Hey everyone, welcome to episode number 329 of our Civil War podcast.

My name is Rich.

And I'm Tracy.

Hello, y'all.

Thanks for tuning into the podcast.

As y'all recall, we used the last episode to start to talk about Rhodes' plan to attack

South from Oak Hill with three of his brigades, those of O'Neill, Iverson, and Daniel.

As Dicule and Robert Rhodes envisioned it, the attack would come crashing down on the

right end of the Federal First Corps line, roll it up from north to south, and drive the

Yankees from the field.

But as John David Hopptack points out in his book, Confrontation at Gettysburg, Rhodes'

plan quickly ran off the rails as, quote, poor communication, vague directives, uninspired

leadership, and an imperfect understanding of the Union positions would all combine

to result in a series of disjointed, costly assaults.

O'Neill's brigade was the first to come to grief when it advanced sometime after two

o'clock that afternoon.

Bollies of musketry from the Union soldiers in Henry Baxter's brigade raked O'Neill's

lines, and the Confederate attack quickly foundered.

Captain Robert Park of the 12th Alabama wrote in his diary that the, quote, balls were

falling thick and fast around us, and whizzing past and often striking someone near.

Rather than leading the attack in person, Edward O'Neill had remained in the rear, and

so his Alabama's, without leadership from above, were staggered and then forced to pull

...