3.03.13
Gettysburg
     The battle of Chancellorsville had left the Confederate army in high spirits. Lee's army had faced the Union troops in Virginia, outnumbered by about 2 to 1. Despite the odds, Lee's army prevailed and defeated the Union army and had about 5,000 less casualties than the Union. As a result, the Confederate troops had a felling of invincibility. Also, they believed that God was on their side. It was because of this that Lee decided to invade the north for the second and final time. There were three main goals for the battle. Lee planned to collect crops from Pennsylvania's plentiful farmland. Also, General Lee hoped to keep the war out of "war-ravaged" Virginia and weaken the support of war in the North. Battle occurred north and west of Gettysburg. The Union army, led by General Meade, held high ground while the Confederate troops, led by Lee, surrounded them a bit lower. The Confederate troops attacked both sides of the lineup hoping to divide them and lead a charge down the middle. General Meade did not fall for this plan. Towards the end of the battle, the Confederates made a risky move. They led a charge up the middle, although it was not divided. This mistake became known as Pickett's Charge. The odds were in favor of the Union soldiers because they held higher ground and had guns that could fire multiple times before needing to be reloaded. The Confederates, on the other hand, were easy targets because of their lower altitude disadvantage. Also, because they were on the move, it was made exceedingly difficult to fire and reload, especially with rifles that needed to be reloaded after each shot. Needless to say, the maneuver failed. An immense number of Confederate soldiers died as a result of Pickett's Charge. Lee's army was forced to tortuously retreat into Virginia. Gettysburg is considered to be a turning point of the Civil War because it took away the south's momentum and confidence, as well as a number of their dwindling troops. It showed the Confederacy that their army was far from invincible. The battle of Gettysburg also forced the Confederates back into their homeland. 
Sources:
http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/gettysburg.html?tab=facts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Gettysburg
http://capitolbadgers.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/gettysburg.jpg