Kent Masterson Brown at The Army and Navy Club, "Meade at Gettysburg: A Study in Command."

February 15, 2022, Kent spoke to the members of The Army and Navy Club in Washington, DC on his latest book, "Meade at Gettysburg: A Study in Command" (UNC Press, 2021).

[@Bob.W.]

Thx. Meade was shabbily treated, especially by the politicians.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thanks, Bob, for watching and commenting. Yes, that's why Mr. Brown wanted to write this book on General Meade.

[@twinsboy_3410]

Meade got the job nobody really wanted including Reynolds.

[@timm1894]

And SICKLES, the general politician.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

@@twinsboy_3410 Absolutely correct.

[@timm1894]

This episode has become one of my favorites

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@chrisdavern9482]

Ken Masterson Brown is an absolute legend

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thanks for watching and commenting! We here at Witnessing History absolutely agree. Kent is the President and Content Developer for our film production company. Hope you get to see some of the Witnessing History films.

[@danhudson5577]

Fantastic treatment by Brown of the massive challenge Meade faced. Put in charge less than a week before the battle, that he had little chance to control, Meade set to work pulling his army together. And then, had the answer for every move Lee made. Brown is a master at describing seemingly mundane supply and logistics issues without driving the reader away. After a little investigating I was able to find his Email and had a great exchange about the start of the battle with comments from the author regarding Buford and Reynold's roles.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thank you for watching and commenting. We love interacting with our viewers!

[@francishasuly3510]

What great lecture

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@michaelhenry8890]

Meade was the opposite man of Lee on many ways. Meade had no ego and relied heavily on council of war with his subordinates to come to major decisions. Lee on the other hand didn’t even have a “huddle up” moment to discuss Pickets charge. Lee was likely a narcissist. Meade was likely a lot more humble and unassuming.
That trait could work for and against you though. Meade had a counsel of war after pockets charge on whether to counter attack and pursue Lee south, which he wanted to do, but was talked out of by his generals.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thank you for watching and commenting!

[@IndyRickHikes]

👏👏👏 I would love Kent to comment on the critical moments between Reynold’s death and the defeat of the 1st and 11th Corps. Why did Doubleday and/or Howard not execute the intended withdrawal from Gettysburg when confronted by 2 Confederate corps? Not a sufficient Confederate concentration in their judgment? Or is this simply lack of time, communications, and/or sufficient understanding of what was in front of them?

[@sierrahun1]

Neither one of them was made aware of the intricate plan of Meade. Howard should have been but he never received the Pipe Creek Circular in which Meade ordered his corps commanders to make a stand at Big Pipe Creek. Doubleday commanded the 3rd division of Reynolds I Corps. Meade did not trust any of them. He held Howard responsible for losing Chancellorsville basically and disliked Doubleday (I guess because of Dday's boastful and self aggrandizing attitude). So he trusted this on Reynolds alone and perhaps for operational security Reynolds did not really share it with anybody else (save Buford maybe). When Reynolds die, Doubleday takes over the I Corps while in the middle of a battle. He manages it tactically but the left wings command goes to Howard. Doubleday notifies him immediately and calls him to Gettysburg for help. And Howard probably after the fiasco of Chancellorsville could not take any more hits on his reputation, so he says we got to stay and fight. Which wasn't contrary to any of his instructions - he honestly believed that he is doing his duty. Howard wasn't a great military thinker.

[@francishasuly3510]

We're do I get these maps

[@francishasuly3510]

Nevermind I have it

[@michaelhenry8890]

Two things videos can never make clear about war is the smell and the sounds. I’ll never forget the smell of Iraq nor will I forget the insane loudness of war.
Gettysburg had to have a crazy smell to it with all those animals, smoke, and death.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thank you for your service. And thanks for watching and commenting. You are absolutely correct.

[@johnnynielsen3006]

Lee's 9 mile defense line was I guess equivalent to the size of Lee's army...
Meade's Army of the Potomac was I guess half way spent. Could they have gone one to one with Lee?
No heavy artillery, little to no supplies and no shoes on half the men left standing. '51.000' men versus Lee's men?
No reserve union corps to block the pontoon bridges on the south bank of the Potomac.
Lee pulled a 'Dunkirk' move by crossing the Potomac River. General Washington must smile in his grave.
Could a fleet of Ironclad warships have navigated the Potomac River up to these pontoon bridges and destroy them?

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@shiloh6519]

Excellent presentation But Lee was stopped at Antietam. So this wasn't the first time Lee was defeated.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

Lee was not defeated at Antietam. McClellan was the attacker and Lee demolished every attack.

[@shiloh6519]

@@witnessinghistoryeducation5885 Lee was invading the North. McClellan stopped Lee and forced him to withdraw. Lee was fortunate McClellan lacked that killer instinct and didn't follow up.

[@witnessinghistoryeducation5885]

@@shiloh6519 I appreciate your remarks and am most thankful for your comment about the presentation. I could never call Antietam a Union victory; neither was it a Confederate victory. Indeed, Lee, after suffering heavy losses, withdrew from Maryland back to Virginia after the fighting ended, but he had inflicted so much loss upon his enemy that it took nearly a month for that enemy to move in pursuit, and after it did finally move, Lincoln sacked its commander, George McClellan, and directed Ambrose Burnside to replace him. To me, Antietam was one of those battles that was so devastating to both sides that neither could legitimately claim a victory.