In the Shadow of the Round Tops: Longstreet's Countermarch, Johnston's Reconnaissance, and the Enduring Battles for the Memory of July 2, 1863

by Allen R. Thompson

Exciting new research lifts much of the fog surrounding the Battle of Gettysburg and offers a glimpse into what happened on that fateful day—July 2, 1863.

James Longstreet’s countermarch and Samuel Johnston’s morning reconnaissance are two of the most enigmatic events of the Battle of Gettysburg. Both have been viewed as major factors in the Confederacy’s loss of the battle and, in turn, the war. Yet much of it lies shrouded in mystery.   

Though the battle is one of the most well-documented events in history, the vast majority of our knowledge comes from the words of the veterans and civilians who experienced it. Without action photography, video, or audio recordings, our primary window into what happened is the memory of those who were there. The story of the Battle of Gettysburg is simply the compilation of the memories of those who fought it. But memory is anything but objective.

Recognizing the multitude of factors that affect human memory, In the Shadow of the Round Tops explores how the individual soldiers experienced, remembered, and wrote about the battle, and how those memories have created a cloud over James Longstreet’s enigmatic countermarch and Samuel Johnston’s infamous reconnaissance. Each soldier had a particular view of these historic events. Because many people saw part of the story, but no one saw all of it, each memory is a critical piece to the puzzle. By comparing the veterans’ memories and sifting through the factors that affected each memory, the picture of the countermarch, reconnaissance, and the entire battle, comes into sharper focus.

Genres: Civil War

567 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 27, 2023

Reviews

[Mark Harden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part historiography, part analysis of the post war debates over who “lost” Gettysburg, and part forensic, detailed analysis of what really happened on the march of Longstreet to battle on July 2, 1863. The research is impressive, the analysis is convincing, and the conclusion is reasonable: any delay in beginning the attack had no effect on the outcome. The biggest drawback to me was trying to follow the detailed discussion of various roads, ridges, and viewpoints. Although a few good maps are included, for anyone not intimately familiar with the ground it would require almost a map per page to truly keep up with the description. I often gave up and skimmed through a paragraph or two just hoping to be able to grasp the overall point being made without any hope of actually following the route in my mind.

[Eric Burroughs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting take on the memory of the battle and one of its most controversial actions.