GETAE 



Getae. Thracian tribe. Later 

 called Daci, their earliest home 

 was on both banks of the Ister 

 (Danube) from its mouth as far as 

 the Tisia (Theiss). Byrebistas 

 (Boerebista) founded a Daco- 

 Getic kingdom about 50 B.C., which 

 after his death fell to pieces. It 

 was revived during the early em- 

 pire, but the territory was con- 

 quered by Trajan (A.D. 106) and 

 made a Roman province. The 

 Getae were a religious people, who 

 are said to have believed in the 

 transmigration of souls and to have 

 worshipped a certain Zamolxis, 

 sometimes identified with Sabazius, 

 the Thracian Dionysus. In spite of 

 the similarity of name, they were 

 no way akin to the Goths, by 

 whom they were absorbed in the 

 3rd century. See Dacia. 



Gethsemane. Retired spot on 

 the slope of the Mt. of Olives, about 

 | m. from Jerusalem. A garden in 

 Gethsemane was a favourite resort 

 of Christ, and it was there, or near 

 by, that He was betrayed byJudas. 

 A garden, still preserved as the 

 actual one, is considered by 

 modern explorers to be too near 

 the city walls. Excavations were 

 carried out in the garden in 1920, 

 in the course of which remains of 

 a 4th century and a 13th century 

 church were discovered. See Jeru- 

 salem ; Palestine. 



Getter. In executing earth- 

 works, the man who excavates the 

 material for the filler who loads the 

 trucks or barrows and the wheeler 

 who trundles them. The propor- 

 tion of getters, wheelers, and fillers 

 is as follows : in loose earth, gravel, 

 and sand, 1-1-1 ; in compact earth 

 and marl, 1- 2-2 ; in clay, 1-1J-1 J 5 

 in rock, 3-1-1. See Earthwork. 



Gettysburg, Bor. and co. seat 

 of Adams co., Pennsylvania, U.S.A. 

 It is 70 m. N. of Washington and 

 25 m. S.W. of Harrisburg, on the 

 Western Maiyland and Gettysburg 

 and Harrisburg railroads. It was 

 planned in 1780, named after 

 General James Gettys, made a co. 

 seat in 1800, and a bor. in 1806. Of 

 its two Lutheran institutions, the 

 theological seminary dates from 

 1826 and Pennsylvania College 

 from 1832. The field on which the 

 great battle of July, 1863, was 

 fought was dedicated'in Nov.,1863, 

 as a national cemetery ; it contains 

 3,629 graves, 1,630 of unknown 

 dead, and a number of memorials, 

 including one, on Cemetery Hill, 

 which, surmounted by a statue of 

 Liberty, has at its foot figures sym- 

 bolical of War, Peace, History, and 

 Plenty. Pop. 4,000. 



Gettysburg, BATTLE OF, One of 

 the decisive conflicts of the Ameri- 

 can Civil War. It was fought 

 at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 



351 1 



1-3, 1863. The battle area, con- 

 sisting of mountain, valley, rugged 

 hill, precipitous cliffs, meadow, 

 plain, stream, forest, and undulat- 

 ing green fields, was suited to 

 bring armies into every possible 

 form of action ; but the seven 



Gethsemane. The garden near Jerusalem which tradition 

 marks as the scene of Christ's betrayal 



severe engagements were fought 

 mainly in a valley between two 

 great ridges. In the result the 

 Federal Army of the Potomac, 

 82,000 men, under General Meade, 

 defeated the Confederate Army of 

 North Virginia, 73,000 men, under 

 General Lee. The Confederate 

 leader escaped by a masterly re- 

 treat across the Potomac. 



In the preceding December, Lee 

 had repuls?d an attack by Burn- 

 side at Fredericksburg, inflicting 

 losses of over 10,000 men and 

 forcing the Federals to retire be- 

 hind the line 

 of the Rapahan- 

 nock. Hooker, at 

 Chancellorsville 

 (q.v.), at the end 

 of April, resumed 

 the Federal offen- 

 s i v e, but, at- 

 tacked by Lee in 

 front and flank, 

 was, after four 

 days' heavy fight- 

 ing, forced once 

 more behind the 

 Rappahannock, 

 both sides suffer- 

 ing very heavy 

 losses. 



In June Lee's 

 army crossed the 

 Potomac at two 

 points not far 

 from the battle- 

 field of Antietam, 

 and, perceiving 

 that Meade, 

 who succeeded 

 Hooker on June 

 28, could isolate 

 him in an enemy's 

 country, deter- 

 mined to face to- 

 wards Gettysburg 



GETTYSBURG 



and there to force the issue, giving 

 strict orders, however, that private 

 property should be respected. One 

 of Meade's objectives was the 

 defence of Washington, and he 

 took up a strong position S. of Get- 

 tysburg, on Cemetery Ridge. The 

 , Confeclerate forces 

 occupied Semin- 

 ary Ridge, nearly 

 opposite. 



The great strug- 

 gle began on 

 July 1, when 

 Buford's cavalry 

 resisted the ad- 

 vance of Hill's 

 Confederate 

 troops. During 

 the afternoon 

 Swell's corps from 

 the N. threatened 

 the Federal in- 

 fantry which had 

 come to Buford's 

 help, and the 

 Federals were driven back to 

 Cemetery Ridge and Gulp's Hill. 

 Both armies were assembled by the 

 afternoon of July 2, when the 

 Federals occupied a curve from 

 Culp's Hill to the Devil's Den and 

 the Confederates threatened them 

 with a longer line, Longstreet's 

 corps having taken up the position 

 opposite the Round Top hills. 

 Longstreet attacked about 4 p.m., 

 and drove the Federals back to the 

 main ridge, but failed to carry the 

 Round Tops, which were hurriedly 

 occupied by Federal reinf orcements. 



Gettysburg. Plan of the dispositions of the opposing 



forces during one of the chief battles of the American 



Civil War 



