"In great deeds, something abides." -- Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
On the 25th anniversary the Battle of Gettysburg, then Brig. Gen. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain spoke at the dedication of the monument to the 20th Maine regiment he commanded in the defense of Little Round Top.
"On great fields, something stays." -- Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
Hoping to break the spirits of the North after repeated defeats, Gen. Robert E. Lee marched his troops through the Shenandoah Valley and into Pennsylvania. On July 1st, 1863, Lee's advance troops collided with Brig. Gen. John Buford's cavalry in the village of Gettysburg, some 82 miles almost due north of Washington, D.C.
For three blistering days the Confederate army rammed against the center of the Union lines, which had secured higher ground on Cemetery Ridge.
On the far left flank of the Union lines an inexperienced former-professor-cum-colonel named Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain took action that changed the course of the entire war. Both Union and Confederate generals understood the strategic key of Little Round Top in the colossal clash of warring Americans.
Chamberlain was ordered to not yield the position, no matter the cost.
Lee sent trusted Gen. James Longstreet and some of his fiercest warriors, the Alabamans, to collapse the left flank of the Union lines. Time after time the southerners whooped their “rebel yell” and charged up the slope, only to be turned back by Chamberlain and his tiny 20th Maine regiment of 358 men.
"Forms change and pass; bodies disappear; but spirits linger, to consecrate ground for the vision-place of souls." -- Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
As the Alabamans were preparing another assault, word came to Col. Chamberlain that most of his men were out of ammunition. Instead of retreating, Chamberlain courageously and unpredictably changed the nature of the battle and helped turn the tide of the war. He ordered his men to fix bayonets. As the Alabamans began their ascent between trees, rocks and bodies, the “Mainiacs” charged down the hill and killed, captured or swept the Alabamans off the hill and won the day.
Chamberlain went on to additional wartime heroism, leading remarkable attacks, even while wounded throughout the Petersburg campaign, eventually becoming a brigadier general. At Appomattox, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had him receive the Confederate surrender of arms and flags. He eventually served as Governor of Maine and President of Bowdoin College, and received the Medal of Honor for his leadership at Gettysburg.
The Battle of Gettysburg, with its almost 50,000 casualties among northern and southern soldiers, is a testament to the importance of high ground and the unyielding commitment to hold a line.
What lessons can be learned from these heroes past? What ground must we hold or retake?
One hundred fifty years ago today the guns of Gettysburg finally fell silent. Today we are faced with new assaults that threaten our great republic and society. They are brazen and severe. We are in a great battle for our children.
Flanked on every side by addictions to substances and technology, hyper-sexual and violent media, and economic dependence and stagnation, today's youth face unprecedented moral challenges. These are not some imaginary threats that need review by committees or need approval by consensus. They are grinding, rolling battles brought on by individual choice and the dissolution of the nuclear family.
Chamberlain's bold but simple action turned the war. Our tactic is equally unpredictable. It doesn't involve commanding heights, consensus opinion or debates in great halls. No, the battle will turn as we each figuratively "fix bayonets" and commit to lives of greater self-governance. Such choices cannot be forced or mandated, as they are acts of a single soul to live life for the sake of another and for the most noble within us.
"This is the great reward of service. To live, far out and on, in the life of others; this is the mystery of the Christ,--to give life's best for such high sake that it shall be found again unto life eternal." -- Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
Matthew studied economics at Brigham Young University and business and government at Harvard University. He is a GM at Deseret Digital Media where he oversees Deseret Connect and Deseret News Service. msanders@deseretnews.com or @Sanders_Matt