View source for Little Round Top

{{short description|Hill fought over during the Battle of Gettysburg}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict    = Little Round Top
| partof      = the [[Gettysburg campaign]]
| image       = Little Round Top view Edwin Forbes.jpg
| image_size  = 300
| caption     = "View from the summit of Little Round Top at 7:30 P.M. July 3rd, 1863", painting by [[Edwin Forbes]], showing 1st Lt. [[Charles E. Hazlett]]'s [[5th U.S. Artillery, Battery D]] in action.
| date        = July 2, 1863
| place       = [[Gettysburg, Pennsylvania]]
| result      = Union victory
| combatant1  = {{flagicon|USA|1863}} [[Union (American Civil War)|United States of America]]
| combatant2  = {{flagicon|CSA|1863}} [[Confederate States of America]]
| commander1  = {{plainlist|
* [[Gouverneur K. Warren|G. K. Warren]]
* [[Strong Vincent]]{{KIA}}
}}
| commander2  = {{plainlist|
* [[Evander M. Law]]
* James L. Sheffield
}}
| strength1   = 2,996 troops
| strength2   = 4,864 troops
| casualties1 = {{plainlist|
* 134 killed
* 402 wounded
* 29 missing
}}
| casualties2 = {{plainlist|
* 279 killed
* 868 wounded
* 219 missing
}}
}}

'''Little Round Top''' is the smaller of two rocky hills south of [[Gettysburg, Pennsylvania]]&mdash;the companion to the adjacent, taller hill named [[Big Round Top]]. It was the site of an unsuccessful assault by [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] troops against the [[Union Army|Union]] left flank on July 2, 1863, the second day of the [[Battle of Gettysburg]], during the [[American Civil War]].

Little Round Top was successfully defended by a brigade under [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]] [[Strong Vincent]], who was mortally wounded during the fighting and died five days later. The [[20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment]], commanded by Colonel [[Joshua Chamberlain]], fought its most famous engagement there, culminating in a dramatic downhill [[bayonet]] charge. The battle at Little Round Top subsequently became one of the most well-known actions at Gettysburg, and of the entire war.

==Geography==
{{further|Gettysburg Battlefield}}
[[File:Round Tops panorama 1909.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Little Round Top (left) and [Big] Round Top, photographed from Plum Run Valley in 1909]]
[[File:Littleroundtop.JPG|thumb|right|400px|Little Round Top photographed in 2006]]
Little Round Top is a large [[diabase]] spur of [[Big Round Top]]<ref name=BaltimoreSun>{{Cite news |newspaper=[[The Baltimore Sun]] |date=September 16, 1863 |title=More Exempts from the Draft |url=https://www.google.com/search?q=%22granite+spur+of+Round+Top%22 |access-date=2011-01-23 |quote=''among them the heights of Cemetery Hill and the granite spur of Round Top ... have been purchased by Mr. D. McConaughy''}}</ref> with an oval crest that forms a short ridgeline with a summit of {{Convert|63|ft|m|abbr=on}} prominence above the saddle point<ref name=Elevation_Query>{{cite web|title=USGS Elevation Web Service Query |url=https://gisdata.usgs.gov/xmlwebservices2/elevation_service.asmx?op=getElevation |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]] |access-date=2010-02-19 }}<!--The 582 elevation is from iterated queries around the perimeter with the highest elevation to determine lat/lon near the center of the highest area.--> 
[https://gisdata.usgs.gov/xmlwebservices2/elevation_service.asmx/getElevation?X_Value=-77.23921&Y_Value=39.78634&Elevation_Units=FEET&Source_Layer=-1&Elevation_Only=FALSE 582.655 (saddle point)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722062632/http://gisdata.usgs.gov/xmlwebservices2/elevation_service.asmx/getElevation?X_Value=-77.23921&Y_Value=39.78634&Elevation_Units=FEET&Source_Layer=-1&Elevation_Only=FALSE |date=2011-07-22 }}, 
[https://gisdata.usgs.gov/xmlwebservices2/elevation_service.asmx/getElevation?X_Value=-77.240839&Y_Value=39.792116&Elevation_Units=FEET&Source_Layer=-1&Elevation_Only=FALSE 501.2 (Plum Run @ Crawford Rd] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722062828/http://gisdata.usgs.gov/xmlwebservices2/elevation_service.asmx/getElevation?X_Value=-77.240839&Y_Value=39.792116&Elevation_Units=FEET&Source_Layer=-1&Elevation_Only=FALSE |date=2011-07-22 }}, 
</ref> to Big Round Top to the south. It is located in [[Cumberland Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania|Cumberland Township]], approximately two miles (3&nbsp;km) south of Gettysburg, with a rugged, steep slope rising {{convert|150|ft|m}} above nearby Plum Run to the west and strewn with large boulders.<ref name="auto">Adelman, ''Little Round Top'', p. 7; [[USGS]] map.</ref> The summit is a total of {{convert|650|ft|m}} above sea level. Historically, the western slope was generally free of vegetation, while the summit and eastern and southern slopes were lightly wooded. Directly to the south is Big Round Top, {{convert|130|ft|m}} higher and densely wooded.<ref name="auto"/>

The [[igneous]] landform [[Triassic–Jurassic extinction event|was created 200 million years ago]] when the "outcrop of the [[Devil's Den#Description|Gettysburg sill]]" intruded through the [[Newark Supergroup|Triassic "Gettysburg plain"]].<ref name="Brown">{{cite web |last=Brown |first=Andrew |date=June 2006|orig-year=1962 |title=GEOLOGY and the Gettysburg Campaign |url=http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/education/es5/es5.pdf |location=Pennsylvania |publisher=Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey |access-date=2010-02-19 <!--|quote=''the Round Tops, Cemetery Ridge, Cemetery Hill, and [[Culp's Hill|Culps Hill]] ... are the '''[[outcrop]] of a diabase sill''' ... the '''Gettysburg sill''' ... that about 200 million years ago intruded the Triassic sandstones and shales that floor the broad [[Gettysburg plain]].''-->|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320064714/http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/topogeo/education/es5/es5.pdf|archive-date=2009-03-20}}</ref>{{Rp|13}} Subsequent [[periglacial]] [[frost wedging]] during the [[Pleistocene]] formed the hill's extensive boulders.<ref name="nature">{{cite web |year=2009 |title=<!--Gettysburg National Military Park and Eisenhower National Historic Site: -->Geologic Resources Inventory Report |url=http://www.nature.nps.gov/Geology/inventory/publications/reports/gett-eise_gri_rpt_body_print.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528020420/http://www.nature.nps.gov/geology/inventory/publications/reports/gett-eise_gri_rpt_body_print.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 28, 2010 |location=Denver, Colorado |publisher=Natural Resource Program Center (NPS) |pages=12, 16, 24|access-date=2010-02-19}}</ref>

There is no evidence that the name "Little Round Top" was used by soldiers or civilians during the battle, although Col. Franklin A. Haskell, writing to his brother on July 16, 1863, calls it so.{{refn|See, e.g., paragraph beginning, “Without a topological map,” about 15% into his letter, first reprinted in “A History of the Class of 1854 in Dartmouth College” (Boston: Alfred Mudge & Son, 1898).}} Although the larger hill was known before the battle as Round Top, Round Top Mountain, and sometimes Round Hill, accounts written in 1863 referred to the smaller hill with a variety of names: Rock Hill, High Knob, Sugar Loaf Hill, Broad Top Summit, and granite spur of Round Top.{{Citation needed|date=October 2019}} Historian [[John B. Bachelder]], who had an enormous influence on the preservation of the Gettysburg battlefield, personally favored the name "Weed's Hill", in honor of [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier General]] [[Stephen H. Weed]], who was mortally wounded on Little Round Top. Bachelder abandoned that name by 1873. One of the first public uses of "Little Round Top" was by [[Edward Everett]] in his oration at the dedication of the [[Gettysburg National Cemetery|Soldiers' National Cemetery]] on November 19, 1863.<ref>Frassanito, pp. 243&ndash;45. Thus, a famous exchange in the novel ''[[The Killer Angels]]'' is an anachronism: "Chamberlain said. 'One thing. What's the name of this place? This hill, Has it got a name?' 'Little Round Top,' Rice said. 'Name of the hill you defended. The one you're going to is Big Round Top.'"</ref>

==Battle of Gettysburg==
{{main|Battle of Gettysburg, second day}}
{{further|Gettysburg Confederate order of battle|l1=Confederate order of battle|Gettysburg Union order of battle|l2=Union order of battle}}
[[File:Little Round Top 1863.jpg|thumb|right|Little Round Top, western slope, photographed by [[Timothy H. O'Sullivan]], 1863]]
[[File:Abraham Lincoln and the battles of the Civil War (1887) (14576134130).jpg|thumb|right|Looking from the position of Hazlett's Battery on Little Round Top toward the Valley of Death]]
[[File:From Little Round Top, overloooking the Valley of Death, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views 2.png|thumb|right|Looking from Little Round Top toward the Valley of Death (Devil's Den would be located in the left background)]]
[[File:Monument of General Warren overlooking the battlefield from Little Round Top.jpg|thumb|Monument of General Warren overlooking the battlefield from Little Round Top]]
On the second day of the [[Battle of Gettysburg]], July 2, 1863, at about 4&nbsp;PM, Confederate [[Lieutenant General (CSA)|Lt. Gen.]] [[James Longstreet]]'s First Corps began an attack ordered by General [[Robert E. Lee]] that was intended to drive northeast up the Emmitsburg Road in the direction of Cemetery Hill, rolling up the Union left flank.<ref>Pfanz, p. 153.</ref> [[Major General (CSA)|Maj. Gen.]] [[John Bell Hood]]'s division was assigned to attack up the eastern side of the road, Maj. Gen. [[Lafayette McLaws]]'s division the western side. Hood's division stepped off first, but instead of guiding on the road, elements began to swing directly to the east in the direction of the Round Tops. Instead of driving the entire division up the spine of Houck's Ridge (the boulder-strewn area known to the soldiers as the [[Devil's Den]]), parts of Hood's division detoured over Round Top and approached the southern slope of Little Round Top.<ref name="auto1">Harman, pp. 55&ndash;56; Eicher, p. 526.</ref>

[[File:Little Round Top Edwin Forbes.jpg|thumb|left|''Attack on Little Round Top held by the 5th Corps commanded by General Sykes'', painting by [[Edwin Forbes]]. Forbes has incorrectly depicted [Big] Round Top with two peaks.]]
There were four probable reasons for the deviation in the division's direction: first, regiments from the [[III Corps (Union Army)|Union III Corps]] were unexpectedly in the [[Devil's Den]] area and they would threaten Hood's right flank if they were not dealt with; second, fire from the [[2nd United States Volunteer Sharpshooter Regiment|2nd U.S. Sharpshooters]] at Slyder's farm drew the attention of lead elements of Brig. Gen. [[Evander M. Law]]'s brigade, moving in pursuit and drawing his brigade to the right; third, the terrain was rough and units naturally lost their parade-ground alignments; finally, Hood's senior subordinate, General Law, was unaware that Hood had been wounded and he was now in command of the division, so he did not exercise control.<ref name="auto1"/>

In the meantime, Little Round Top was undefended by Union troops. Maj. Gen. [[George Meade]], commander of the [[Army of the Potomac]], had ordered Maj. Gen. [[Daniel Sickles]]' [[III Corps (Union Army)|III Corps]] to defend the southern end of Cemetery Ridge, which would have just included Little Round Top. Sickles, defying Meade's orders, moved his corps a few hundred yards west to the Emmitsburg Road and the Peach Orchard. This caused a large [[Salient (military)|salient]] in the line, which was also too long to defend properly. His left flank was anchored in Devil's Den.<ref name="auto2">Desjardin, p. 36; Pfanz, p. 5.</ref>

When Meade discovered this situation, he dispatched his chief engineer, Brig. Gen. [[Gouverneur K. Warren]], to attempt to deal with the situation south of Sickles' position. Climbing Little Round Top, Warren found only a small [[United States Army Signal Corps|Signal Corps]] station there. He saw the glint of bayonets in the sun to the southwest and realized that a Confederate assault into the Union flank was imminent. He hurriedly sent staff officers, including [[Washington Roebling]], to find help from any available units in the vicinity.<ref name="auto2"/>

The response to this request for help came from Maj. Gen. [[George Sykes]], commander of the [[V Corps (Union Army)|Union V Corps]]. Sykes quickly dispatched a messenger to order his 1st Division, commanded by Brig. Gen. [[James Barnes (general)|James Barnes]], to Little Round Top. Before the messenger could reach Barnes, he encountered Col. [[Strong Vincent]], commander of the 3rd Brigade, who seized the initiative and directed his four regiments to Little Round Top without waiting for permission from Barnes. He and Oliver W. Norton, the brigade bugler, galloped ahead to [[reconnaissance|reconnoiter]] and guide his four regiments into position.<ref>Norton, p. 167. Norton was a member of the 83rd Pennsylvania, which Vincent commanded before becoming its brigade commander.</ref>
[[File:View From Little Round Top 2025.jpg|thumb|View From Little Round Top 2025]]
Upon arrival on Little Round Top, Vincent and Norton received fire from Confederate batteries almost immediately. On the western slope, he placed the [[16th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment|16th Michigan]], and then proceeding counterclockwise were the [[44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment|44th New York]], the [[83rd Pennsylvania Infantry|83rd Pennsylvania]], and finally, at the end of the line on the southern slope, the [[20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment|20th Maine]]. Arriving only ten minutes before the Confederates, Vincent ordered his brigade to take cover and wait, and he ordered Col. [[Joshua Chamberlain]], commander of the 20th Maine, to hold his position, the extreme left of the Army of the Potomac, at all costs. Chamberlain and his 385 men<ref>Pfanz, p. 232. The 20th Maine had 28 officers and 358 enlisted men.</ref> waited for what was to come.<ref>Desjardin, p. 36; Pfanz, pp. 208, 216.</ref>

===Battle of Little Round Top===
[[File:Gettysburg Little Round Top 1630.pdf|thumb|350px|Battle of Little Round Top, initial assault
{{legend|#ff0000|Confederate}}
{{legend|#0000ff|Union}}
]]
The approaching Confederates were the [[Alabama]] Brigade of Hood's Division, commanded by Brig. Gen. [[Evander M. Law]]. (As the battle progressed and Law realized he was in command of the division, Col. James L. Sheffield was eventually notified to assume brigade command.) Dispatching the 4th, 15th, and 47th Alabama, and the [[4th Texas Infantry Regiment|4th]] and [[5th Texas Infantry Regiment|5th Texas]] to Little Round Top, Law ordered his men to take the hill. The men were exhausted, having marched more than 20 miles (32&nbsp;km) that day to reach this point. The day was hot and their canteens were empty; Law's order to move out reached them before they could refill their water.<ref>Pfanz, p. 162.</ref> Approaching the Union line on the crest of the hill, Law's men were thrown back by the first Union volley and withdrew briefly to regroup. The [[15th Regiment Alabama Infantry|15th Alabama]], commanded by Col. [[William C. Oates]], repositioned further right and attempted to find the Union left flank.<ref>Desjardin, pp. 51&ndash;55; Pfanz, p. 216.</ref>

The left flank consisted of the 386 officers and men of the 20th Maine regiment and the 83rd Pennsylvania. Seeing the Confederates shifting around his flank, Chamberlain first stretched his line to the point where his men were in a single-file line, then ordered the southernmost half of his line to swing back during a lull following another Confederate charge. It was there that they "refused the line"&mdash;formed an angle to the main line in an attempt to prevent the Confederate flanking maneuver. Despite heavy losses, the 20th Maine held through two subsequent charges by the 15th Alabama and other Confederate regiments for a total of ninety minutes.<ref>Pfanz, p. 232; {{Cite web |last=Cross |first=David F. |date=June 12, 2006 |title=Battle of Gettysburg: Fighting at Little Round Top |url=http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-gettysburg-fighting-at-little-round-top.htm |publisher=HistoryNet.com |access-date=2012-01-02}}</ref><!-- It is widely accepted that Melcher, was the first to engage, and  Chamberlain ordered it. Please stop adding that Melcher did it all first or vice-versa.  Picture right above picture of Joshua Chamberlain of Thomas Chamberlain incorrectly identified as Holman Melcher -->

Chamberlain (knowing that his men were out of ammunition, his numbers were being depleted, and his men would not be able to repulse another Confederate charge) ordered his men to fix bayonets and counterattack. He ordered his left flank, which had been pulled back, to advance in a 'right-wheel forward' maneuver. As soon as they were in line with the rest of the regiment, the remainder of the regiment would charge akin to a door swinging shut. This simultaneous [[frontal assault]] and [[flanking maneuver]] halted and captured a good portion of the 15th Alabama.<ref name="D6971">Desjardin, pp. 69&ndash;71.</ref> While Chamberlain ordered the advance, Lieutenant [[Holman S. Melcher|Holman Melcher]] spontaneously and separate to Chamberlain's command initiated a charge from the center of the line that further aided the regiment's efforts.<ref>Desjardin, p. 69.</ref><ref>Melcher, p. 61.</ref>
[[File:Governor William Calvin Oates.jpg|200px|thumb|left|LTC [[William C. Oates]], commander of the 15th Alabama Infantry from spring 1863 to July 1864]]
[[File:Joshua Chamberlain - Brady-Handy.jpg|thumb|left|[[Joshua Chamberlain]] ordered the bayonet charge on Little Round Top.|192x192px]]
During their retreat, the Confederates were subjected to a volley of rifle fire from Company B of the 20th Maine, commanded by Captain [[Walter G. Morrill]], and a few of the 2nd U.S. Sharpshooters, who had been placed by Chamberlain behind a stone wall 150 yards to the east, hoping to guard against an envelopment. This group, who had been hidden from sight, caused considerable confusion in the Confederate ranks.<ref name="D6971"/>

Thirty years later, Chamberlain received a [[Medal of Honor]] for his conduct in the defense of Little Round Top. The citation read that it was awarded for "daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and ordering the advance position on the Great Round Top."<ref>Desjardin, p. 148. During the Civil War, only enlisted men were eligible to receive the Medal of Honor. In 1893, [[United States Congress|Congress]] authorized awards to officers, and numerous medals were granted long after the feats of heroism.</ref>

[[File:Gettysburg Little Round Top 1700.pdf|thumb|350px|Battle of Little Round Top: final assault]]
Despite this victory, the rest of the Union regiments on the hill were in dire straits. While the Alabamians had pressed their attacks on the Union left, the 4th and 5th Texas were attacking Vincent's 16th Michigan on the Union right. Rallying the crumbling regiment (the smallest in his brigade, with only 263 men) several times, Vincent was mortally wounded during one Texas charge and was succeeded by Colonel [[James C. Rice]]. Vincent died on July 7, but not before receiving a deathbed promotion to brigadier general.<ref>Pfanz, pp. 227&ndash;28.</ref>

Before the [[Michigan]]ders could be demoralized, [[reinforcements]] summoned by Warren&mdash;who had continued on to find more troops to defend the hill&mdash;had arrived in the form of the [[140th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment|140th New York]] and a battery of four guns&mdash;[[5th U.S. Light Artillery, Battery D|Battery D, 5th U.S. Artillery]], commanded by Lt. [[Charles E. Hazlett]]. (Simply maneuvering these guns by hand up the steep and rocky slope of the hill was an amazing achievement. However, this effort had little effect on the action of July 2. The artillerymen were exposed to constant [[sniper]] fire and could not work effectively. More significantly, however, they could not depress their barrels sufficiently to defend against incoming infantry attacks.)<ref>Pfanz, pp. 223&ndash;24.</ref>

The 140th charged into the fray, driving the Texans back and securing victory for the Union forces on the hill. Col. [[Patrick O'Rorke|Patrick "Paddy" O'Rorke]], who personally led his regiment in the charge, was killed. Reinforced further by Stephen Weed's brigade of the [[V Corps (Union Army)|V Corps]], Union forces held the hill throughout the rest of the battle, enduring persistent fire from Confederate sharpshooters stationed around Devil's Den. General Weed was among the victims, and as his old friend Charles Hazlett leaned over to comfort Weed, the artilleryman was also shot dead.<ref>Pfanz, pp. 225&ndash;28, 239&ndash;40.</ref>

===Evening and July 3===
[[File:Views from the battle field of Gettysburg, July 1st, 2d, and... (3110018913).jpg|thumb|right|Little Round Top aka "Granite Hill" Tyson picture taken about 1863]]
Later that day, Little Round Top was the site of constant [[Skirmisher|skirmishing]]. It was fortified by Weed's brigade, five regiments of the Pennsylvania Reserves, and an [[Ohio]] [[artillery|battery]] of six guns. Most of the stone breastworks that are currently visible on the hill were constructed by these troops after the fighting stopped. Troops of the [[II Corps (Union Army)|II]], [[V Corps (Union Army)|V]], [[VI Corps (Union Army)|VI]], and [[XII Corps (Union Army)|XII Corps]] passed through the area and also occupied Round Top.<ref name="A15">Adelman, ''Little Round Top'', p. 15.</ref>

Little Round Top was the starting point for a Union counterattack at dusk on July 2, conducted by the 3rd Division of the V Corps (the Pennsylvania Reserves) under Brig. Gen. [[Samuel W. Crawford]], launched to the west in the direction of the [[Battle of Gettysburg, Second Day#Wheatfield|Wheatfield]].<ref>Pfanz, pp. 391&ndash;92.</ref>

[[File:Little Round Top 101215.jpg|thumb|Little Round Top viewed from near [[Devil's Den]]]]

On July 3, Hazlett's battery (six [[10-pounder Parrott rifle]]s, now under the command of Lt. [[Benjamin F. Rittenhouse]])<ref>Hall, p. 314.</ref> fired into the flank of the Confederate assault known as [[Pickett's Charge]]. Near the end of that engagement, General Meade observed from Little Round Top and contemplated his options for a possible counterattack against Lee.<ref name="A15"/>

===Impact===
Of the 2,996 Union troops engaged at Little Round Top, there were 565 casualties (134 killed, 402 wounded, 29 missing); Confederate losses of 4,864 engaged were 1,185 (279 killed, 868 wounded, 219 missing).<ref>Adelman, ''Little Round Top'', pp. 61&ndash;62.</ref>

While agreeing that the fighting on Little Round Top was extremely fierce and soldiers on both sides fought valiantly, historians disagree as to the impact of this particular engagement on the overall outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg.<ref>Compare, for instance, Pfanz, p. 205, Sears, p. 269, and Coddington, p. 388 with Harman, pp. 7&ndash;8, 35&ndash;47.</ref> The traditional view&mdash;one that emerged in the 1880s<ref>Adelman, ''Myth of Little Round Top'', p. 37.</ref>&mdash;is that the left flank of the Union Army was a crucial position. An example of this view is from 1900: "If the Confederates had seized [Little Round Top] and dragged some of their artillery up there, as they easily could have done, they would have enfiladed Meade's entire line and made it too unhealthy for him to remain there."<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 20, 1900 |title=The Battle of Gettysburg: Extracts of the minutes of the meeting of Sterling Price Camp) |url=http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/HistArchive/?p_product=EANX&p_theme=ahnp&p_nbid=J6ET57FVMTI5NTg5MTA0Ny45MzQzMTA6MToxNToxMzguMjM0LjIyMC4xMzU&p_action=doc&s_lastnonissuequeryname=11&d_viewref=search&p_queryname=11&p_docnum=13&p_docref=v2:0F99DDB671832188@EANX-1070B6E914F5C4B8@2415076-1070B6EA2F3D75C8@14-1070B6ED9240B6D8@The+Battle+of+Gettysburg |format=America's Historical Newspaper image |publisher=Dallas Morning News (February 25) |page=15 |access-date=2011-01-24}} (Major Robbins' letter)</ref>

An alternative claim is that the hill's terrain offered a poor platform for artillery, and that had Longstreet secured the hill, the Union Army would have been forced back to a better defensive position, making the attack on the hill a distraction from the Confederates' true objective. This latter theory is supported by General Lee's writings, in which he appears to have considered Little Round Top irrelevant. In Lee's report after the [[Gettysburg campaign]], he stated in part, "General Longstreet was delayed by a force occupying the high, rocky hills on the enemy's extreme left, from which his troops could be attacked in reverse as they advanced", suggesting Longstreet was ordered on a course intended to bypass Little Round Top&mdash;had the hill been a key objective of the assault, Lee would not have used the phrase "delayed by" in describing the effects of the engagement.<ref>Harman, p. 36: "How could this Union force, located on the 'high, rocky hills' (a clear reference to the Round Tops), have attacked Longstreet's troops 'in reverse' (from behind) unless the Confederate plans were to march north, staying just west of and passing by these 'rocky hills'?"</ref>

Garry Adelman has countered the argument that a Confederate capture of Little Round Top would have badly hurt the Union effort. Examining the number of troops available in the vicinity in the late afternoon, he determined that at most 2,650 Confederates could have been available to defend the hill after capturing it, and that these men would have been exhausted from combat and short on ammunition. In contrast, 11,600 fresh Union reinforcements were available within a mile, primarily from Maj. Gen. [[John Sedgwick]]'s [[VI Corps (Union Army)|VI Corps]]. In addition, the value of Little Round Top as an artillery position has been overstated&mdash;the shape of the crest of the hill forces guns to be placed one behind the other, limiting their effectiveness when engaging targets directly to the north, such as the Union line on Cemetery Ridge.<ref>Adelman, ''Myth of Little Round Top'', pp. 61&ndash;64, 69-73.</ref>

While Chamberlain and the 20th Maine have gained popularity in the American national consciousness, other historical figures such as Strong Vincent, [[Patrick O'Rourke]], and Charles Hazlett arguably played equal roles in the Union success at Little Round Top. Their deaths at the scene, however, did not allow their personal stories to be told.{{cn|date=March 2024}}

==Postbellum history==
During visits by 13 generals in 1865, points were identified on Little Round Top at which markers were subsequently erected,<ref name=nytimes>{{Cite news |date=Oct 31, 1865 |title=The Field of Gettysburgh: Interest Concerning the Great Battle Ground -- Thirteen Generals Revisit the Scene of their Struggle … |url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0C13F93C58137A93C1A9178AD95F418684F9  |format=Google News Archive |newspaper=New York Times |access-date=2011-01-08}}</ref> and a {{Convert|40|ft|m|abbr=on}} observatory was built by 1886,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wert |first=J. Howard |year=1886 |title=A Complete Handbook of the Monuments and Indications and Guide to the Positions on the Gettysburg Battlefield |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N8QPaIbCCM0C&q=observatory&pg=PA92 |page=92 |access-date=2011-10-20}}</ref> before a stone monument with observation deck was dedicated to the 44th New York in 1892. In the late 1880s,<ref>Pullen, pp. 140&ndash;41, cites October 1889. Desjardin, p. 153, cites 1889. Hawthorne, p. 52, cites October 3, 1886. Adelman, ''Little Round Top'', p. 24, states that the monument was placed in June 1886.</ref> the [[20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment]] monument on Little Round Top was dedicated with a speech by Joshua Chamberlain.<ref>James Morgan, [http://www.gdg.org/Research/People/Chamberlain/flash.html "Who Saved Little Round Top: A Response to the Melcher Challenge,"] Camp Chase Gazette, July 1996.</ref>

In 1935, two "hairpin curves" of the avenue on Little Round Top were removed by the Continental Contracting Company to create a "by-pass, a stretch of .399 mile," from the [[Round Top Museum]] southward to north of the guard station on the south slope at Sykes Avenue and Chamberlain Avenue was subsequently closed. The summit parking lot was also created at this time.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8SczAAAAIBAJ&pg=4975,296994&dq=sykes-avenue&hl=en|title=Gettysburg Compiler - Google News Archive Search|website=news.google.com}}</ref>

<!-- This is a legitimate collection of battlefield monument photos. If someone would like to tackle the coding required to display these images without the gallery, and still fit them neatly into the article, they are welcome to try. {{cleanup-gallery|date=October 2011}} -->
{{Gallery
|title=Monuments at Little Round Top
|align=center
|File:Signal Corps tablet Little Round Top.JPG|Memorial tablet to the [[Signal Corps in the American Civil War|Signal Corps]] embedded in the rock of Little Round Top
|File:Company K Monument, Devil's Den, Gettysburg Battlefield.jpg|Monument for the 30th Infantry, First Pennsylvania Reserves, at the base of Little Round Top. Inscribed in the monument are the words "Co. K recruited at Gettysburg." Dedicated September 1890.
|File:Company K Monument, Town Square, Gettysburg.jpg|Monument in town square: "<!--During the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863, the men of -->Company K, in the center of the First [Pennsylvania] Reserves, helped to repulse the Confederate attempt to seize Little Round Top, possession of which was the key to victory in the battle."<ref>Minnigh, p. 55. Company K consisted of seasoned veterans of many significant battles, having been recruited in Adams County on May 15, 1861. Company K's engagements, including detailed accounts of eyewitnesses, were recorded by their captain, Henry N. Minnigh, in his book, "A History of Company K."</ref>
|File:20th Maine Monument, Little Round Top, Gettysburg Battlefield, Pennsylvania.jpg|The [[20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment]] monument on Little Round Top is the most popular [[Gettysburg National Military Park]] monument that visitors request to see.<ref>Desjardin, pp. 159&ndash;63.</ref>
|File:Monument to 140th New York and Patrick O'Rorke.jpg|Monument to Col. Patrick O'Rorke and the 140th New York on Little Round Top
|File:12th and 44th N.Y. Vol. Inf. Monument.JPG|Monument to the 12th and 44th New York Infantry on Little Round Top
|File:Monument to the 155th Pennsylvania Volunteers at Little Round Top, Gettysburg National Military Park, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania LCCN2011630822.tif|Monument to the 155th Pennsylvania Volunteers at Little Round Top
}}

==In popular culture==
The battle for Little Round Top is a key plot point of [[Ward Moore]]'s 1953 [[alternate history]] novel ''[[Bring the Jubilee]]''. The 1974 novel ''[[The Killer Angels]]'', and its 1993 film adaptation, ''[[Gettysburg (1993 film)|Gettysburg]]'', depicted a portion of this battle. Filmmaker [[Ken Burns]] praised Chamberlain in his PBS documentary ''[[The Civil War (TV series)|The Civil War]]'' and in subsequent interviews for possibly saving the Union with his actions during the engagement.

In the 2016 song "Ballad of the 20th of Maine" by Maine folk group The Ghost of Paul Revere, the famous bayonet charge and [[Andrew J. Tozier|Andrew Tozier]]'s defiant stand is chronicled:<ref>{{cite web | url=https://20thmainevolunteers.com/ballad20thmaine.html | title=Ballad of the 20th Maine }}</ref>

{{poem quote|text=Well, our western flank was missing /
As the confederates, they pushed on /
And I fought them tooth and nail /
Our ammunition all but gone ...
And then appeared our Lion, he was roaring bayonets /
And we charged on down the mountain with what forces we had left /
We're as steadfast as [[Katahdin]], we're as hard as winter's rain /
Go straight to hell with your [[Rebel yell]], we are the boys of Maine.}}

==See also==
*[[Big Round Top]]
*[[Gettysburg Battlefield Historic District]]
*[[Gettysburg National Military Park]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|3}}

==References==
* Adelman, Garry E. ''Little Round Top: A Detailed Tour Guide''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 2000. {{ISBN|1-57747-062-1}}.
* Adelman, Garry E. ''The Myth of Little Round Top''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 2003. {{ISBN|1-57747-097-4}}.
* Clark, Champ, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''Gettysburg: The Confederate High Tide''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1985. {{ISBN|0-8094-4758-4}}.
* Coddington, Edwin B. ''The Gettysburg Campaign; a study in command''. New York: Scribner's, 1968. {{ISBN|0-684-84569-5}}.
* Desjardin, Thomas A. ''Stand Firm Ye Boys from Maine: The 20th Maine and the Gettysburg Campaign''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1995. {{ISBN|1-57747-034-6}}.
* [[David J. Eicher|Eicher, David J.]] ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. {{ISBN|0-684-84944-5}}.
* Frassanito, William A. ''Early Photography at Gettysburg''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1995. {{ISBN|1-57747-032-X}}.
* Hall, Jeffrey C. ''The Stand of the U.S. Army at Gettysburg''. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2003. {{ISBN|0-253-34258-9}}.
* Harman, Troy D. ''Lee's Real Plan at Gettysburg''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2003. {{ISBN|0-8117-0054-2}}.
* Hawthorne, Frederick W. ''Gettysburg: Stories of Men and Monuments''. Gettysburg, PA: Association of Licensed Battlefield Guides, 1988. {{ISBN|0-9657444-0-X}}.
* LaFantasie, Glenn W. ''Twilight at Little Round Top''. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2005. {{ISBN|978-0-307-38663-2}}.
* [[Holman S. Melcher|Melcher, Holman S.]] ''With a Flash of his Sword: The Writings of. Maj. Holman S. Melcher, 20th Maine Infantry''. Edited by William B. Styple. Kearny, NJ: Belle Grove Publishing, 1994. {{ISBN|1-883926-00-9}}.
* Minnigh, Henry N. ''A History of Company K, 1st (Inft,) Penn'a Reserves''. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1998. {{ISBN|1-57747-040-0}}. First published 1891 in Duncansville, PA.
* Norton, Oliver W. [https://books.google.com/books?id=sK0SAAAAYAAJ ''Army Letters 1861-1865'']. Chicago: O.L. Deming, 1903. {{OCLC|518033}}.
* Pfanz, Harry W. ''Gettysburg &ndash; The Second Day''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1987. {{ISBN|0-8078-1749-X}}.
* Pullen, John J. ''Joshua Chamberlain: A Hero's Life and Legacy''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1999. {{ISBN|978-0-8117-0886-9}}.
* [[Stephen W. Sears|Sears, Stephen W.]] ''Gettysburg''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003. {{ISBN|0-395-86761-4}}.
* U.S. War Department, [http://ehistory.osu.edu/osu/sources/records/list.cfm ''The War of the Rebellion'']: ''a Compilation of the [[Official Records of the American Civil War|Official Records]] of the Union and Confederate Armies''. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880&ndash;1901.

==Further reading==
* Gottfried, Bradley M. ''Brigades of Gettysburg''. New York: Da Capo Press, 2002. {{ISBN|0-306-81175-8}}.
* Gottfried, Bradley M. ''The Maps of Gettysburg: An Atlas of the Gettysburg Campaign, June 3 &ndash; June 13, 1863''. New York: Savas Beatie, 2007. {{ISBN|978-1-932714-30-2}}.
* Grimsley, Mark, and Brooks D. Simpson. ''Gettysburg: A Battlefield Guide''. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1999. {{ISBN|0-8032-7077-1}}.
* Laino, Philip, ''Gettysburg Campaign Atlas''. 2nd ed. Dayton, OH: Gatehouse Press 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-934900-45-1}}.
* Norton, Oliver W. ''The Attack and Defense of Little Round Top: Gettysburg, July 2, 1863''. Gettysburg, PA: Stan Clark Military Books, 1992. {{ISBN|1-879664-08-9}}. First published 1913 by Neale Publishing Co.
* Petruzzi, J. David, and Steven Stanley. ''The Complete Gettysburg Guide''. New York: Savas Beatie, 2009. {{ISBN|978-1-932714-63-0}}.
* Pullen, John J. (1957), ''The Twentieth Maine:  A Volunteer Regiment in the Civil War'', Philadelphia:  Lippencott, OCLC 475760 .
{{Coord|39.7920|-77.2363|display=title|type:landmark}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Little Round Top|position=left}}
{{External media
|image1=[http://www.gettysburgphotographs.com/index2.htm photogallery]
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{{Gettysburg Campaign}}

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[[Category:Hills of Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Gettysburg Battlefield]]
[[Category:Gettysburg National Military Park]]
[[Category:Landforms of Adams County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Historic district contributing properties in Pennsylvania]]