A Distance Learning Program from Gettysburg National Military Park
Broadcast Live on May 9, 2001
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"Gettysburg: The Face of Battle" A Distance Learning Program from Gettysburg National Military Park Broadcast Live on May 9, 2001 |
 "Morning Roll Call" by Charles Reed (Hardtack and Coffee) |
The armies were divided into several different branches:
INFANTRY: Infantrymen were foot soldiers. They traveled from place to place by marching, in all types of weather. Each infantryman carried his own weapon- a rifled musket and bayonet- along with personal belongings and equipment, and food for several days. Most Civil War soldiers were infantrymen.
ARTILLERY: Artillerymen carried no weapons of their own, but were part of a team that operated a single weapon, the cannon. They needed special training to perform their duties, each man performing a task to help move, load, aim, and fire the cannon. Horses pulled the cannon from site to site, while the artillerymen walked though they did get to ride on the cannon limber and caisson when they had to get into battle quickly.
CAVALRY: Cavalrymen traveled on horseback. A cavalryman carried three different weapons- a saber, a carbine, and a pistol- as well as personal belongings and equipment. They were the eyes of the army. They scouted and screened movements of the army from enemy scouts, protected army flanks and supply route, and engaged in battle when needed. Cavalry could raid weak enemy positions and retreat quickly.
Both armies based their organizations on the infantry, while the artillery and cavalry were considered to be supporting branches. Still, how did all of these different units fit in to one huge force?
The largest single organization of an army was the corps. (pronounced "core") The Union army at Gettysburg had seven infantry corps and a cavalry corps, each commanded by a major general. The Confederates had three infantry corps, each commanded by a lieutenant general, plus a cavalry division. Typically, a Confederate corps was much larger than a Union corps. Within each corps was a division of infantry and there were three divisions in a corps. In the division was a brigade of infantry commanded by a brigadier general. Three to four brigades made up a division and three to six regiments made up a brigade. One regiment was led by a colonel and numbered over 1,000 officers and men at full strength. A regiment was divided into ten companies, each company commanded by a captain. At full strength, one company had 100 officers and men.
Due to disease, re-assignments, and battle losses, regiments were usually much smaller than the required number. By the time of the Battle of Gettysburg, some regiments mustered barely 250 men and a typical company at Gettysburg had between 30 and 40 men. Any regiment containing over 500 men was considered to be a large one at this battle.
Here is the basic breakdown of an army corps of infantry, from large to small:
CORPS- three divisions, commanded by major or lt. general;
DIVISION- three infantry brigades, commanded by a major general;
BRIGADE- three to six regiments, commanded by a brigadier general;
REGIMENT- ten companies, commanded by a colonel
COMPANY- approximately 40 men, commanded by a captain.
Artillery units were usually organized as artillery brigades or artillery battalions, and attached one per division. Cavalry regiments were organized in a similar fashion to infantry regiments and assigned to a cavalry corps.
Army Organization Comparison Chart:
| ARMY OF THE POTOMAC 1 Corps= 3 Divisions 1 Division= 3 Infantry Brigades, 1 Artillery Brigade 1 Brigade= 4 to 5 Regiments 1 Regiment= 10 Companies |
ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA 1 Corps= 3 Divisions 1 Division= 4 to 5 Brigades, 1 Artillery Battalion 1 Brigade= 4 to 6 Regiments 1 Regiment= 10 Companies |
CLOSE-UP CORNER: How many students are in your entire school? (This maybe roughly equal to the size of a Civil War regiment.) How long would it take your principal to organize the whole school for a ten mile march? Using the cost of school lunches per person, how much would it cost to feed everyone during that time? Now multiply this time and cost to begin to understand the commanding general's responsibilities and difficulties during the Gettysburg Campaign and throughout the war!
Unit Comparison Chart for "Pickett's Charge":
For the May 9 broadcast, we are going to follow the fortunes of two regiments, one Union and one Confederate. For the Union side, students will be with the 69th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry of General Alexander Webb's Brigade, General John Gibbon's Division, Second Corps, Army of the Potomac. For the Confederate side, students will trace the footsteps of the 57th Virginia Infantry, General Lewis Armistead's Brigade, General George Pickett's Division, General James Longstreet's First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia. How do they stack up against each other? Compare!
| UNION Second Corps: 11,247 Gibbon's Division: 4,389 Webb's Brigade: 1,224 69th Pennsylvania Infantry: avg. company size: 28 |
CONFEDERATE Longstreet's Corps: 20,700 Pickett's Division: 5,848 Armistead's Brigade: 1,950 57th Virginia Infantry: avg. company size: 46 |
(Strengths are based on records from the National Archives and Records Administration, and John Busey and David Martin, Regimental Strengths and Losses at Gettysburg, Longstreet House Publishing, 1994.)
CLOSE-UP CORNER: The structure of the armies could easily translate into a math lesson, which will also help students visualize the many sized units of the Civil War. Using different sized blocks or pieces of construction paper, have students combine, for example, 10 companies into one regiment and then five regiments into one brigade and so forth.
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Overview |
| Causes & Questions | Battle of Gettysburg |
Army Structure |
| Pickett's Charge Vocabulary | 57th Virginia Infantry | 69th Pennsylvania Infantry |
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Post-Broadcast Activities | Evaluation Form | Reading List | Teacher's Guide |
GETTYSBURG: THE FACE OF BATTLE
A Satellite Broadcast- May 9, 2001
Gettysburg National Military Park
97 Taneytown Road
Gettysburg, PA 17325