FACT CHECK
A few thoughts on the “Last Resort?” article in the Autumn 2022 issue. Author Tom Desjardin opens by asking whether the 20th Maine’s bayonet charge really saved Little Round Top before moving on to the more basic question: “Was there ever a possibility that the Rebels could have seized Little Round Top, placed artillery there, and used it to ‘shell the U.S. army into submission?’” In each case, he answers no. Had the 680 attacking Alabama troops defeated the 20th Maine, Desjardin argues, they still faced nearly 17,000 Union soldiers within a half-mile of the hill. In the unlikely event they took the hill, he says, they couldn’t have held it.
I believe, however, the Confederates had a better chance to take Little Round Top than suggested. First, the five attacking regiments totaled 2,400 men to just 1,300 in Colonel Strong Vincent’s brigade. Though the Union had the high ground and unified command, the Confederates had a real chance to take the summit before the arrival of
