Introduction
Fought in the year 1863, within the town of Gettysburg, the Battle of Gettysburg remains as one of the significant events that took place during the period of American Civil War. In fact, the war became a significant “turning point” for the American Civil War. The Battle of Gettysburg was fought by the Confederate and Union Forces, which had distinct structures with regards to their operations (Abnett 22).
Size and composition
On matters regarding size and composition, the Union forces comprised of more than five hundred men some of whom where volunteer army men authorized by the congress during the period of the war. The union army had close to 197 companies whereby 18 were based in Garrisons, and the remaining 179 companies were based in specific isolated positions in the west. In addition, the Union forces had close to ten infantry regiments where by one was a mounted infantry, two were dragoons, four were artillery, and tow were cavalry regiments (O'Hern et al. 64). On the other hand, the Confederate forces had soldiers ranging from 750,000 to one million. Similar to the Union forces, the Confederate forces had combatant arms including the artillery, cavalry, and infantry. In addition, the Confederate forces had a small permanent army.
Doctrine and training
With regards to doctrine and training, both the Confederate and Union forces were trained on a wider array of tactical issues as evident during the war. As an example, the Union forces were primarily trained for water bodies. Even so, both the two forces had soldiers comprising of professionally trained soldiers drawn from the United States federal army (DeAngelis 29). Worth noting is the fact that the Confederate forces was often depicted to have a systematic chain of command, which ensured their victory in the year prior the start of the Battle of Gettysburg.
Logistics
In line with logistics, both the Confederate and Union forces experienced a myriad of logistics and supplies problems. To be precise, the Confederate forces had a dismal logistics system precipitated by the lack of efficient railroads, as well as the lack pf a central authority. In addition, its ally governments from the Southern states failed to offer adequate funding for the armies operations (Abnett 8). This disrupted logistics in a significant way. On a similar note, the Union forces faced logistic problems because battle field supplies became a significant problem. However, these problems were resolved when new food preservation techniques, and rail transport system were introduced.
Intelligence
As the Battle of Gettysburg become more intense, the need for intelligence became a crucial necessity for the Union and Confederate forces. As a result, the two forces resulted to the use of scouts and spies to provide various forms of intelligence. The spies and scouts from the two sides reported to the army commanders. In fact, they offered intelligence regarding the strengths and movements of the troops in the two sides (O'Hern et al.16). For the confederate forces, the spies focused more on areas surrounding Virginia and Alexandria. Some of the personalities that acted as spies for the Confederates include Jones Annie, and Norris William. On the other hand, the Union forces intelligence was decentralized whereby they had a secret services headed by one person.
Condition and moral
Command, control and communication
During the Battle of Gettysburg, the Confederate army was under the command of a commander in chief who was charged with the role of controlling and communicating the strategic directions to be adopted by the Confederates. Worth noting is the fact that the confederates did not have a centralized control system evident by cases where the confederate armies did not exhibit concerted efforts towards the attainment of a mutual goal (Abnett 39). On the other hand, the Union army had a relatively organized system of command headed by a secretary of war. In addition, there were other top military leaders of the Union forces comprising of the general n chief. Certainly, this enhanced control and communication of the Union forces, and this is perhaps the significant factor that contributed to the Union forces eventual success.
Leadership
The leadership of the Union forces comprised on civilian leaders and other leadership cadres such as the Naval Army leaders. This leadership system was effective in that it offered a viable platform in which the confederate leaders could develop systems for recruitment, training, equipping and maintaining its militia (O'Hern et al. 42). On a similar note, the confederate forces had a leader termed as a provisional president who executed the duties of a commander in chief. Certainly, the availability of such leadership enhanced effectiveness of the confederate forces because the soldiers remained loyal to the elected leaders.
Mission
During the Battle of Gettysburg, the primary mission of the Union Forces was to achieve complete session of the Southern states. On a short term basis, the Union forces mission during the Battle of Gettysburg was to collect supplies, which were abundant in the Pennsylvanian farm lands. On the other hand, the mission of the Confederate forces was to liberate themselves form the Northern forces and end slavery that had taken a toll on them southern population. Overall, the mission of the two forces were influenced by political reasons aligned with the need to protect their homes and families.
Initial disposition
Prior the Battle of Gettysburg, the Union forces comprised of close to sixteen thousand federal army men. However, most of these men resigned and joined the southern confederate forces. This same period also experienced complete secession of the southern states and this led to intense shortage of the Union forces army. As a result, volunteer army men were drawn to the Union forces, particularly from the patriotic Northerners (DeAngelis 72). On the other hand, the initial disposition of the Confederate forces is made up of close to two million men who war often involved in any time war. As such, calls were often made for volunteer men to be involved in the Confederates battles.
Work Cited
DeAngelis, Gina. The Battle of Gettysburg: Turning Point of the Civil War. Mankato, Minn: Bridgestone Books, 2003. Print.
Abnett, Dan. The Battle of Gettysburg: Spilled Blood on Sacred Ground. New York: Rosen Pub. Group, 2007. Print.
O'Hern, Kerri, Dale Anderson, and D McHargue. The Battle of Gettysburg. Milwaukee, WI: World Almanac Library, 2006. Print.
