The Army of Northern Virginia After Gettysburg - Campfire Talk with Ranger Matt Atkinson

Ranger Matt Atkinson leads a talk covering the aftermath of Gettysburg for the Army of Northern Virginia and how Robert E. Lee attempts to recoup his losses.

[@robertferguson533]

Ranger Matt is a National treasure

[@jeffclark7888]

How? For being an annoying comedian?

[@ronaldcounter1171]

I had the opportunity to meet Matt this past summer. I find every ranger that presented over those five days to be excellent. Matt does a special job of bringing history to life. Thanks Matt.

[@paulstan9828]

Matt has such a good sense of humor and does such a great job. You can tell he loves what he is doing. I love listening to his lectures.

[@willoutlaw4971]

His subject matter is war, battles, strategy, and tactics. We fail to see the humor in a war to preserve slavery. However, we do give thanks to God that so many defenders of slavery and treason were killed in that war. We do thank God the South lost. And we do pray that if General Sherman is reincarnated, the Good Lord gives him a lifetime supply of matches.

[@paulstan9828]

Will Outlaw ?

[@marymoriarity2555]

The same trolls are on every video comment section.

[@stevestringer7351]

@@willoutlaw4971 I dare you to come say that in person you keyboard coward. Not sure what god you are giving thanks to for death.

[@leonidaslantz5249]

Matt Atkinson has only 1speaking rival, and that is Ben Lee Atkinson! The quality of Mr.Atkinson's talks and the information provided is outstanding!!

[@jimsullivan3481]

Ive always been a history buff, but this Matt Atkinson is a gem. The park service is blessed to have this guy. Ive never been one of those hardcore Civil War guys, but Id consider visiting Gettysburg from Massachusetts just to go on one of his tours or attend his lectures. Credit where credits due!!!

[@lisacaine7368]

Can't agree more, Jim.... I happen to be Matt's biggest fan from Australia! Great job & love that you keep me endlessly entertained, Matt

[@karlatessitore2484]

Yes, Amen!!!!

[@krevin543]

Matt Atkinson is the best speaker at Gettysburg

[@dougkidwell7142]

Does it get any better than listening to Matt Atkinson.

[@marymoriarity2555]

Doug Kidwell no it doesn’t The historical facts combined with humor engages everyone in a group

[@decimated550]

all those guys are aces, better than any "bro-history" talking faces on history channels

[@sartainja]

Amen, Brother Doug.

[@madeinAmericasince-rz9cp]

Sir, I have never taken my duties lightly. But I have no greater duty than to my home. To Virginia. Robert e lee

[@cmphighpower]

Matt is the best!! I hope to meet him someday

[@Goffas_and_gumpys]

So wanna go and do a Battlefield tour in Gettysburg with Ranger Atkinson. His knowledge and the setting of the area itself is awesome. Love watching his presentations here on the YT. Definitely a bucket list item. RIP all those who died for their Nation, no matter what side. Lest We Forget

[@jupite1888]

Ranger Matt Atkinson makes you want to listen to the History, Excellent

[@teresabrown3305]

One of the better lectures. The ending question sure makes one think.

[@barryeasthope5760]

Another fine lecture by Matt with a sprinkling of humour

[@marymoriarity2555]

I wanted to see this campfire lecture when I heard him talk about it the previous night when his son was there. Thanks for posting it

[@greggarner4477]

No sir... Thank you very much! I love every one of Matt Atkinson's speeches, tours and everything! He is a wonderful speaker and shares his vast knowledge in ways that are easy for all of us to learn.

[@scarletsapp4827]

Love watching this guy! I hope to be able to meet him in September

[@sparkysampsell1984]

Thanks for doing this video. Matt is great he could make anything better full of knowledge and witt !!

[@karlatessitore2484]

Love all Matt Atkinson's talks. I hope he will be there next Sept. when I return to Gettysburg. Love his humor.

[@franklinkuhn482]

Mr. Atkinson is a joy to listen to....Humor...Knowledge...Humility...

[@chuglyc]

Another great program by my favorite Ranger Atkins. I so enjoy listening to you sir. Thank you for the work you do and the education that you provide.

[@The_PaleHorseman]

Hope Matt is doing well through this pandemic. Hope you're safe as well stuff writer

[@stevemolina8801]

Outstanding! A subject I had not deeply thought about.

[@owryan1]

Could listen to him all day.

[@Sheilamarie2]

Thank you, StuffWriter! More Matt please, he's the best!

[@frankofva8803]

Matt Atkinson: the BEST!

[@deanbenedict707]

Thank you StuffWriter!!

[@ChaplainDaveSparks]

Great presentation, Ranger Matt. This is the first time, except for a second or two, that I've seen you without your hat/cap.

[@jonrettich4579]

I think it important to remember Lee literally knew almost every important officer on both sides well from his service at West Point, the Mexican War and field service with an elite mounted unit. I also have read that his officer losses at South Mountain and Antietam were very serious. I am always very appreciative of your presentations. You share your scholarship well. Thanks.

[@marknewton6984]

Lee had 2 years to force a truce. He almost did it. Jeff Davis would object though😮

[@The_PaleHorseman]

I just wrote on Gettysburg Facebook page about wanting to hear about what happened after the battle and here Mr. Matt is telling the story!

[@marosenmd294]

Look at video by Kent Masterson Brown, better than that, read Kent's book that covers the medical care aspects, first. Then he gets into the logistics and military history of (Not Sure Exact Match on Title): "Lee and the Retreat from Gettysburg"

[@terrygp1]

Thanks Ranger Matt for the great talk, love the history,,

[@charlescatt4607]

I’m going back to the burg in sept - hope to see him there

[@brianrunnels]

Please suggest Ranger Atkinson host a podcast. I'm a big fan of his lectures on youtube but think a conversational or discussion based podcast would be fantastic. I'm certain he could have a strong following. Kudos for your work as well.

[@marymoriarity2555]

Brian Runnels Stuffwriter publishes these videos on his own for people to enjoy

[@marymoriarity2555]

Perhaps a private podcast isn’t permitted by park service. Some of the park rangers also teach history courses and lecture different places. Some write books.

[@jacobmasters438]

If I'm not mistaken. The man who played Gen. William Barksdale in the movie Gettysburg. Is actually a descendant of Barksdale. "General Barksdale. Is Mississippi ready this day?" "Mississippi is ready sir." Quote from the movie Gettysburg.

[@johnwayneeverett6263]

great info Thank you..

[@chrisdavern9482]

Love Matt 😘

[@jonrettich-ff4gj]

Lee was losing fine leadership since Antietam. Always appreciate your presentations

[@cindy-followerofjesuschris6572]

Semmes' carrying his own tourniquet reminds me of our boys in battle today who carry their own body bags. Sobering.

[@brianx2640]

Watching from Japan. Matt needs his own Facebook page and KZbin channel. Stuffwriter does a tremendous job but is only one person. The national park service would do well to record and publish everything Ranger Matt puts out.

[@marymoriarity2555]

Brian X all the NPR rangers are terrific. They know their topics and present it very well

[@paulmorales3815]

What was that flash of light at 1:28? fireworks or lightning?

[@u.s.paratroops4633]

camera flash

[@sierrahun1]

That Brockenbrough picture probably is not John Mercer B. but some of his relatives, a judge.

[@Bryan-yx3rq]

Awesome as usual....but, why not use wireless mics on the speakers? The camera microphone picks up the crowd and ambient sound which drowns out Mr. Atkinson. Excellent presentation and entertainment value for sure, just need better sound.

[@marymoriarity2555]

You mean like the woman giggling like an idiot. Some background noise is inevitable but as you say sometimes drowns him out.

[@aaronpatalune4363]

Because this is just a bootleg concert video.

[@ronaldcounter1171]

People who take the bus tour or spend stupid money hiring a personal tour guide miss out.

[@bboobb1122334455]

Good grief with that dang bird in the background........sorry bout that, now it’s buggin you too.

[@Arathor82]

Anyone else find it kinda spooky that the fireworks are reporting in the background ? Kinda sounds like musket fire ?

[@nickroberts6984]

I was in Gettysburg over the 4th of July 2019 holiday. 💥🇺🇸💥 From my hotel at Cemetery Hill, the fireworks sounded like distant cannon !

[@Gitarzan66]

Almost every time I hear fireworks going off on the 4th all around my house I wonder if that's what battle sounds like. Minus the sound of men dying of course.

[@marosenmd294]

@@Gitarzan66 I have always had the same thought. I must say that I really enjoy fireworks. Were it the real thing and I could move in time, not sure what I'd of done...........just scared!

[@VictorRochaGaming]

"We thought you was a toad! "

[@chuggns]

Is anyone here after hearing Gen. Vallely?

[@willoutlaw4971]

Isn't Gen. Vallely the same same son of a bitchin birther who claimed President Obama was not a U.S. citizen resulting in one U.S. military commander refusing to deploy to Afghanistan? The other commander was sentenced to 6 months on prison and kicked out of the U.S. Army.

[@snake316171]

How many soldiers died just not during the battle but in its aftermath? Those numbers should be included as well, I'd imagine they'd be higher.

[@haileycomer8706]

At Gettysburg around 55,000 men was killed

[@snake316171]

@@haileycomer8706 that include those deaths from after the battle, from wounds recieved?

[@haileycomer8706]

SNaKED that Is the total of all of them men from both sides who was wounded and eventually died, or killed on the spot at the battle of Gettysburg

[@ChaplainDaveSparks]

In most wars, at least up through World War 1, more soldiers died from disease than from battle wounds. Stonewall Jackson, for example, died of pneumonia. I'm not sure if it was a result of his "friendly fire" wounds or not.

[@davidtuttle7556]

@@ChaplainDaveSparks it was likely due to post secondary infection resulting from the amputation.

[@Farlomous]

Instead of replacing all of these colonels, Lee should have done a lot of consolidation of regiments, brigades and divisions. I would wager he could have reduced the bureaucracy and streamlined the army by doing so. Pickett's division before the battle was already barely bigger than a brigade.

[@runtoth3abyss]

You're discounting the fact that the soldiers were volunteer soldiers. The regiments had strong cultures and identities to them. That is what prevented that from happening. The soldiers weren't just going to let themselves be consolidated they would have just gone home. The movie Gettysburg goes over the 2nd Maine mutiny over that very issue.

[@SandfordSmythe]

@@runtoth3abyss In looking at the roster of my wife's great,great grandfather's company, I see neighbors from long traditional families and several future brother-in-laws.

[@The_PaleHorseman]

Hope we can return to this soon, got vaccinated, plan on coming back to the park coming up.

[@izacnewton5761]

spoiler alert love the kfc reference

[@wes2262]

Did Lee loose 23k, 25k or 28k? I’ve heard these three figures my whole life and to this day I know the answer.

[@izacnewton5761]

sword or lamp sword

[@robinleskovitch9807]

What's with the ring in Matt''s right ear, and the glass eye?

[@randybullington4492]

An adamant bisexual? .... being also a Christian Baptist preacher, I highly doubt there's any truth to your blasphemy.... but thanks for playing anyhow 615.....

[@robinleskovitch9807]

@The 615 Gosh, I was guessing it had to do with mixed heritage (tomato based--mustard based barbecue sauce) I had no idea the Bible was involved.

[@marymoriarity2555]

What are you insinuating?

[@marymoriarity2555]

A sincerely stupid comment. Did you even listen to the history talk?

[@genekelly8467]

It is hard for me to understand the mentality of Lee invading Pennsylvania. Did he really think that Lincoln would panic and sue for peace? It seems to me that it would have been better to have lured the UNion Army into a wasting battle in Virginia , that would have worn down the Federals and spared CSA lives.

[@allansaad4735]

Grant was sieging Vicksburg and it coincidentally fell to the Union at the same time as the Battle of Gettysburg. The fall of Vicksburg essentially split the Confederacy in two and after that, defeat is theoretically just a function of time. That probably factored into the urgency to press the Union to the table for peace. As Lincoln put it, "See what a lot of land these fellows hold, of which Vicksburg is the key. The war can never be brought to a close until that key is in our pocket."

[@ChaplainDaveSparks]

Perhaps Longstreet's suggested alternative to Pickett's charge might have turned out better, too. As early as Sun Tzu, military strategists recognized the advantage of being on the defense in at least a semi-fortified position.

[@charlescatt4607]

That was the vague goal. But the actual purpose is to give northern Virginia a break, and allow the army to live of northern pand

[@truthteller9154]

Lee knew the south could not keep the war going with limited supplies and manpower in comparison to the north, he was time pressed. Lee going north was essentially a giant raid for food & supplies. His goal was to draw the Union army of the Potomac out of Virginia and to resupply his own army and with any luck win a decisive battle in the north crippling Union morale. The Army of the Potomac's morale was low prior to Gettysburg due to numerous defeats and incompetent Generals leading it. Had Lee pulled off another Chancellorsville or Fredericksburg scenario in the north that may have had serious repercussions politically for Lincoln & his administration. Even well after Gettysburg a growing peace movement in the north was happening. Imagine if Lee had won at Gettysburg? That would add to the growing peace movement.

[@SandfordSmythe]

It had a similar purpose to the Vietnam Tet Offensive, - to show the South's continued power and to lessen the support for the war. They were headed for Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania.

[@izacnewton5761]

wish someone would scare off that bird

[@thegoattree2509]

Stuff writer make a Dairy Queen bet with ranger Matt....bet him he left out a wounded Confederate general, after all the protesting, remind him of G.T. Anderson at the wheat field, then collect the bet! 🤫

[@willoutlaw4971]

Apparently Lee was not close enough to the scene of battle to see that Pickett did not have a division after the failed charge. Undoubtedly Lee stayed in the rear until the battle was over. Then rides out hollering "it's all my fault"!!

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot

[@user-ey3ps7bd6t]

Niether of you have a clue what you’re talking about.

[@jaywinters2483]

they should have thought about the attrition before they ran headlong into disaster & votes to succeed

[@jliller]

They thought they could win without much of a fight, certainly before attrition became a problem. A rate of attrition which they would have been hard pressed to foresee as nobody in the US Army or CS Army had commanded armies or fought battles to the size of which they faced in 1861-1865.

[@LittleLouieLagazza]

* secede

[@willoutlaw4971]

Looking forward to a presentation on the confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia where Union P.O.Ws were murdered and starved to death by the Confederacy.

[@matthewtew3182]

Yea the union had the same thing dumb fuck

[@mattshirley3883]

Or Camp Douglas

[@markcrampton5549]

@Andrew Stonesifer Hellmira& 18 acres of Hell! Point Lookout wasn't exactly summer camp either!

[@stueyguerreiro]

I’m also looking forward to a presentation on the countless atrocities the North inflicted on innocent Southern civilians.

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot

[@willoutlaw4971]

What changed the course of the battle of Gettysburg was the superior generalship of Union General Meade and his subordinates. Face the fact that no matter how much rebs want to hoot and holler they just were not that good.

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot

[@jamesreagle245]

I think lee should never rise above the rank of private. What I think made lee look good was secretary of war Stanton wanted the war to last longer and Stanton intentionally gave McClellan bogus intelligence long before Gettysburg.

[@michaelmyers7064]

I would call you an idiot but you would need 3 promotions to rise that far.

[@jamesreagle245]

@@michaelmyers7064 my military career ended in 1971so no promotions are necessary

[@markcrampton5549]

@@jamesreagle245 Section 8?

[@willoutlaw4971]

Trying to find a NPS Battlewalk discussing the African Americans, living in Pennsylvania in June and July, 1863 who were kidnapped by Confederate General Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia. These kidnapped African Americans were forcibly taken into Virginia by General Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia.

[@marchess7420]

They have an article on it on their website.

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot

[@willoutlaw4971]

Instead of a sculpture of Lee on a horse at Gettysburg, it would be more appropriate to use the spot to put up a feral hog in honor of those hogs that consumed Confederate war dead on the battlefield and excreted the remains on that hallowed ground.

[@waynelayton8568]

Wtf

[@jacobmasters438]

Billy, you have a sick sense of humor.

[@stueyguerreiro]

What’s wrong with you?

[@karlatessitore2484]

Disgusting!

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot

[@jeffclark7888]

Too many jokes and silliness. Peripheral.

[@leeroy4980]

Bore off ya dullard

[@willoutlaw4971]

How many enslaved African Americans were able to take advantage of the Homestead Act of 1862? Answer: 0

[@jliller]

What does the Homestead Act of 1862 have to do with the Gettysburg Campaign? Former slaves and their descendants did get homesteads via the Homestead Act of 1862, including a dozen in my part of Florida. The last homestead grant in my area was in the early 1920s.

[@jonathanbaggs4275]

Idiot