Lee
- The Confederates march toward the battlefield, passing through rocky country that Lee thinks will be good for defense if they get repulsed. He also worries about what the Union Cavalry might be able to do to his troops…
- He stops in Cashtown, where he meets up with A. P. Hill and establishes his headquarters at a local house. Hill's been suffering from diarrhea. He says that he sent Harry Heth out with instructions not to get into a major confrontation with the Yankees, but it sounds like it might have happened already.
- Lee meets General Anderson from Hill's corps, and complains that he doesn't know what kind of fight is going on up ahead. Lee decides to leave Cashtown, riding toward Gettysburg on his horse, Traveller.
- Lee feels his heart trouble as he rides. He gradually sees more and more of the landscape, until he can observe the line of fire. There appear to be a lot of Yankees facing Heth's troops; the front is over a mile long.
- Lee writes letters to Longstreet and Ewell urging them to move in as quickly as possible.
- Harry Heth, puzzled, rides up to Lee. Heth seems ashamed, having ridden into a fight against orders. He explains that he thought there were just militia in town, but, in reality, it was Yankee cavalry. The Yanks managed to hold Heth off until Reynolds's troops could arrive.
- Major Taylor warns Lee that they're in range of the enemy's canons.
- Shortly thereafter, General Rodes—from Ewell's Corps—rides up. His troops are now arriving, ready to join the battlefield. This pleases Lee, but he's also worried they're riding toward a battle as bloody as Antietam (Sharpsburg). He tells him to wait before engaging.
- Lee sends Taylor off to gain knowledge of the enemy's strength.
- Heth returns and tells Lee that Reynolds was shot dead by Heth's troops this morning. General Doubleday has succeeded him.
- Rodes has somehow gotten into the fight, despite Lee's lack of orders. Heth wants to start attacking again, too. General Early arrives from the north, flanking the Union, and Lee decides to let Heth and Pender attack. Without Lee intending anything, it's all coming together, like part of the divine plan—or so he thinks.
- Lee ducks a bullet, sees shells explode nearby, and witnesses all the sights and sounds of war. He goes and sits under a tree, saying a prayer for his son, Rooney, who was wounded some time ago in a different battle, and for all the other soldiers. He sees injured soldiers.
- A. P. Hill stops by and tells Lee that Heth has been wounded in the head, though it might not be serious.
- The Yankees are fighting more bravely than they have before, Hill thinks. After a little while, they start to fall back. Lee dispatches couriers to Longstreet and Ewell.
- Hill comes back after a brief absence, telling Lee that Heth should be okay, though he'll need to stay out of the fight. Lee orders Hill to rest, since he looks sick, but Hill says he's fine.
- A report comes from Pender, saying that the Yankees really are retreating. Lee thanks God.
- Lee rides up ahead until he can see the town of Gettysburg itself. It looks like the Yankees are falling back only to dig in on high ground a little farther away, setting up artillery and starting to fire.
- Hill's troops are exhausted, so Lee sends orders to Ewell to press the Yankees and try to take the high hill if it's practical and there aren't too many Union troops.
- Lee studies the land, realizing that they'll need to try to take two hills further south. He wonders what kind of general Meade will be.
- Longstreet arrives, and he and Lee are both pleased with how the battle's been going. It couldn't have worked out better if they'd planned it, they think.
- But soon, Longstreet and Lee have a disagreement: Longstreet wants to disengage and swing between the Yankees and Washington, while Lee wants to stick around and take the high ground at Gettysburg before the Union gets firmly entrenched. Lee doesn't really address Longstreet's objections—he just wants to keep pushing and get the fight over with.
- Lee denies a request from Ewell to provide support in his attack on the high hill and another hill nearby it (Cemetery Hill and Culp's Hill). Longstreet's troops haven't arrived yet, and Hill's troops are too tired.
- Lee is irritated when he discovers that the Confederates aren't firing artillery at the two hills, and that Ewell and Early—one of Ewell's generals—aren't attacking.
- Lee ends up arguing more with Longstreet, who presses in favor of turning the army south and trying to cut off Meade from Lincoln. But Lee insists that this is the right place to fight.
- Lee wants to be aggressive and is sick of defensive tactics—though he compliments the intel from Longstreet's spy, which helped save the day.
- As the chapter ends, Lee still doesn't see Ewell attacking.