Many RIA reviewers have written very well on this battle and I shall not repeat. Most RIA members know something about this battle , I am sure.

The Union could not afford to lose this battle. If the Army of the Potomac had lost that day, the Peace forces probably would have forced the Union Government into a truce. Lee possibly could have taken Philadelphia and held it hostage for the peace talks. Of course, even if defeated, the Union Army most likely would have prevented the Confederates from going much farther because of communications, supplies and such logistics.

The Confederates could afford to lose the battle and of course they did; however, Gettysburg was decisive in the East as the Confederates were on the defense for the rest of the war.

Vicksburg, that fell to the Union on July 4, 1863, the day after the end of the Battle of Gettysburg, was a decisive blow that ensured that the Confederacy was going to lose the war.

The beginning of the end for the South. Lee spent to many of his troops lives needlessly. The South had to do or die...