This is the Virginia Memorial at Gettysburg situated where the center of the Virginia troops began their assault on Cemetery Ridge or Pickett's Charge. The six men on the lower portion of the statue represent two each from each branch of the service, infantry, artillery and cavalry as well as volunteers and professional soldiers of different ages and backgrounds. The upper statue is R. E. Lee mounted on Traveler looking across the field to the statue of General George Meade. The battle ended with the disastrous charge and Lee was crushed. The casting of the statue was by Tiffany in NY and it was dedicated in 1917 by Lee's niece. While it commemorates a terrible war with questionable rationale there is no denying the valor of those who fought here. The base of the statue was dedicated four years earlier on the 50th anniversary of the engagement.
