]

Excellent class, great comments from the students as well. Thanks for recording this, I watched the whole thing! -Charlie

[@carolbell8008]

I believe all people freed as a result of this terrible conflict together with their descendants would do well to remember and honor the huge loss of life and freely flowing blood sacrificed !

[@mikeforni1044]

As we would do well to remember the freely flowing blood of the enslaved people for the prior 240 years in the colonies and the U.S.

[@TM-vq1bf]

@@mikeforni1044 yep . More to the point !!

[@TM-vq1bf]

They could also remember the hundreds of thousands who died to keep them in chains . And spent the next 100 years terrorizing then

[@scottbeall2212]

The girl at the end saying "He was there for 10 days and didn't do anything" with regard to Meade has no clue of the entire picture of the retreat and aftermath. Meade did pursue, had a longer route to take, then faced formidable defenses at Williamsport. His army needed resupply, the weather was bad, his best corp commanders were not available, etc.). She doesn't have all the details, and takes the common conceptions as truth.

[@Yourmomsakingsfan]

Dude fix your grammar before critiquing other people.

[@thomasjamison2050]

Gettysburg may not have been the turning point of the war, but in any case it was a good thing that the forces of freedom pushed back the forces of the slave power.

[@randallflynn4424]

??

[@pierlombardini8705]

Why didn't Meade go after Lee? Meade had just hit the lottery and wasn't very keen on taking another chance and maybe in the end losing it all.

[@patriciafitch2432]

Didn't Lincoln ask Lee to lead the Union forces at the beginning of the war? Virginia voted twice not to secede, but when Lincoln asked Virginia for 70 thousand men to fight against Confederates in Va they could not agree. Lee offered his resignation after Gettysburg because of his sense of honor. Lee was devastated by the carnage of his men and blamed himself. Of course he didn't have Jackson and Jeb Stuart arrived late. Lee never forgave Stuart for that.

[@jaywinters2483]

Fast forward when the students ramble- that way you’ll learn more.

[@mcfail3450]

Of you do that all you hear is "Lee is a Saint and Longstreet bad." Seriously like Gary and listening to him but it's insane how over the course of these videos he somehow criticizes Longstreet BOTH for "following his orders to a fault in a culture where Lee expected corps commanders to react to then enemy." Then in this video says that Longstreet didn't obey his orders. Which is it Gary? You can't have the truth be both. It just shows how much he is willing to take all the arrows of blame pointing at Lee and bend the truth behind them to point them at Longstreet even if those arrows cross. Want to know why the commander of the army, Lee, didn't remove Longstreet from command that day? Probably because the commander of an army during a battle was laying on his cot in a tent a mile back from the battle lines. Something Lee and Lee loving historians routinely chastise other generals for doing at this and other battles. Lee and his supporters are a perfect case study in double standards. Also if Longstreet is replaced for disagreeing with Lee's orders who do you replace him with to make the impossible to win attack somehow win? The other guys who all protested the attack plan? Hood? McClaw? You going to elevate a division commander to command a corps? Even with Sickles moving forward and spreading out his line (i think this hindered the attack but Gary critcizes sickles for it), even with the southern troops fighting better than anyone anywhere in the war, even with men coming down on the union left flank, and all the these things going right for the attack plan what happened? They still failed. They didn't even come close. Even if they take the ridge they'd have to hold it against a counter attack. Good luck with that with artillery unavailable on the hill and no reinforcements. The plan was doomed regardless of what Longstreet did which was execute Lee's orders in the possible time frame. Just about every expert, I think Gary included, says the attack couldn't occur until 2pm at earliest. Not the morning. So Lee was already dreaming.

[@leftyshawenuph4026]

You don't have to go to college any more to learn what is taught in college. I still HATE that I didn't go. There's really no substitute for the immersion and collaboration. Learning along with other people for the array of perspectives is a benefit that I am missing. Plus, all the girls.

[@bobtaylor170]

There are very few college graduates who can write as cogently as you. Also, you must consider that college education now is not what it was a half century ago. With few exceptions, colleges are indoctrination camps, presided over by a faculty of guards. Their purpose is to police thought, if it were possible.

[@zettle2345]

The problem with Meade chasing down Lee, after Lee has already started moving in retreat? Is that you have to take the same path(roads) that Lee is using, and a small delaying force would have been enough to keep Meade behind Lee the whole way. There is no place, or way of overtaking Lee's forces. As far as a counter-attack on July 3rd? I would have to hear that, that was a viable, planned for option. Before I could say anything about that. As far as I know, the Union(US) forces had no plans or desires, to cross those fences and fields in front of them. And they(US) would have all the Confederate troops left from the second day of fighting, on their left flank, if they did charge across that field. To me, analyzing what did happen, is better than theorizing about what did not. Although maybe not as much fun, as the latter.

[@macsenhayes]

they had so much time to figure out how to have another battle, I can't see any excuse for not figuring it out.

[@indy_go_blue6048]

That's precisely what happened settle 234. Ewell's Corp was the rear guard and Stuart's cavalry hindered any approach from the east. Union cavalry, local militia and citizens harassed some, such as the attack on the wagon wheels near Chambersburg (IIRC.) Plus there were heavy rains for most of the week from July 4; roads were muddy messes. By the time Meade caught up with Lee they were as well entrenched as they would be at Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor and were anchored on the Potomac and the foothills of South Mtn. Perhaps the AoP could've done a better job of harassing them; maybe they could've gotten across the Potomac somewhere and gotten behind Lee, but an assault on his line (the ANV was praying for this) would've been another Fredricksburg (or Mule Shoe.)

[@anthonyfiorito6260]

@@indy_go_blue6048 There's a whole book on the subject called "One Continuous Fight". It's a good read.

[@jonathanbrown7250]

I just came here to learn more about ghosts

[@francishasuly3510]

Because the was one of McClellans

[@rafaelespinoza6530]

amen##007😢😮😮😂❤❤

[@ДмитрийДепутатов]

Gonzalez Ruth Walker George Martinez William

[@ИринаКим-ъ5ч]

Allen Richard Gonzalez Maria Smith Richard

[@SerikPoliasc]

Robinson Linda Moore Karen Taylor Thomas