Gettysburg Voices From the Front

By Robert Child

A stirring collection of first-hand accounts from Privates on up to the commanding Generals at the Battle of Gettysburg woven into a dramatic and compelling narrative. The reader is transported back to the chaos and uncertainty of the sweltering first three days of July 1863 when Lee's Army of Northern Virginia invaded the North threatening Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington itself. Soldiers on both sides gave everything they had believing that Gettysburg would be the final epic battle in an already long and terrible war.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robert Child
• Release date: Aug 7, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301534821

Robert Child

"If you want to see a great movie read a book by Robert Child." N. Marcus, Literary Review. Stay up with new releases. Join Rob's newsletter at www.robchild.net Award winning author, Robert Child, is a master of action, pacing and cinematic storytelling in his visually gritty thrillers. Military history is one of his passions and runs through his veins. His Great-grandfather, Thomas W. Child, was cited for courage by his commander, Joseph Hayes, at the Battle of Fredericksburg fighting for the Union in 1862. Sergeant Child charged the stonewall not once but twice with the 18th Massachusetts and survived to fight on Little Round Top at Gettysburg. Not to be outdone Rob's 4th Great-grandfather, Jonas Child, fought for American Independence at the first bloody engagement of the American Revolution at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. Jonas went on to fight beside Gen. George Washington at the Battle of Dorchester Heights and served till the end of the war in 1781. Rob possesses that rare ability to transport readers almost instantly into gripping, intelligent page-turning narratives that feature well developed characters and cinematic action that jumps off the page like a major motion picture. He has won more than 25 awards for writing and aside from his regularly published independent works he is currently authoring a new WWII novel with coauthor, Denise George, which will be published by Random House / Penguin in the fall of 2016. Join his newsletter and keep up to date with all his new releases at www.robchild.net

Book preview

Gettysburg

Voices From the Front –

© Copyright 2013

By

Robert Child

Published by Rob Child & Assoc. at Smashwords

© Copyright 2013 by Rob Child & Associates, LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Works published and produced by Robert Child can be obtained either through the author’s official website: http://robchild.blogspot.com/ or through online retailers.

Works by Robert Child:

Fiction

Blood Betrayal

The Russian van Gogh

Rush On, Boys - Hamilton at War

Nonfiction

How Canada Won the Great War

D-Day in 90 Minutes

Weather and Warfare

Gettysburg Voices From the Front

*Most titles also available in audiobook

Films

The Wereth Eleven

USS Franklin: Honor Restored

Silent Wings: The American Glider Pilots of WWII

Lincoln and Lee at Antietam: The Cost of Freedom

Gettysburg Three Days of Destiny

Gettysburg The Boys in Blue and Gray

Contents

_______________________

Prelude

1. Buford Holds

2. Lee Intends to Fight

3. Chamberlain Arrives. Hood wants to go around Round Top

4. The Fight at Little Round Top

5. The Fighting at Culps Hill

6. Confederate Artillery Prepare. Longstreet Has Doubts

7. Cannonade Begins. Pickett’s Charge.

8. It is Over Now

Preface

_______________________

This is a compilation I have been wanting to do for a long time. Over the past decade I have written and produced two films on the battle of Gettysburg and am producing my third and final one, Gettysburg: Final Measure of Devotion, this year.

During all that time in doing my research I have complied volumes of first person accounts, letters, diaries and dispatches that have helped me support the narrative and the stories I wanted to illustrate.

First person accounts are the living link we have to what occurred at Gettysburg. And although some of the accounts may be less than accurate due to the various authors seeing only their narrow view of the conflict and having limited information – they still bring to life the battle in a deeply personal way.

And I wanted to give that history a voice uncluttered by modern interpretation. There is, of course, great value in the modern view of the battle and I highly recommend the epic history effort by my good friend, Allen Guelzo, Gettysburg: The Last Invasion, releasing this month. (May, 2013) Do not delay in buying a copy. But to gain a sense of the chaos and uncertainty in the moment at Gettysburg in 1863 you have to return to the words of the soldiers who were there.

You could call this an immersive type of history as I have woven the first hand accounts together so that they unfold in a linear way. As you read hopefully you will discover the battle wrapping around you with all the intense emotion, fear and uncertainty on both sides. A Union victory was far from a foregone conclusion at Gettysburg and these words from two centuries ago bring you closer to that history and