Alonzo Cushing's Gettysburg Stand That Saved the Union Line

Dec 15 , 2025

Alonzo Cushing's Gettysburg Stand That Saved the Union Line

Alonzo Cushing gripped his artillery piece through the smoke and roar, blood seeping from a wound that should have taken him down. But he stayed—steady, focused, relentless. The cannon never faltered. The Southern tide crashed, but he would not let the Union line break on his watch.

This was a man forged in fire, a soldier baptized in steel and sacrifice.

A Soldier Born of Duty and Faith

Alonzo Herndon Cushing was born into a world bristling with tensions, in Delaware County, New York, on January 23, 1841. Raised in a family steeped in military tradition, his father, William B. Cushing, was a naval officer famous for his daring raids in the Civil War. Alonzo’s path was carved early. West Point beckoned; he answered with fierce determination.

A devout Christian, Cushing lived by a code heavier than the artillery shells he bore downrange. Honor, duty, sacrifice. Not empty words but commandments etched deep into his marrow. He once quoted Proverbs 3:5-6 with quiet resolve:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Faith was his undercurrent through chaos, a steadying force amid hellish disarray.

The Battle That Defined Him

July 3, 1863. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The war’s darkest crescendo. The Union’s fate hung on the brink, and a cannon sat at the center of it all—Battery A, Horse Artillery Brigade, Army of the Potomac. Captain Cushing was its heart.

Confederate forces launched a massive assault under General George Pickett—the infamous Pickett’s Charge. Waves of gray swept toward Cemetery Ridge. Cushing’s guns peeled out thunder, halting charge after charge.

But then, the bullets found him. Reports record wounds to his chest and abdomen, grievous and bleeding. Doctors would later estimate that had he been anywhere but on the field, he could have died within minutes.

Still, he stood. Ordering his men to continue firing, ignoring his own agonizing injuries. His words cracked out through the din:

“What’s that? Fire faster! Fire, boys! Fire!”

Witnesses like Major General Winfield Scott Hancock saw the courage firsthand. Hancock later described Cushing as “one of the bravest and coolest officers I ever saw.”

Cushing’s command was the linchpin. His battery’s fire devastated the charging Confederates. The momentum of Pickett’s Charge broke here—largely because one man refused to surrender to death.

Collapsed only when the Confederate wave overtook his position, he died defending the Union line. That final act sealed the fate of Gettysburg’s climax.

Recognition in Blood and Bronze

For decades, Cushing’s valor was acknowledged in military circles, though the nation did not fully honor him immediately. His Medal of Honor would not come until July 23, 2014—over 150 years later.

His citation reads:

“For distinguished bravery in action, gallantly maintaining the fire of his battery until he fell, mortally wounded.”

President Barack Obama bestowed the medal in a ceremony heavy with solemn gratitude. It was a delayed justice, but no less powerful. Cushing’s bravery was etched into the fabric of American history.

Beyond awards, comrades’ respect immortalized him. Brigadier General Alexander C. M. Pennington Jr. said this after the battle:

“Captain Cushing, although mortally wounded, remained at his guns, his example inspiring all who saw him.”

Legacy Carved in Sacrifice

Alonzo Cushing’s story is not just one of gallantry under fire. It is a testament to the human spirit wrestling with chaos and resolve. He embodies sacrifice—the willingness to bleed on a frozen field for a cause greater than self.

His stand at Gettysburg teaches us that courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. Faith fuels that courage. In the crucible of war, his faith refused to falter, and his guns refused to fall silent.

Every veteran with scars, every soldier who hears the call—Cushing’s legacy rings clear: Fight for what is right, stand when others fall, and trust the hand that guides you beyond the battlefield.

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13

The field at Gettysburg is quiet now, but the echoes of Cushing’s fire still thunder. His sacrifice a beacon to every soul who struggles to serve with honor, purpose, and faith.

This is the price of freedom—a price paid in blood and unbroken spirit.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: Civil War (A–L) 2. Mark Adkins, The Gettysburg Companion: The Complete Guide to America's Most Famous Battle 3. Barack Obama, Medal of Honor Ceremony Remarks, July 23, 2014 4. Edwin B. Cottrell, Excerpts from Accounts of Pickett’s Charge 5. Alexander C. M. Pennington Jr., Official Reports, After Action Testimony, 1863