War in the round - Off Duty, travel - Navy Times

War in the round

Call it an antique version of a virtual reality game: A painted canvas measuring 377 feet around and 42 feet high that depicts, in painstaking detail, the bloody Battle of Gettysburg, complete with sound and light effects.

The Gettysburg Cyclorama, a 360-degree masterpiece completed in 1884 by French artist Paul Philippoteaux and newly reopened to visitors, recreates Pickett’s Charge on July 3, 1863, the decisive engagement during the Battle of Gettysburg when the Union gained the upper hand over Confederate forces.

The original oil canvas — groundbreaking in its time — took nearly two years to complete and included actual battle objects for a three-dimensional effect that was so powerful, some veterans of the battle reportedly cried at the sight.

It was first displayed in Boston, giving the nation a novel way of experiencing the battle. Residents of Baltimore could read about the cyclorama in a special brochure advertising its opening.

“This cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg ... is, in every particular, a true and accurate reproduction of the whole mighty struggle, as it actually took place on July 3, 1863,” the brochure reads.

In 2003, conservation specialists began restoring the aging painting as part of a $15 million restoration project, and it was opened to the public in a new state-of-the-art viewing room at the Gettysburg National Military Park visitors center in September.

“The new cyclorama painting experience presents a unique opportunity: The opportunity to view the 1863 battle in the same context that battle veterans did when they first saw the painting toward the end of the 19th century,” spokesman Robert Wilburn said in a news release.

Today, visitors can stand on the elevated viewing platform and take in a 360-degree view of the battlefield, complete with a narrated — and intense — sound and light show. Replica artifacts such as boots and rifles once again litter the foreground to blur the line between where the painting begins and ends.

David Olin, who directed the restoration, said it wasn’t intended to stand on its own.

“It was to be an experience — to be wholly absorbed and felt,” he said in the release. “It was to inspire awe and amazement. Now, for the first time in more than a century, the viewer will once again enter a realm in which their senses will, if for just a moment, place them in the midst of battle.”

The battle

Seven score and six years ago, Confederate forces descended on the tiny Pennsylvania town, where they were met by 94,000 troops of the Union Army. Three days of bloody skirmishes between 165,000 soldiers followed; by July 3, 1863, nearly 51,000 were injured or killed, and the Confederacy was dealt a crushing defeat.

The Battle of Gettysburg, long regarded as the turning point of the Civil War, remains as popular a subject for historians as the battlefield is to tourists.

Today, a visit to Gettysburg National Military Park can serve as a family getaway; located just north of the Maryland-Pennsylvania state line, the remote town is scenic, educational and — best of all — affordable, especially during winter months.

Visitors can walk, ride horses or drive, depending on the weather, along historic trails that join 1,400 monuments across the 6,000-acre park and take in the scenery just as the soldiers saw it 146 years ago.

Plan your visit

Stay: The Holiday Inn Battlefield, which has affordable rooms (about $70 during an off-season weekend). It’s in the center of town. 516 Baltimore St.; www.holidayinn.com

Eat: The Dobbin House Tavern, opened in 1776 and still serving traditional fare like “primal rib of beef” delivered by wait staff dressed in period attire. It’s a popular place, so make reservations. 89 Steinwehr Ave.; www.dobbinhouse.com; $19.95 to $34.95

Shop: Gettysburg has a number of quaint shops selling Civil War memorabilia; most are worthless tourist trinkets, but some stores, such as the Horse Soldier (www.horsesoldier.com), specialize in historic artifacts and antiques. Most shops lie along Baltimore Street and Steinwehr Avenue, and in the city square.

Get the 411: The 139,000-square-foot Gettysburg National Military Park Visitors Center and Museum should be your first stop to get acquainted with the battlefield. The new, state-of-the-art building cost $135 million to construct and houses a stadium-seating theater with an introductory film (narrated by Morgan Freeman) and the restored Gettysburg Cyclorama. It’s open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (until 7 p.m. in summer) every day but Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. Charges apply for admission. www.nps.gov/gett

Don’t miss: The Soldiers’ National Cemetery, just off Baltimore Street, is the final resting place of hundreds of Union soldiers. It’s also the site of the most memorable speech in American history: Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, delivered four months after the battle. www.nps.gov/archive/gett/gncem.htm

Other stuff to see: Hard-core history buffs can also visit the home of President Dwight D. Eisenhower — learn more at www.nps.gov/eise

Before you go: Read Michael Shaara’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, “The Killer Angels,” a historical retelling of the three-day battle. The novel was the basis for the 1993 movie “Gettysburg.”

Find out more: Log on to the Gettysburg Foundation Web site for tips and resources for your visit. www.gettysburgfoundation.org

Related reading: National Infantry Museum to open in Georgia