When studying the battle of Gettysburg from the leadership perspective I found the three ingredients of planning, preparation and communication in the correct balance are essential to success. However, in the wrong amounts, they can lead to failure. These elements are the foundation for strong leadership in any organization especially in an educational setting. Throughout the accounts of the events leading to and during the battle both sides at different times had the edge in any one of these three ingredients. Nonetheless, during this particular battle in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania the Union forces had the leading balance in all three.
From the outset of the battle the Union forces had the advantage. Lee had changed his strategy of leading a continuous defensive campaign to now taking the offensive and invading the North. This is seen as a poor tactic in the light of all his previous victories were based on the opposite strategy and in his territory. Gettysburg would be the first battle fought on Northern soil and perhaps this condition was not paid enough attention. Prior to the battle, General Robert E. Lee’s army had been undefeated due in large part to its strong leadership. A major component of this was the familiarity of Lee with his Generals, Longstreet and Jackson. General Longstreet, known as Lee’s “old war horse” was an excellent tactician and communicator in his own right. Shortly before arriving in Gettysburg, General Jackson was killed at Vicksburg. He was a hard charging soldier who needed little direction to achieve tactical advantage. Both of these men were also control mechanisms for Lee’s fanciful wording of his commands to his generals. This is apparent in the examples of newly promoted General E...
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...f what their consensus will be, he portrays a calm demeanor while engaging all in his command structure. By providing that opportunity for all the stakeholders to buy in to the plan he ensures their success on the final day of the battle. Meade and Chamberlain represent the model of leadership that we face in the current educational climate. If you imagine the mutineers to be the extreme spectrum of the faculty who feel no connection to the school they once they loved. Or Meade in the new leadership position having to work with some who would not only expect him to fail but want it to occur. They were able to overcome these inherent problems by communicating and providing purpose to an already well thought and prepared plan.
Works Cited
Gelli, T. (2004, Fall/Winter). Battle-hardened leadership lessons from gettysburg. Retrieved from http://www.dcma.mil
The Battle of Antietam could have been a devastating and fatal blow to the Confederate Army if Gen. McClellan acted decisively, took calculated risks, and veered away from his cautious approach to war. There are many instances leading up to the battle and during the battle in which he lacks the necessary offensive initiative to effectively cripple and ultimately win the war. This paper is intended to articulate the failure of Mission Command by GEN McClellan by pointing out how he failed to understand, visualize, describe and direct the battlefield to his benefit.
Throughout the battle, you see numerous Army Values and Warrior Ethos being used. “I will never leave a fallen comrade”, was the etho used the most, to reach the separated platoon. The battle also shows that not all tactical orders are effective, but as a leader you must never second guess yourself.
Some of the causes from the civil war were that the North was more experienced than the South, they also had more resources to fight in battle. The civil war started when Southern states seceded from the Union after the election with Abraham Lincoln. The battle of Gettysburg had a huge impact on the civil war because it was a three-day battle, making it the bloodiest battle from the American Civil War. Also, the south’s Army of Northern Virginia into Pennsylvania enetered in late June 1863.
In deed on June 6, 1944, the little town of Bedford, VA, suffered a tragedy that would never be forgotten. But through the pain and hardship some of officers who leaded the Bedford boys displayed remarkable leadership’s principles. One of the basic functions of leadership is to unite people: bring people together to achieve common objectives. There is truth in the statement, where there is unity there is strength. This essay will offer a working definition of effective leadership principles and discuss the function of leadership as it relates to followers, motivation and power.
Union Commander Meade, out of fatigue and caution, did not immediately go after Lee, getting President Lincoln very angry who wrote a mad letter to Meade, which was never delivered, saying he missed an opportunity to end the war at this instance (The History Place Battle of Gettysburg 4). Although the casualties were basically equal, the Battle of Gettysburg was the second and last great invasion of the of the North, for the South had neither arms nor numbers to continue an assault, but the War dragged on for two more years. On November 19, President Lincoln went to the battlefield to dedicate it as a military cemetery. He spoke for a short period of time delivering what is called the Gettysburg Address, surprising many present in the audience with its shortness and leaving others quite unimpressed, but over time the speech has come to symbolize democracy as we know it today (Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia Vol. 11 385.
Hull, Bradley Z., and Scott J. Allen. 2012. "Using the 5Ps Leadership Analysis to Examine the Battle of Antietam: An Explanation and Case Study." Journal of Leadership Education 245-262.
Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America "Fourscore and seven years ago ." These are the first 5 of only two hundred seventy-two words that remade America. In Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America, the author, Gary Wills, informed us that Abraham Lincoln wanted equality among us and to unite as one. In Abraham Lincoln's own speech, he would not mention single individuals or even top officers. Everyone was considered as equal importance and was never any different. "Though we call Lincoln's text the Gettysburg Address, that title clearly belongs to Everett." 1 This is very true, which I think is interesting. Everett who was chosen by David Wills to commemorate the National Cemetery of Gettysburg, was supposed to be the speaker while Lincoln was only the dedicatory remarks speaker. Not only did Lincoln have the favorable speech, it was only three minutes while Everett's was two hours long. Lincoln also supposedly was not supposed to be there to speak; he actually just told a correspondent that he would be present. It's amazing to believe that a two hundred seventy-two word speech would say so much to thousands of people.
Dwight David Eisenhower (1955), the 34th President of the United States, gave an explicit definition of leadership, “The job of getting people really wanting to do something is the essence of leadership….” The Army, like any other civilian organization, defines different levels of leadership depending on a size of a unit a leader is in command of. Tactical and organizational leaderships are two first interconnected levels of leadership in the Army. Both levels of leadership have many commonalities regarding duties and responsibilities; yet they are very different in the way the leaders develop themselves, train, and take care of their soldiers.
Furthermore, I have not used the opportunity to work closely with Nick Ocegueda and Manny Chavez as an opportunity for personal growth, or to make even the most incremental positive impact on either of them. I need to make the most of my limited weeks at the Academy so that I am better able to adapt my strengths to the environment while acknowledging my weaknesses so that I am not undermined by them. During our discussion in class today, I tried to defend the merits of the “turn it on, turn it off” approach to leadership as it applied to academics. I used the example of standing in front of a group of soldiers as the motivation to keep my “leadership switch” in the “on” position. It never occurred to me to consider the great possibility that my future work environment may not actually be a demanding one.
HBO’s series “Band Of Brothers” involves analysis of effective leadership and what qualities make for an effective leader. Despite having several similarities including serving in the same unit, holding leadership roles and suffering from some sort of trauma several of these leaders serve as foils for each other. By analyzing the differences between Captain Winters, Sergeant Lipton and Lieutenant Dike an argument can be made to decide what qualities make the most effective and ineffective leader. By looking at what the leader does, what the leader says and what others say about the leader the series determines what does and does not make a good leader in a military setting.
The Killer Angel The Battle of Gettysburg fought in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania from July 1 to July 3, 1863, is considered the bloodiest battle in American history. It’s also considered the most important battle that took place during the American Civil war, because after the Battle of Gettysburg the south never really recovers, resulting in them to never won another major battle the rest of the war. Well behind every great battle there is a great leader, whether it’s one that brings utter chaos or one that sincerely wants a change. In the novel The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, a historical fictional story of the battle of Gettysburg
General Lee knows that we have inexperienced men and aims at improving the quality of the troops. He upgrades the quality by tightening command and discipline, improving morale, and convincing the soldiers that the confederacy was in full command of the situation. Lee knew that we are lacking, and devised initiatives to nullify the Union’s superiority in manpower, armaments, and supply by destroying their prearranged plans.
Sears’ thesis is the Union could have won the war faster. McClellan was an incompetent commander and to take the initiative to attack an defeat the Confederate army. The Army of Northern Virginia, under...
Regardless of the career you choose in your life, whether it be an accountant or a Soldier in the United States Army, someone, somewhere most likely had an influence to bring you to that decision. The Army defines leadership as the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization (JP, p. 1). Now imagine you are a young Private, in one of the most dangerous places in Iraq and you have constant leadership changes, and not much support from your direct leadership. I am sure at this point you can imagine, it is not the best scenario to be in. Throughout the duration of this essay you will read about Sergeant First Class Rob Gallagher and Sergeant First Class Jeff Fenlason, their leadership abilities, and the techniques they attempted to use to resolve the issues in this Platoon that was in a downward spiral after losing many leaders to the hell of war.
Ever heard such a life changing speech that stood with you forever ? Throughout history there have been many speeches, but the greatest ones are those that stick with people even after decades. These are the speeches that have had an impact on people because of how powerful they are and people really connected with them. A great example of a timeless speech is “ The Gettysburg Address “ speech, given by former president Abraham Lincoln. This essay will focus on the impact of this speech in three main points. First, it will cover the history of the speech. Second, the importance of this speech, and thirdly, why it had such a huge impact then and still to this day.