Killer Angels Essay, Research Paper

Report on & # 8220 ; The Killer Angels & # 8221 ;

Report on & # 8220 ; The Killer Angels & # 8221 ; by Michael Shaara When an writer writes a book he has a

message that he is seeking to acquire across to the reader. This message is called a subject. In The

Killer Angels Shaara? s subject was freedom for the slaves. The Northerners genuinely believed

that the slaves deserved to be free, and their desire to put slaves free was the cause of the

Civil War. Just before the Battle of Gettysburg, Colonel Lawrence Chamberlain of the twentieth

Maine gave a address to a group of mutineers. He told them that the war in which they were

combat was unlike any war in history. The war in which they were contending was non for

money, belongings or power. It was a war to put other work forces free. After the conflict began,

Sergeant Tom Chamberlain asked a group of captives why they were contending. They gave no

reply, but asked him the same inquiry. Sergeant Chamberlain answered, ? To liberate the

slaves, of course. ? The South, nevertheless, was against liberating the slaves. The full Civil

War, whether the people were for or against the thought, was about freedom. The Killer Angels

was enlightening, really absorbing and I liked it. I liked the book because I learned many

things from it. I? d ne’er thought much about the importance of the Battle of Gettysburg until

I read The Killer Angels. From this book I learned many things. I learned that the Battle of

Gettysburg was the turning point of the Civil War. Prior to Gettysburg, the South had won

most major conflicts. At Gettysburg, nevertheless, the North gained it? s first major triumph. From

so on, the North continued to derive impulse, winning virtually every conflict for the

following two old ages of the war. The Battle of Gettysburg exhausted both ground forcess ; greatly

diminishing their militias of ammo and soldiers. The North had more than twice as

many work forces as the South, and since the North was industrialized, they could refill their

supplies of work forces and ammo reasonably rapidly. The South, nevertheless, could non refill their

supplies rapidly because of the deficiency of industrialisation and work force. The supplies lost in

the Battle of Gettysburg finally lost the war for the South. I besides learned that

Confederate General Robert E. Lee was non a good military tactician. Obviously, he thought

that, as in most of the old conflicts, the Confederate ground forces could win this 1 with a & lt ;

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series of charges. On the 2nd twenty-four hours of the Battle of Gettysburg, Lee ordered the first

charge. In this charge, Confederate military personnels would do an acclivitous onslaught in an effort to take

a ridge from the Federal ground forces. With an acclivitous advantage, the Federal military personnels drove the

Confederate ground forces into retreat. On the 3rd twenty-four hours of conflict, Lee ordered a charge that would

take his ground forces across more than a stat mi of unfastened field. On the other side of the field, nevertheless,

Federal military personnels released a uninterrupted barrage of heavy weapon as the Confederate military personnels

made their manner across. The Federal ground forces wiped out most of the Confederate military personnels before

they were midway across the field. By the clip the staying Confederates reached the

Federal army their Numberss were so little the Federal ground forces had no problem get the better ofing them.

A good commanding general would hold seen that both charges were hopeless. In both

instances the Federal military personnels had fortified vantage points, while the Confederate ground forces had no

sufficient protection. Had Lee seen this, he would non hold ordered the charges. Alternatively, he

was excessively confident of the ability of his ground forces and his certitude led him to get the better of. Before

I read The Killer Angels I knew that the Civil War brought many friends to contend against

friends and household to contend against household. Until I read The Killer Angels, I ne’er realized that

this was true even in the higher ranks. General Hancock of the Federal ground forces and General

Armistad of the Confederate were highly good friends. Before the war they served

together in California, but when they war began they parted ways. Throughout the Battle of

Gettysburg, both generals were invariably inquiring for permission to travel under flag of armistice to

the opposing ground forces hoping to see the other. During the conflict both generals were wounded,

and they ne’er got another opportunity to see each other. General Armistad was mortally

wounded, and in his death words he asked a courier to direct his apologies to General

Hancock that it had to stop the manner it did. The Civil War torus households and friends apart, all

the manner up to the highest military ranks. The Killer Angels was an exceeding book, and I

strongly urge it to anyone who is interested in the ideas and frights of both ground forcess

during the Civil War. The Killer Angels was filled with action, suspense and play, and it is

possibly the most accurate history of the Battle of Gettysburg.