Superb Hancock takes control

Meade was the commanding General of the Army of the Potomac throughout the remainder of the war since his appointment mid 1863. Is there a way we could get W.S. Hancock in Meade's position, or at least the position Grant would soon occupy?

Once it's Hancock instead of Grant signing the surrender with Bobby Lee, what effects might it demand?
 
well, the big POD would be if Hancock doesn't get seriously wounded on the 3rd day at Gettysburg- maybe if he was available, Lincoln could've replaced Meade with him immediately after the ANV had been defeated ?
 
Yes, preventing Hancock from being seriously wounded would help. It took him a long time to recover and during that time others were promoted past him. Without being wounded he would be able to ride the wave of hero worship that occurred after he held the center and repulsed Pickett's Charge.

Hancock would probably be promoted over Meade after Lee and the aNV escaped back into Virginia. Grant would stay in the West and probably lead the March to the Sea. If so the war war would probably end right on time if not a tad sooner.

Lee's surrender would still be about the same but Ely Parker would not be there to take a transcription; someone else would do it and the Seneca would become an even more minor footnote. Grant would most likely not win the presidency in 1868 and that would perhaps go to Hancock, if he switched Parties. He may be willing to become a member of the nebulous Union Party, thus essentially killing the Democrats. This would leave the two major parties in America as the Republicans and the Unionists.

Benjamin
 

Typo

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well, the big POD would be if Hancock doesn't get seriously wounded on the 3rd day at Gettysburg- maybe if he was available, Lincoln could've replaced Meade with him immediately after the ANV had been defeated ?
You don't replace a commander immediately after a crashing victory, of course, in one AH Gettysburg book Hancock ends up in charge after meade is wounded.
 

67th Tigers

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There was certainly a worry Meade would be replaced after his Mine Run campaign. Of course the army wanted to keep him because he was very much in the McClellan mold and Lincoln wanted rid of him for the same reason. However, Grant and Halleck stood up to Lincoln, and won; thus Meade remained the commander of the Army of the Potomac.

Grant's reorganisation of the Army of the Potomac into 5 commands (including the nominally independent 9th Corps) allowed him to keep the commanders he wanted; Hancock, Warren, Sedgwick, Burnside and Sheridan.
 

67th Tigers

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Why would he want to keep burnside

As he was actually a really good commander, just one that couldn't deal with Washington (i.e. Lincoln) very well. If we ignore his brief period as Commander, AOP then he has a really good combat record.

No reason not to believe that any of the other really good Corps Commanders (Hancock, Reynolds etc.) wouldn't have turned out to be another Burnside.
 
Meade was the commanding General of the Army of the Potomac throughout the remainder of the war since his appointment mid 1863. Is there a way we could get W.S. Hancock in Meade's position, or at least the position Grant would soon occupy?

Once it's Hancock instead of Grant signing the surrender with Bobby Lee, what effects might it demand?

Grant was above Meade, thus at least is not the correct term. To do that would put an army corps commander in charge of the Entire US Army, skipping the command of one Individual army.

But to give Hancock the command of the AotP, you would have to keep him healthy and get rid of George Meade. Maybe Lincoln mails that letter he wrote to General Meade but refrained from mailing regarding Lee's escape after Gettysburg.

Or maybe the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War gives Meade a new assignment or forces him to resign in the wake of Lee's escape and the failed Mine Run campaign of fall '63.

Hancock and Grant got on well together, unlike Grant and Meade, so it is plausible that Grant might have left him in charge of the AotP.
 
With a healthy Hancock it is probable that Meade is shuffled back to Washington for a desk job, maybe replace Halleck, which could be disguised as a promotion. Hancock then be elevated to command of the AoP and there would be no need for Grant to ever come East. Given that the Eastern Theater was always seen as the most important theater of the war it is likely that Hancock would come out of the war as the primary hero. Grant may be able to gain the governorship of Illinois but I doubt if he would become President. Hancock, on the other hand, could easily become the second president from Pennsylvania in 1869.

Benjamin
 
An additional problem is that Hancock was one of the more junior Major Generals in the Army of the Potomac. He had only been raised to Corps Command after Chancellorsville -- as a result of Couch asking to be relieved because he refused to serve under Hooker. Sedgwick, Slocum, French (who took over 3rd Corps after Gettysburg) and Howard were all senior to him.

Now if he doesn't get wounded at Gettysburg and Meade gets canned (or shot) pursuant to Mine Run he might get the promotion. Sedgwick was too much a McClellan-ite, Howard and Slocum had been shipped out West, and French was a cipher. But there's no way he would have been promoted over Grant -- hero of Vicksburg and Chattanooga.

Grant would have still come east to keep an eye on the untried commander of the Army of the Potomac for the 1864 campaign.
 
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