Well you guessed it by the title, I am the son of Jim TNO. My dad suggested that I bring my question before you folks so here goes..

Should Meade have persued Lee more vigoroously? Or was the AOP just as badly mauled as the ANV and that trully prevented it from doing so!

And if the AOP had chased the ANV and caught it BEFORE it got to the river, does the war end there as the ANV is destroyed?

THanks

Steve

Steve,
I don't know if the AOP was that badly mangled to persue Lee. That was the excuse Meade gave Lincoln. Another thing to keep in mind in my opinion was that at this point the officers who led the AOP were interested in just making sure they repulsed the invasion. Kicking the ANV out of Pennsylvania was the main objective and if the ANV was destroyed in the process so be it. Lincoln was probably the only person with and "say" at this point of the war who knew it was going to take the defeat of the army to end the war.

M. Hawthorne (bluelady)

Now you do have to give the AoP some credit because there was some pusuit after the battle along with a few skirmishes

Sorry if I'm late on this reply, but I just got back from a trip...This aspect of the Gettysburg Campaign has always facinated me...why was Lee allowed to escape?...I'm familiar with most of the reasons generally given - new leadership, fatigue, casualties, etc. etc...However, it would seem to me that even with minimal cavalery recon, Meade & Co. must have known the the ANV had to cross SOME river at SOME time...leaving half of the forces on one side and half on the other (unless my math is wrong)...doesn't that leave the AOP with an opportunity to inflict a serious hurt on the ANV??? It's one thing to divide your forces in the face of a superior enemy to fight a force in detail, it's quite another to divide your force with its back to a swollen river...I must be missing something....AAROGON

Hi GaNG,

See I told ya Steve that you would get some realllly gggggooood input from these folks...

Thanks to everyone! Ok my thoughts on this...

Meade,
New to command, has a cheif of staff who he does not trust, and does not work well with.

He has lost at least three corp commanders, one dead and two badly wounded. And then a lot of his middle command structure is in dissarry from KIA's to badly wounded.. A number of key units torn to pieces (read the Iron Brigade as a prime example) and his Calvary needs a serious rest and refit..
So he didnt do too badly!

Jim

Interesting statistics Jim...wouldn't you think the enemy you should be pursuing had it even worse?...an opportunity to either hold them at bay with their backs to the wall, or attack when half are on the other side?hmmmm(pondering...)AAROGON

Aargon,

Very good point that we do tend to forget about..... Hmmmm The ANVs command structure was just as shot to pieces as the AOPs maybe even more so especially in the middle commands, ie at the brigade, regimental level, with brigades run by captains and regiments by sergants.
THere is one point though I think Bill NT makes it further down, that the ANV still had Lee and his ability to do 'sumersaults' into the rear of the AOP (Grants comments during the wilderness campaign, and they were going to be on the definsive. While the ANV was hurt and badly at that, that Army IMHO was still in fighting condition and I do think another fight between a dug in ANV (see fredricksburg, Cold Harbor, the Mule Shoe, and Gettysburg in a lesser degree) and an agressive AOP would have gotten a lot of good people killed for no good reason.....

IMHO

your humble servant,
Jim