A New Look at Gettysburg-- Part 3: A Turning Point?

Was Gettysburg a turning point in the war?

It was the last time the Confederacy took the initiative.  They were so badly battered that after that the rest of the war was a long withdrawing one, lasting 21 months.  Never again did the Confederacy go on the offensive.  (Well, there were some smaller offensives into the North.)

What about America's unpreparedness for the Civil War and staggering human cost?

There were two reasons:

1.  America thought of itself as a republic  That was at odds with its professional, though small, standing army and with its association with monarchies.

2.  Congress was stingy with military funding, spending even more on funding the post office.  There were only 16,000 soldiers at the outbreak of the war.

--Old Secesh