Joshua L. Chamberlain and the battle of Gettysburg

What comes to your mind when you think of the Battle of Gettysburg? Maybe you think of Abraham Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg Address, Picket’s Charge, or all of the casualties from the three days of fighting. Many times we don’t think about all the people who risked their lives to protect our land, because we concentrate on the things that are familiar to us. For instance, how many people really know what role Joshua L. Chamberlain played in the Battle of Gettysburg? Chamberlain had a very important part in the second day of battle, and he definitely shouldn’t be overlooked.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was born on September 8, 1828 in Brewer, Maine. Brewer was a small community which was known for farming and ship building. During Chamberlain’s youth, he spent a lot of his time working on his father’s one hundred acre farm and teaching school. He didn’t have much education before he entered college, except for a short time at Whitings Military and Classical Academy in Ellsworth, ME. He entered Bowdoin College in 1848 and took a special interest in language. He taught himself Greek in order to be accepted there, and he later became fluent in seven different languages.

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The Twentieth Maine reached Gettysburg at about 7 a. We pass now quickly from each other’s sight; but I know full well that where beyond these passing scenes you shall be, there will be Heaven. Chamberlain’s soldiers opened on them as well as they could, basically using what they had taken from the soldiers who were wounded or killed. By standing on a large rock, Joshua was able to see a considerable amount of the Confederate troops moving through the valley in the direction of his left line. Large numbers of the enemy troops broke through Chamberlain’s line in many different places. com 4) Together they had five children, but only two of them survived into adulthood. Chamberlain, fighting amidst the scrub-oak and rocks in the vale between the Round Tops on the 2nd of July, 1863, saved the Union arms the historic field of Gettysburg.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was awarded the Medal of Honor which was given by Congress because of his “daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top. His narrow face and high cheekbones were hidden by a full mustache that extended to his jaw line. He wasn’t worried about all the other things that went along with fighting in a war. , on July 2, 1863, the second day of battle.

Chamberlain decided that in order for his regiment to survive, they would have to strike, before they were struck. Had they faltered for one instant-had they not exceeded their actual duty…there would have been no grand charge at Pickett, and “Gettysburg” would have been the mausoleum of departed hopes of the national cause; for Longstreet would have enveloped Little Round Top, captured all on its crest from the rear, and held the key of the whole position. I feel that his acts of bravery should never be forgotten and that his story of Little Round Top should never fade from our memories.

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Approximate Word count = 2110
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