In the Hands of Providence by Mort Kunstler - Finally, it was their turn. For hours, Lieutenant Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain and the troops of the 20th Maine had awaited the command to enter combat at the Battle of Fredericksburg. The men from Maine watched with fascination and horror as wave after wave of their fellow soldiers courageously charged across a deadly, open field of fire - and were dashed to pieces by Southern artillery and infantry fire.