Gettysburg AH TL: Is this not victory enough?

One minor nitpick that I only just noticed:

AP Hill is probably the more likely choice for promotion than Ewell. He had vicious arguments with both Longstreet and Jackson, so Lee might have desired to give him his own command.

Then again, Ewell has seniority, so it really does come down to authorial fiat.
One of the things I thought about here and there was whether it'd be Ewell or AP Hill to take over the Third Corps.

I chose Ewell for these reasons: (a) As you say, he is senior, by about four or five months. When he was promoted IOTL he was given a day earlier on his rank of Lieutenant General than AP Hill. I think the feelinge was that Ewell was just more senior than Hill.

(b) It seems like Ewell was Jackson's choice for successor. I could be wrong here but I found a few things I read which indicated that. If that's true, and Jackson's still alive, he's going to be pushing for Ewell to take the Third Corps, not AP Hill.

(c) It's not to say that AP Hill's skills weren't respected. But as you say he was an argumentative type. Longstreet once had him arrested and Powell challenged him to a duel. Transferred to Jackson, he was once again arrested, and then released. I think Lee will look for unity of purpose amongst his three Corps Commanders. He won't want someone to rock the boat: if disruption's going to be caused, let it be between a Division and a Corps Commander, not two Corps Commanders.

However I admit that I didn't think about it your way. I agree that this story could easily be told with AP Hill as a Corps CO and not Ewell.
 
Excellent!

So Hooker is in command at present? Is that another POD?
Yes, at the moment, Hooker is commanding AOP.

I will point out that this is totally written from a Rebel POV, and I'm not going to give any information (or very much) about the Federal Army, other than what the Rebels know - I think this is a better way to tell a story, but I could be wrong, and if it stops working later on there'll be more clear info about the Federals. So at the moment you can say that Hooker's still in charge, but 29th was the first full day that Meade spent in command anyway, so things could change quickly. But you won't hear about it until RE Lee does :)
 
Part Five: Gettysburg, Mid morning of June 29th, 1863

There was a low sounding thunder, deep with bass, and then there was a screech and a scream, and the feeling of earth falling. Pender recoiled slightly, but realised quickly that he was alright: a solid cannon bolt had dug itself into the ground not six feet from where he was sat on his horse. He looked over at Jackson - his hand was up, palm facing outward, open to God, as if to say: here, Lord, send your strength to me here, so that I might smite my enemy. His forage cap was sunk low on his head. Why, he looked ridiculous on the horse, Pender thought, but he was maybe the only man amongst them who didn't flinch.

It was only moments before Captain Raine arrived. He looked at Pender, but Pender only gestured to Jackson. His attention was elsewhere, looking through a field glass at the Yankee gun. "General Jackon Sir," Raine shouted, his horse ready to turn, "Major Latimer reports the Yankee guns are firing on us." Jackson turned his head only, the bright blue eyes staring from underneath the visor on his camp, and said only:

"Well then you had better fire back at them, Captain." Jackson returned to his field glass. "General Pender, what is the name of that hill there?" Raine was already half way down the hill.

"We got a couple of maps from the town. That is... that's Cemetery Hill, Sir. We're on what they call Benner's Hill now.

Jackson grunted, then he said nothing: the artillery had fired again, and another bolt from a Federal three-inch Ordnance gun came too close to comfort. They were mighty accurate, Pender realised. Latimer's boys had a real mix of guns: they might have a hard time shifting any Federal artillery off that hill. Napoleons might not do it, he thought. He turned to Jackson: "Latimer's got a battery up, but they're Napoleons, twelve-pounders Sir -"

"General Pender, I desire that hill," Jackson said, a moment after the next bolt missed. "I want fire on that hill and then I want you to take it. General Hill will be along in three or four hours and I want that position carried before he arrives. With cavalry, you must push, General Pender, and they will fold - cavalry doesn't stick around for a big fight. Push them Sir, and you will gain that hill: do you understand me?"

Pender saluted. "Yes Sir!"

And Jackson was away. Pender moved his staff backwards behind a shallow slope, where the Federal artillery couldn't hit them. How much Cavalry could there be? A Division at most, Pender thought, but Old Blue Lights was right: they would run if he pushed. But that hill was one hell of a position. He would need all his guns to shift the Federals off it... he put Dement's and Carpenter's batteries, mostly Napoleons, shorter ranged and far less accurate, further up, on the edge of the Benner Hill, where they could lob shells over onto the Cemetery. Browns and Raines Batteries with the Parrots and Ordnance guns got the good ground further back, near the Oxford Road, where they could still shell the head of the Cemetery Hill but presented less of a good target for counter-battery fire.

He decided to keep Stueart's big Brigade, mostly Virginians and North Carolinians, all two thousand of them, behind Benner's Hill, where their movements could be masked from enemy observation. He spoke briefly with James Walker, a difficult man and new to command of the Stonewall Brigade, and selected that unit to attack the front of the hill. Then he chose the Louisiana Tigers, the French-speaking zouaves with their colourful red uniforms, chose them because he wanted brawlers for this job and anyway they were very ready for it, to go around the base of the Culp's Hill and move into the Cemetery from the rear. He bolstered their skirmishers with a Regiment of Stuearts, the 3rd North Carolina Infantry: and not because Pender was a North Carolina man, but mainly because it was the nearest Regiment. He kept Jones' Division behind Gettysburg, sheltered from artillery fire behind the unfinished railroad, in position to move through the town as his reserve. He would let the boys get ready, give them ninety minute's worth of artillery fire from Latimer's battalion, then send them in.

He checked his watch; ten forty five. That was as fine an hour as any for there to be a fight.
 
There's a map here: https://i.imgur.com/MSbGZz7.png

So some comments: Buford had probably Devin's Brigade covering pickets on the Carlisle/Harrisburg/York roads, but those pickets probably pulled in during the night when they came into contact with the advancing Division of Dorsey Pender. They could have fought but I guess it wasn't clear at that point whether this is a simple raid or a full march to battle. Buford's also got his work cut out because he was in contact with Hood's chaps earlier in the morning on the left, which is why he's still got Gamble's Brigade deployed in picket positions there. Falling back to Cemetery Hill makes sense when you're opposed from the north/northeast, because those positions aren't all that defensible. He's going to be relying on Devin's Brigade, supported by Calef's battery, to hold back any attack: remember that Buford doesn't know whether or not the troops in front of him are in contact with Hood's division to his west. Will there be a co-ordinated attack? He's got to have pickets out because that's the point of cavalry, but he also doesn't want to simply give up Gettysburg to the Rebs. But this battle has happened prematurely for Buford: Reynolds might be too far away.
 

Md139115

Banned
So far, so good. Now here’s the problem. Meade is a vacillating old snapping turtle, but he wasn’t stupid. If he arrives and finds the Confederates on the high ground, he’s marching the army back to Mine Run and making his stand there.
 
So far, so good. Now here’s the problem. Meade is a vacillating old snapping turtle, but he wasn’t stupid. If he arrives and finds the Confederates on the high ground, he’s marching the army back to Mine Run and making his stand there.
Well that's right: although in this timeline Meade isn't in command (YET), there's always the possibility the Federals will withdraw to Mine Run and force Lee to attack.

Lincoln might have other ideas though.
 

Md139115

Banned
Well that's right: although in this timeline Meade isn't in command (YET), there's always the possibility the Federals will withdraw to Mine Run and force Lee to attack.

Lincoln might have other ideas though.

Very true, but not even Hooker was that stupid, and Lincoln placed (probably way too much) faith in his commanders to see a tactical situation he couldn’t see in Washington. Now, I will concede that Lincoln giving Hooker a giant kick in the behind and telling him to attack is plausible, but to fight this battle on Lee’s terms by charging up the hills is to require Burnside suddenly regaining command...
 

Md139115

Banned
Agreed. But it will not be easy to persuade Lee to dash his Army against well-prepared positions. Or will it?

Let’s see, one would have to be willing to strike a fortified and entrenched position manned by a numerically superior force which even a green second lieutenant can tell you is a bad idea. The only commander who would do such a thing would need his head examined. Indeed, the only lunatic in the whole of American military history who I could see doing this would be that Southern commander who charged a similar position at Malvern Hill and who divided his forces into fourths in face of a superior enemy at Chancellorsville... what was his name again? I can’t remember.
 

takerma

Banned
Fun is about to begin.

First I think Hooker was a competent commander, very far from an idiot that people sometimes portray him to be. However he might feel pressured to attack because of the previous unfortunate performance.
 
Why do I have a feeling the Confederates are going to win Gettysburg only try to finish off the Army of the Potomac and get beaten worse than they did at Gettysburg in OTL.
 
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