To me the real turning point was when Grant was appointed commander of all Union forces. Up until that point The Confederates looked like they had the better Generals but in reality they just had a better one at the top. Grant had a good understanding of how to fight a war unlike his predecessors, he knew that it was better to suffer heavy casualties in a victory than light casualties in a defeat. Grant was the first Union commander that Lee was unable to outsmart, in part that was due to the fact that Grant did enter into battle intimidated by Lee or the prospect of taking heavy casualties, he understood that it was part of war. Lincoln summed up Grant when he said “I can’t spare this man, he fights” unlike many others, especially McClellan Grant was not afraid to go the offensive and was willing to finish off his opponent.
These answers above are all good. Some argue different turning points, but in war there are usually several moments or battles that create the climate for victory. I would argue that Vicksburg and Gettysburg are both turning point battles. And Grant was an extremely important figure. We do our past injustice when we debase important events and periods to a single defining moment. That doesn’t mean you can’t pick one turning point and argue it that way, but just make sure you think about the big picture.
Yes, Gettysburg.
Confederate General Robert E. Lee had successfully pressed, for the first and only time during the war, above the Mason-Dixon line in the summer of 1863. His goal was to take the war into the North by knocking out the rail lines at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. This would allow his troops to advance unhindered toward Baltimore and, with any luck, Washington D.C. Capturing the Federal capitol would have secured the likely victory of the Confederacy.
Gettysburg was sort of an unintentional crossroads where two divisions under Lee’s command encountered a Union cavalry division under the command of General John Buford at Marsh Creek, just west of Gettysburg.
Lee’s intention at Gettysburg was to test or “feel out” the Union defenses in Pennsylvania. What he didn’t count on was the fact that Union reinforcements would shortly arrive from the Army of the Potomac under General George Meade.
What Lee had anticipated as an easy victory turned into a bloodbath for both sides and a decisive victory for the North, resulting in several key Confederate Generals becoming either killed, wounded, or missing in action (such as Hood, Barksdale, Garnett, Armistead, Pender, Trimble and Kemper.)
Lee retreated into Virginia after the battle, never to invade the North again. The Confederacy was now forever on the defensive until the end of the war.
Vicksburg was the turning point. It allowed the Union control of the Mississippi river and cut the Confederacy in two.
As for saying it was Gettysburg. a lot of people only know two battles of the US Civil War, Gettysburg and Bull Run. Many don’t even know there were two battles of Bull Run.
To me the real turning point was when Grant was appointed commander of all Union forces. Up until that point The Confederates looked like they had the better Generals but in reality they just had a better one at the top. Grant had a good understanding of how to fight a war unlike his predecessors, he knew that it was better to suffer heavy casualties in a victory than light casualties in a defeat. Grant was the first Union commander that Lee was unable to outsmart, in part that was due to the fact that Grant did enter into battle intimidated by Lee or the prospect of taking heavy casualties, he understood that it was part of war. Lincoln summed up Grant when he said “I can’t spare this man, he fights” unlike many others, especially McClellan Grant was not afraid to go the offensive and was willing to finish off his opponent.
These answers above are all good. Some argue different turning points, but in war there are usually several moments or battles that create the climate for victory. I would argue that Vicksburg and Gettysburg are both turning point battles. And Grant was an extremely important figure. We do our past injustice when we debase important events and periods to a single defining moment. That doesn’t mean you can’t pick one turning point and argue it that way, but just make sure you think about the big picture.
Yes, Gettysburg.
Confederate General Robert E. Lee had successfully pressed, for the first and only time during the war, above the Mason-Dixon line in the summer of 1863. His goal was to take the war into the North by knocking out the rail lines at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. This would allow his troops to advance unhindered toward Baltimore and, with any luck, Washington D.C. Capturing the Federal capitol would have secured the likely victory of the Confederacy.
Gettysburg was sort of an unintentional crossroads where two divisions under Lee’s command encountered a Union cavalry division under the command of General John Buford at Marsh Creek, just west of Gettysburg.
Lee’s intention at Gettysburg was to test or “feel out” the Union defenses in Pennsylvania. What he didn’t count on was the fact that Union reinforcements would shortly arrive from the Army of the Potomac under General George Meade.
What Lee had anticipated as an easy victory turned into a bloodbath for both sides and a decisive victory for the North, resulting in several key Confederate Generals becoming either killed, wounded, or missing in action (such as Hood, Barksdale, Garnett, Armistead, Pender, Trimble and Kemper.)
Lee retreated into Virginia after the battle, never to invade the North again. The Confederacy was now forever on the defensive until the end of the war.
Vicksburg was the turning point. It allowed the Union control of the Mississippi river and cut the Confederacy in two.
As for saying it was Gettysburg. a lot of people only know two battles of the US Civil War, Gettysburg and Bull Run. Many don’t even know there were two battles of Bull Run.