GDG- ISusquehanna River
CWMHTours at aol.com
CWMHTours at aol.com
Wed Jan 25 20:23:25 CST 2012
Entirely agree George, you make good points.
Yes, there was military and political value to capturing Harrisburg.
And despite Couch and the militia I think Lee cudda walked right in. And
there'd be plenty of value to start shipping back south. Ar Camp Curtain
there probly was gunpowder for the guns, etc. if the Yanks didn't destroy it.
Lee being Lee, tho, I am sure he never lost sight that his goal was to
destroy the AoP.
And for once, when you are digging your hole out you didn't throw your
dirt into my hole.
Good. There may be hope yet.
;-{) !!!!!
Jeff Burke- what bridges were there over the Susq R during the war (This
guy knows everything up there)? Was that stone 4-track bridge there then?
A Loyal Neo-Anti Unionist,
Peter
In a message dated 1/25/2012 9:14:28 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
georgeconnell at mac.com writes:
Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:
Peter,
Capturing the useful military items in and around Harrisburg and
destroying its capability to support the war would be great military goals, but
think of the main reason for going there as political, not military. Imagine
the domestic and international reaction when it became known Lee had just
captured the capital of Pennsylvania! Lee was very attuned to political
events.
Regards,
George
26ª11'56"N 81ª48'19W"
On Jan 25, 2012, at 8:14 PM, CWMHTours at aol.com wrote:
> Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:
> George-
>
> Ha ha....
>
> My friend...
>
> Sometimes I think we both dig holes and we wind up throwing each
other's
> shovels full of dirt into each other's hole.
>
> I don't dispute that Lee wanted to get into Harrisburg- I think it was
> bait to get the AoP under that maniac Hooker to come out and fight.
But
> Harrisburg as a military goal?
>
> Can you see Lee sitting around west of Fredericksburg with his mouth
> watering at the thought of capturing Harrisburg? I can't.
>
> Lee's job was to destroy the AoP if possible- not risk sucking his army
up
> into occupying a weeny little state capital.
>
> Hey! You just threw that shovelfull into my hair, dammit!
>
> A Loyal Neo-Anti Unionist,
> Peter
>
>
> In a message dated 1/25/2012 6:03:42 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
> georgeconnell at mac.com writes:
>
> Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:
> Peter,
>
> "I can't see him putting the bulk of his army on the wrong side of the
> river.
>
> I think all the talk about Harrisburg was just that, talk put out t
> distract people."
>
> This is ridiculous. He told two of his corps commanders he wanted them
on
> the east side of the river. That, without question, is the bulk of his
> army. And he told them with some degree of secrecy attached, not in the
> "Philadelphia Enquirer" for heaven sakes!
>
> You're digging again!
>
> George
> 26ª11'56"N 81ª48'19W"
>
> On Jan 25, 2012, at 5:47 PM, CWMHTours at aol.com wrote:
>
>> Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:
>> Jim-
>>
>> You make good points.
>>
>> I have problems tho with the idea of Lee moving his whole army into
>> Harrisburg and sitting there.
>>
>> Granted there was some military value to the state capital but Lee's
> ace
>> was manueverabilty which he would lose if he occupies a town and then
> has to
>> defend it. I can see him sending in a detachment to destroy any
> military
>> goods but Harrisburg was pretty much a pipsqueak town back then.
>>
>> Plus I can't see him putting the bulk of his army on the wrong side
of
> the
>> river.
>>
>> I think all the talk about Harrisburg was just that, talk put out t
>> distract people.
>>
>> I can't see him taking Baltimore either. What are you going to do
with
> it
>> once you got it?
>>
>> A Loyal Neo-Anti Unionist,
>> Peter
>>
>>
>> In a message dated 1/25/2012 9:37:30 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,
>> cameron2 at optimum.net writes:
>>
>> Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:
>> << If Lee intended to move Ewell's Corps and Hill's Corps across
the
>> river (as he stated) it's a pretty safe bet he wasn't going to leave
>> Longstreet's on the other side of a water barrier. I think it's not
> unreasonable to
>> speculate that Lee, the most audacious commander of the war, might
have
>> been willing to fight the AoP east of the Susquehanna. There are some
> caveats,
>> however. He would need all his cavalry with him; detailed information
> on
>> the locations of the various Union corps; and the confidence that the
> AoP
>> corps were exhausted, strung out by a rushed pursuit, and not in
> position to
>> provide meaningful support to one another. >>
>>
>> Which is quite a few caveats, and a lot of stuff he didn't have, and
>> wasn't likely to get. And if he does cross the Susquehanna, getting
> back over
>> now involves the far shore still being hostile territory, not VA.
>> Still, I do think he intended to cross a major force, if possible. I
>> wonder, though, if his preference wouldn't have been to continue to
> maneuver,
>> and maybe fight against any isolated Union force he might encounter,
> rather
>> than risk a general engagement under such circumstances. Although I
> can't
>> say I've ever devoted much thought to the matter, since it never did
>> happen.
>> Just as a thought, while it wouldn't have been something he could
have
>> anticipated at the time, the post-battle rains which made crossing
back
> into
>> VA so difficult could have created an extremely critical situation
for
> Lee
>> if he need to recross the Susquehanna in a hurry after a reverse on
the
>> eastern side of the river and had no bridges available.
>>
>> Jim Cameron
>>
>
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