faced at Little Round Top or in the center of the Union line, where their former brothers in arms awaited them; the South's tragedy here lies in the flawed beauty of the act, and Shaara never allows it to escape from view.

Different Beliefs about the Cause of the War
The Union men all believe that the Civil War is about freeing the slaves in the South. They subscribe to a democratic ethos that asserts the equality of all men. This is made clear early in the novel by Chamberlain, who is probably the most idealistic character in the novel. He believes he is fighting for freedom, the right of every individual to “become what he wished to become,” free from oppression by tradition or the old European-style aristocracies and royalties. He explains to the mutineers that the Union army is a different kind of army than any in the past. It does not fight for land, for king, or for booty, but with the purpose of “set[ting] other men free.” For Chamberlain, the Confederacy represents a new kind of aristocracy that is perpetuating tyranny through the institution of slavery.

The Confederates, however, mock the Union belief that the war is about slavery. For them it is a matter of states’ rights. As Kemper says to Fremantle, the Englishman who just seems to assume the war is about slavery, “We established this country in the first place with strong state governments . . . to avoid a central tyranny.” This point is echoed by the rebel prisoners who are captured by Chamberlain’s men. They insist they are fighting for their rights, not for the continuance of slavery. But Chamberlain is not convinced. When he sees the wounded black man, he believes he sees the cause of the war, the enslavement of blacks, very clearly.

Offensive versus Defensive War
A recurring theme is the disagreement between Longstreet and Lee over strategy. Longstreet is a pioneer of defensive warfare, and he thinks Lee is misguided in his insistence on attack. Longstreet consistently argues for setting up a sound defensive position and luring the enemy into an attack. He tries to convince Armistead of the virtues of his theory, but Armistead insists that neither Lee nor his army is suited for “slow dull defense.” Lee is not to be convinced, either. He loathes the nickname of “King of Spades,” which was given to him when he ordered tunnels dug for the defense of Richmond, Virginia. Defensive warfare goes against his training. He has confidence in the pride of his men; they have been outgunned before, as they are now, but have still won great victories. He thinks only of attacking and getting the battle won. For Longstreet, however, Lee’s attitude is out of date. The entire war, Longstreet thinks, is old-fashioned, with tactics dating back to the Napoleonic era, as well as outmoded notions of chivalry and glory. “They all ride to glory, all the plumed knights,” he thinks bitterly as he looks at the Confederate officers. In the end, Longstreet is proved correct, and Lee acknowledges this to him.

On the Union side, Buford espouses theories similar to those of Longstreet. He has had much experience in the Indian Wars, and he speaks disparagingly about how ineffective is “that glorious charge, sabers a-shining” against the Indian, who will hide behind a rock and then shoot you as you go by. Putting his experience to good use, Buford has schooled his men in defensive tactics, which is how they are able to dig in and hold off the attacking Confederates until relief arrives.

Divided Friendships
The nature of the Civil War is brought home by frequent references to the fact that it has split up old friends and comrades and placed them on opposite sides in the conflict. Longstreet remembers the shock of realizing that “the boys he was fighting were boys he had grown up with.” Before the war, the Confederate Armistead was close friends with the Union man, Hancock. In an emotional scene, Armistead recalls his last meeting with his friend, when after dinner at Hancock’s home, they stood around the piano, singing. Now, two years later, at Gettysburg, Armistead must take part in a charge on a position defended by Hancock.

When Longstreet and Lee look back on their exploits in the U.S. war against Mexico (1846–1848), Longstreet speaks admiringly of the men who served with them, noting that “Some of them are up ahead now, waiting for us.” When Chamberlain thinks about the ethics of putting his brother in grave danger by getting him to plug a gap in the line, he reflects: “Killing of brothers. This whole war is concerned with the killing of brothers.” John Gibbon, of Hancock’s corps, has three brothers on the Confederate side. The emphasis on brother against brother presents an image of the United States as a family divided against itself.

God’s Will, Human Will, or Chance?
Lee is a religious man who sees the hand of God at work in events: “He believed in a Purpose as surely as he believed that the stars above him were really there.” When he hears news of the Confederates’ victory on the first day, he thinks it was God’s will and offers a prayer of gratitude. He also feels that the location of the battle at Gettysburg, even though it was not consciously planned, was nonetheless a part of the divine “Intention,” even though earlier he had thought, as it became apparent that a battle was looming, “We drift blindly toward a great collision.”

Just before the final charge begins, Lee says, “It is all in the hands of God.” But Longstreet, with his practical, down-to-earth nature, thinks differently. After Lee’s remark, Longstreet thinks, “[I]t isn’t God that is sending those men up that hill.” In other words, it is a human decision, one that could have been made differently. Not everything is predestined or fated to be the way it is. Humans also have responsibility.

The theme that events are working themselves out, for good or ill, according to God’s will, can also be seen in the fact that Lee and other Confederate officers are troubled because they broke their oaths to defend the Union. There is a certain fatalism on the Confederate side, the idea that since they broke their oaths, and also since they invaded the North, God may have turned against them.