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The disagreement began over which location to use in order to pursue the Union troops. They, then, disagreed over whether to use an offensive or defensive strategy. Lee wanted to offensively attack Cemetery Ridge, while Longstreet wanted to defensively flank the Union Army and force an attack.

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9y ago
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12y ago

Longstreet wanted to fight a defensive battle, to let the federals attack them, but Lee saw otherwise, saying that his army had never let the federals take the field, and he decided to attack. Some say if Ewell had taken Little Round Top, the Yankees would have had to attack him, and destroyed themselves piecemeal.

There were 2 main disagreements. July 2 Longstreet wanted to outflank the Union left but Lee had him directly assault it. July 3 Longstreet wanted to pull back and dig into South Mtn. to force the Yankees to attack from a great disadvantage. Lee said, once again, direct attack.

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15y ago

Lee wanted to attack and win a "Napoleonic victory." Longstreet knew they had no chance attacking an intrenched enemy and wanted to fight a defensive battle (and war). History shows Longstreet as a better strategist.

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12y ago

Lee was trying to invade the prosperous state of Pennsylvania, largely to plunder the farms and factories, notably a boot-and-shoe factory at Gettysburg, since many of his men were barefoot and half-starved.

Longstreet didn't see the point of it. They didn't have the manpower to occupy much territory, and meanwhile there urgent rescue-work to be done in the West, saving the Vicksburg garrison and preventing Union troops from liberating the Mississippi.

When it came to the battle, Longstreet was feeling half-hearted, and failed to carry out his orders as promptly as he should have done. Some claim that the delay cost them the battle - and the war.

Lee himself was not on good form during the three-day operation, suffering the beginning of his slow decline in health, possibly psychosomatic, following the death of his essential team-partner Stonewall Jackson.

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Q: What was the disagreement about the overall strategy between Lee and Longstreet at the battle of Gettysburg?
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What was the disagreement between lee and longstreet?

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Affectionate and respectful to the end of Lee's life. It was other Confederates who blamed Longstreet for the defeat at Gettysburg, not Lee himself.


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It marked the end of the Battle of Gettysburg - the failure of Lee's second and last attempt to invade the North, and a big psychological blow to the Confederates, with signs of disagreement between Lee and his faithful second-in-command James Longstreet. Lee would be kept on the defensive from then on, never again able to execute his famous bold aggressive thrusts, and his health starting to fail too.


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The ones he was permitted to use did. James "Pete" Longstreet was perhaps the finest general the south had. Longstreet was Lee's right hand man for most of the war.He and Sherman recognised early on that their war was like no other in history. Prior to the War Between the States it took a numerical superiority of about 1.5 or 2 to 1 to carry a defensive position. After his first battle Longstreet discovered it now would take a 6 to 1 ratio to win the field in a direct frontal assault. Longstreet was also a logistical genius who realised logistics were what won wars and battles. From that day on Longstreet advocated fighting defensively, or when he had to go on the offense, to always outflank his opponent.Lee was still obsessed with the concept of a Napoleonic victory whereby attacking and totally destroying the enemy on the field would win the war. When the war ended Longstreet correctly knew that the best way to bring the country together was to accept defeat, get over it, and work with the north. Most southerners disagreed and wanted to keep fighting. Confederate Gen. John Gordon of Georgia could not accept defeat. Gordon could not forgive Longstreet for working with Longstreet's longtime best friend, President U.S. Grant. He saw Longstreet as a traitor (nothing was further from the truth), and spent the rest of his life trying to ruin "Old Pete." Gordon, who found many friends in the newspaper editors of the south,blamed Longstreet for losing Gettysburg and thus the war.I believe Gordon was behind the burning down of Longstreet"s house in Gainesville, Ga. (where I live ) April 9, 1889. Everything Longstreet had was destroyed in the fire on the 24th anniversary of Lee's surrender. The movie Gettysburg is an accurate portrayal of the 6'4" 250 lb presence that was Lieut. General James Longstreet.


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