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Who Said 'Never Fight Uphill, Me Boys'? Donald Trump's Strange Pirate Impression Of Robert E. Lee At Gettysburg Explained
Donald Trump is not known for brevity or even clarity in many of his public remarks and his recent comments on his national presidential campaign trail give some indication of this fact. In a recent speech issued in Pennsylvania, Trump's decision to sharply pivot to discussing the Battle of Gettysburg took a strange turn when he decided to paraphrase Robert E. Lee.
Trump's decision to attribute various quotes to the late Confederate General, such as "Wow, Gettysburg" and the unforgettable, "Never fight uphill, me boys!" has raised eyebrows and unleashed snickers all around.
It's the perfect storm of what makes for a classic Trump misquote a la covfefe; the strange pirate cadence, the making up of facts and the dead unfazed stares from supporters barely registering their would-be President's speech.
Here's a recap of how and why Trump decided to put wholly new words (and battle strategies) into the mouth of the late Confederate, and how people have reacted the phrase "Never fight uphill, me boys!"
Where Did The Quote 'Never Fight Uphill, Me Boys!' Come From?
To start off, it's safe to say that the phrase "Never fight uphill, me boys!" did not come from the late General Robert E. Lee himself. In fact, it's unlikely that the General took to random pirate vernacular mid-battle, and even less likely that he issued downward-only fighting orders.
We do, however, know who did first utter the phrase; and it's Trump himself. Turns out, Donald Trump has been parroting the same "me boys" line about Robert E. Lee since his 2020 campaign, with the transcript from a speech issued at Bemidji, Minnesota showing him attributing the same quote to Lee four years ago.
Then, on April 13th, 2024, Trump took the stage at a campaign rally in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, where he decided to bring up the Battle of Gettysburg, perhaps because it took place about 100 miles away from Schnecksville.
Here's a transcript of his exact quote;
"Gettysburg, what an unbelievable battle that was. It was so much, and so interesting, and so vicious and horrible, and so beautiful in so many different ways--it represented such a big portion of the success of this country. Gettysburg, wow--I go to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to look and to watch. And the statement of Robert E. Lee, who's no longer in favor--did you ever notice it? He's no longer in favor. 'Never fight uphill, me boys, never fight uphill.' They were fighting uphill, he said, 'Wow, that was a big mistake,' he lost his great general. 'Never fight uphill, me boys,' but it was too late."
How Did People React To The Line 'Never Fight Uphill, Me Boys'?
Trump's speech spread online in the days after it was issued, with many internet users, Civil War buffs and historians noting that there is no record of Robert E. Lee saying "wow," or "never fight uphill" or even issue downslope-only orders. Other internet users noted that Lee had once famously told his soldiers to embark on a deathly uphill advance through an open field, directly in line of Union muskets.
Two days after Trump's address, even the late-night TV hosts had gotten in on the action, with John Stewart from The Daily Show joking about how Trump seems to have plagiarised directly from his seven-grade book report, "Gettysburg. Wow"
The "failed history homework" theme was a common vein in jokes about Trump's speech, as seen in a post on X by EdwardVersaii that read, "Teaching my first History course this semester has been rewarding but I don’t know what to do with this student."
What Are Some More Memes About 'Never Fight Uphill, Me Boys!'?
The only sensible thing to do with Trump's "Gettysburg, Wow" speech in Pennsylvania was to make a one-minute documentary film of it. These are all his real words. I added some "bing bongs" at the start. "Never fight uphill, me boys! Never fight uphill." #FunWithPhotoshop pic.twitter.com/xFQffyCa37
— Randall Stephens (@Randall_Stps) April 16, 2024
For the full history of "Never fight uphill, me boys," be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.
