Command

• A life-long soldier who graduated West Point in 1842, Gen. Pickett fought in a few battles before returning to Virginia when the Civil War broke out. At that point, he had 15 years of military experience and was seen as a useful figure for the Southerners. In the first years of the war, he successfully led troops as a brigade commander in the battles of Williamsburg, Seven Pines, Gaines's Mill and Seven Days, where his work was commended.
  
  

Battle of Gettysburg

• Gen. Pickett's command legacy, however, is most widely remembered in connection with his role at the Battle of Gettysburg. Although it was not his plan, Gen. Pickett led "Pickett's Charge," the infamous and failed frontal assault on Union troops on Cemetery Ridge in Gettysburg, and it defines his legacy. That frontal assault tactic was Gen. Lee's decision, and other generals were involved in the planning and execution of the assault; yet accounts from the aftermath of the failed assault portray Gen. Pickett as particularly upset, and his name will be forever linked with its memory.
  
  

Influence as a Leader and Figurehead

• Known by his troops as both an ostentatious leader and one who had considerable front-line experience, Gen. Pickett inspired his troops with the belief that he would lead them to greatness. During the battle at Gaines's Mill, Pickett demonstrated his integrity as a soldier and a commander by continuing to lead his troops after being shot in the shoulder. Despite the wound, he returned to combat after three months of recovery.
  
  

The Pickett's Charge Legacy

• News of the failure of Pickett's Charge was devastating to the South, even though the media in Virginia lauded his role. After his emotional response to the loss of so many of his troops, and after delivering a stinging report of the battle to Gen. Lee, his credibility took a significant hit. The effect of his reaction also hurt the credibility of the leaders of the Confederacy, and that, in the end, may have been his biggest contribution to the war.