The Battle of Gettysburg was fought in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and took place on July 1-3, 1863. This battle resulted in the most casualties during the Civil War, with 23,055 Union losses and 23,231 Confederate losses, and it is often described as the turning point in the war, as it was a crushing loss for the Confederate forces. During the Battle of Gettysburg, Union Major General George Meade's Union Army of the Potomac succeeded in fending off attacks from Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of North Virginia. The Union victory ended Lee's invasion of the North, the Gettysburg Campaign, and after suffering heavy losses from Union artillery and rifle fire, Lee and his forces were sent on an horrendous retreat back to Virginia.