Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War
Encyclopedia
Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War is an alternate history novel written by Newt Gingrich
and William R. Forstchen
. It was published in 2003 and became a New York Times bestseller. It is the first part in a trilogy in which the next books are respectively Grant Comes East
and Never Call Retreat
.
and the Army of Northern Virginia
are victorious at the Battle of Gettysburg
instead of the United States. (Instead of attacking the Union line on July 2, 1863, Lee conducts a broad turning movement
and forces the Army of the Potomac
to attack him in a favorable position.) Losing Gettysburg is a grave setback to the United States, but it by no means spells the end of the war or determines its outcome, and the United States still has a lot of fight in it.
Newt Gingrich
Newton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
and William R. Forstchen
William R. Forstchen
William R. Forstchen is an American author who began publishing in 1983 with the novel Ice Prophet. He is a Professor of History and Faculty Fellow at Montreat College, in Montreat, North Carolina...
. It was published in 2003 and became a New York Times bestseller. It is the first part in a trilogy in which the next books are respectively Grant Comes East
Grant Comes East
Grant Comes East: A Novel of the Civil War is a New York Times bestseller written by former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, William R. Forstchen, and Albert S. Hanser. It was published in 2004 and is the sequel to Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War...
and Never Call Retreat
Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory
Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory is the conclusion of an alternate history trilogy by former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, William R. Forstchen, and Albert S. Hanser. It was published in 2005 by Thomas Dunne Books. The other two books are Grant...
.
Plot summary
The story takes place in 1863 when Robert E. LeeRobert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
and the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
are victorious at the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
instead of the United States. (Instead of attacking the Union line on July 2, 1863, Lee conducts a broad turning movement
Turning movement
In military tactics, a turning movement involves an attacker's forces reaching the rear of a defender's forces, separating the defender from their principal defensive positions and placing them in a pocket...
and forces the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
to attack him in a favorable position.) Losing Gettysburg is a grave setback to the United States, but it by no means spells the end of the war or determines its outcome, and the United States still has a lot of fight in it.
Historical figures
- Adelbert AmesAdelbert AmesAdelbert Ames was an American sailor, soldier, and politician. He served with distinction as a Union Army general during the American Civil War. As a Radical Republican and a Carpetbagger, he was military governor, Senator and civilian governor in Reconstruction-era Mississippi...
, U.S. general - John BufordJohn BufordJohn Buford, Jr. was a Union cavalry officer during the American Civil War, with a prominent role at the start of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Early years:...
, U.S. general - Joshua ChamberlainJoshua ChamberlainJoshua Lawrence Chamberlain , born as Lawrence Joshua Chamberlain, was an American college professor from the State of Maine, who volunteered during the American Civil War to join the Union Army...
, U.S. colonel - Winfield Scott HancockWinfield Scott HancockWinfield Scott Hancock was a career U.S. Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service in the Mexican-American War and as a Union general in the American Civil War...
, U.S. general - Herman HauptHerman HauptHerman Haupt was an American civil engineer and railroad construction engineer and executive. As a Union Army General in the American Civil War, he revolutionized military transportation in the United States and was one of the unsung heroes of the war.-Early life:Haupt, whose first name was...
, U.S. general - Henry Jackson HuntHenry Jackson HuntHenry Jackson Hunt was Chief of Artillery in the Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Considered by his contemporaries the greatest artillery tactician and strategist of the war, he was a master of the science of gunnery and rewrote the manual on the organization and use of artillery...
, U.S. general - Robert E. LeeRobert E. LeeRobert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
, Confederate general - Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, U.S. president - James LongstreetJames LongstreetJames Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse." He served under Lee as a corps commander for many of the famous battles fought by the Army of Northern Virginia in the...
, Confederate general - George MeadeGeorge MeadeGeorge Gordon Meade was a career United States Army officer and civil engineer involved in coastal construction, including several lighthouses. He fought with distinction in the Second Seminole War and Mexican-American War. During the American Civil War he served as a Union general, rising from...
, U.S. general - Daniel SicklesDaniel SicklesDaniel Edgar Sickles was a colorful and controversial American politician, Union general in the American Civil War, and diplomat....
, U.S. general - Gouverneur K. WarrenGouverneur K. WarrenGouverneur Kemble Warren was a civil engineer and prominent general in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
, U.S. general
See also
- American Civil War alternate historiesAmerican Civil War alternate historiesAmerican Civil War alternate histories are texts wherein events during the American Civil War occurred differently from those in history. The most common variant of these detail the victory and survival of the Confederate States of America...