“In all my life I have never seen anything so awe-inspiring as the collective roar of three hundred cannon, the landscape is scarred, men are dead and I am covered in dirt” Looking over at the body of men about to advance he raises his sabre to the air; “To Victory!” His tone betraying a hint of confidence.
Cut: Union gun positions on Cemetery Ridge – Edward Alexander commander of the Union guns had ordered his men to conduct a staggered cease-fire to trick Pendleton into believing the guns were being slowly taken out.
Private John C. Moore of the Confederate army sang along with his brothers; a tall man, his shoulders back, his head held high, waved his regiment’s banner with all the pride he could. The men all knew that a victory here would set them on for ending of the war; a prospect men in both armies had hoped for endlessly.
They marched past the four hundred metre mark.
It happened.
Major General Edward Alexander ordered his artillery to start firing, the effect was instantaneous, huge holes appeared in the Confederate lines – a huge cheer goes up amongst the Union forces.
The line shrinks. Men rushing to fill the gap left by their dead friends, the charge’s commanders had believed this to be a fool’s mission. With men dying around them they could only curse General Lee for the mess they were in.
Private John Moore watched around him as men fell in dozens – limbs shorn at the joint, heads blown clean off, the faces of the dead looking endlessly to the sky. He does not run but carries on marching – his section of the line was attacking the Union left flank – his status as banner bearing meaning he was drawing fire.
They had reached musket range.
More men died in droves – “CHARGE” the order was sounded by a strained voice and a quick pounding of the drums! Bayonets are lowered and the men of the Confederate right flank charged to the Union defences.
“Load shrapnel shot” – As soon as the order was given – the Confederates had little chance. The shrapnel shot, the ammunition turned cannon into a giant shot gun, against such stopping power the men of the rebels had little chance. The shells were loaded with reverence!
The muskets of the union continue to pound and shred the men charging them.
“FIRE ALL” – Captain Luko of the Union sounded the order with a voracious grin and a hint of laughter in his tone. The camera turns, briefly showing the entire line of Union troops firing into the rebels. The cannons are shown firing their payload. Smoke fills the screen and dissipates slowly. The entire front section of the Confederate right dissolved into a mass of squirming bodies, body parts and the dead.
“Reinforce the right” Pickett screams – The right is then reinforced. More men fill the gaps left by their dead squad mates – not having the time to reload before this second wave the Union troops break rank and meet them head to head, blade to blade, flesh to flesh.
John Moore, opens his eyes, there is no pain – “I’m alive, I’m alive” He laughs joyfully. “You won’t be for long if you stay there; raise the flag and push on” An office,r unknown to John rushes past him sabre drawn. John joins the second wave in their charge; a grin painted across is hairy face.
He had never killed before. Prior to the charge, he had been a clerk a man untested in battle, it was, arguably, to his fortune that he found the war torn banner he now carried (three second flashbacks) show us him sowing patches onto the banner. General Lee had personally appointed as banner bearer.
These were the images going through his head, as the union soldier slid of the point of the banners shaft – peace etched over his features, John studied the peaceful look in the soldier’s eyes – standing over him for a few seconds. He felt good, not horror not guilt but pride that he had killed the enemy. A part of him revelled in the slaughter around him part of him was disgusted.
Looking around he searched for his next target. All around him men in dirty uniforms fought.
There was no finesse to this slaughter, it was a brawl. Men were fighting with everything that came to hand, musket butts, Bayonet tips, rocks all sorts.
As he looks around the battle becomes mute. John hears nothing accept a loud, sharp gunshot. His hands go numb – the banner falls he tries to reach for it but his body doesn’t react to his commands.
The last thing he sees before he dies is a Union Officer, a smoking pistol in his hand, blood covering his otherwise noble features. John falls backwards.
Lieutenant George O’Neil, Officer in the Union army, drops his pistol – wielding his sabre one handed, he steps over to the body of John Moore. Another confederate goes to retrieve the banner, O’Neil skewers him on the end of his sword, again and again he does this as more and more seek to raise the banner.
A horn sounds behind O’Neil more union troops join the brutal melee. More war cries are shouted, the bloody of the Union soldiers is up now, and adrenaline is pumping through their every fibre causes them to attack with renewed vigour.
Captain Frederick had seen the moment when their regiment’s banner bearer had fallen to the blood stained Union officer. “RETREAT” he shouts, no one argues, the confederate flank peels off from the fighting in broken drabs.
Camera cuts to General Lee sitting on the hill where his artillery is situated, he turns to his aide “How do I explain this failure” He places his head into his hands. The aide says nothing, it was a rhetorical question, he has known General Lee a long time, but had never seen him like this before.
“I will sound the retreat?” The aide asks, General Lee nods and within five minutes of the order being given. A demoralized Confederate army breaks off from the battle.
Union forces roar, their voices filling the air with electricity. This gesture was to announce victory as much as it was to relieve the tension. Thousands were dead or wounded. Hundreds were missing. And even though no one among the Union defenders wanted to admit it; their flank had almost collapsed.
The battle had lasted less than an hour.
General Lee can barely control his rage “BEATEN, BEATEN AND THROWN BACK”. He sits down his uniform jacket round the chair. The others within his command shot glances at each other, Lee quickly spots George Pickett in the distance; Pickett is walking back to the lines his men following close behind. They aren’t running, but walking slowly as if unaware of what had just happened.
“General we must prepare for a counter-attack surely one is due soon” General Lee’s Cavalry commander – always straight to the point and rarely prone to giving into emotion.
General Lee rises from his chair and paces. “Order the men to dig in, your right a counter-attack is likely to occur”. Lee begins to walk down towards the field – his officers shouting after him, he meets Pickett on the field.
A silence passes between them – they look up to see a torn and blood stained banner.
“General you must look to your division” – Lee breaks the silence, his tone, solemn and understanding.
“General” a pause, “ I have no division” tears fill his vision, camera turns over Pickett’s shoulder. Surveying the scene – the bodies, the blood. Pickett shakes his head and walks off. The surviving men of his division falling in behind him, each of them; nodding a salute to General Lee.
Cuts: Exterior. Two men stood sat inside a peaceful country home one the wearing union colours the other confederate, their words are not revealed to the audience birds tweet and children play outside a window . Across the screen – Northern Virginia April 9th1865.
The silence broken “You may keep your horse and your sword General Lee, furthermore, I on behalf of the Union forces accepts your surrender”.
The screen cuts to a Union flag – in pristine condition – the deep confederate accent from the start replaced with a Pennsylvanian accent a state supportive of the union.
“And so the Union forces won their victory – hundreds of thousands lost their lives. Many more were scarred for life. And so here on this date we pay tribute to those who gave their lives for their cause. Both confederate and union” (through out speech a slow fade to the war memorial made in commemoration of all lives lost on both sides.