DBWI: The Army of Northern Virginia not shattered at Gettysburg

What if Meades counterattack either not have occured or had not succeeded to such a degree that Lee was not killed along with the 50% casualties (mostly surrendered) and Longstreet and Hill were not captured?
 
Probably just postpones the inevitable. Lee had swapped too many casualties with Meade and was on the end of a too-long supply string. Even if he won the battle he could not win the campaign, let alone the war.

Never has any nation lost so large a portion of their its (counting out west) in a single four-day span. No wonder the Davis government collapsed.
 
As far as its immediate effects the capital would never have moved to Atlanta with all the confusion that went with it. Johnston wouldn't have been ordered to send half his men east to General Beauregard in Virginia and probably would have at least slowed Sherman down instead of being little more then a speed bump. I think the loss of Lee also effected the morale in the troops sent over as well. They seemed to think if Lee couldn't defeat Meade Beauregard had no chance.
 
If the war hadn't ended when it did US Grant would probably have been promoted after Vicksburg fell.

If Lee had been able to make it back to Virginia the war would have just been dragged on. But even if he makes it back somewhat intact, he lost so many men the south probably would have a hard time reinforcing him.

And with the Mississippi in Federal hands now and an ever tightening blockade the South would have just been slowly strangled, ala Winfield Scott's original plan.

I for one am glad the war ended when it did. If it had lasted until the election of 1864, Lincoln might have lost; and then the south might have had someone in office who was oriented more towards punishment than reconciliation. As a southerner myself I can say almost with certainity
he WAS rather generous during the short reconstruction that followed.
You will recall that emancipation was gradual and compensated, and how Jefferson Davis, Pierre Beauregard, and Joe Johnston were treated quite liberally. Then there was the fact that he granted full presidential pardons to all citizens of the South, veterans, politicians, and civilians.

That was quite nice of him. ;)
 

Anaxagoras

Banned
If Meade had simply not attacked (and I read somewhere that this was his inclination, but was persuaded by a wounded Hancock otherwise), then I imagine that Lee would have simply withdrawn to Virginia, as he did after Sharpsburg.

On the other hand, had Meade attacked and been repulsed, Lee could have possibly gone on to take Longstreet's advice and moved south to cut the Union forces off from Washington.
 
If the war hadn't ended when it did US Grant would probably have been promoted after Vicksburg fell.

If Lee had been able to make it back to Virginia the war would have just been dragged on. But even if he makes it back somewhat intact, he lost so many men the south probably would have a hard time reinforcing him.

And with the Mississippi in Federal hands now and an ever tightening blockade the South would have just been slowly strangled, ala Winfield Scott's original plan.

I for one am glad the war ended when it did. If it had lasted until the election of 1864, Lincoln might have lost; and then the south might have had someone in office who was oriented more towards punishment than reconciliation. As a southerner myself I can say almost with certainty
he WAS rather generous during the short reconstruction that followed.
You will recall that emancipation was gradual and compensated, and how Jefferson Davis, Pierre Beauregard, and Joe Johnston were treated quite liberally. Then there was the fact that he granted full presidential pardons to all citizens of the South, veterans, politicians, and civilians.

That was quite nice of him. ;)

Very surprisingly generous as far as the pardons went. It is amazing they covered even Jeff Davis and Alexander Stephans.
 
If Meade had simply not attacked (and I read somewhere that this was his inclination, but was persuaded by a wounded Hancock otherwise), then I imagine that Lee would have simply withdrawn to Virginia, as he did after Sharpsburg.

On the other hand, had Meade attacked and been repulsed, Lee could have possibly gone on to take Longstreet's advice and moved south to cut the Union forces off from Washington.

It was too late for that after the battle. Even if Meade took fairly heavy casualties in the counterattack Lee burned up too much of his ammo at Gettysburg to go through another large battle and he was at the end of a very long supply line.
 
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