Robert E. Lee

 
   
 
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With all my devotion to the Union and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relatives, my children, my home. I have therefore resigned my commission in the Army, and save in defense of my native State, with the sincere hope that my poor services may never be needed, I hope I may never be called on to draw my sword...

General Robert E. Lee, April 20, 1861

 
 
 
 
 
 
Biography
  

Born: January 19, 1807 Died: October 12, 1870

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Robert Edward Lee  
(1807-1870), American soldier, general in the Confederate States army, was the youngest son of major-general Henry Lee, called " Light Horse Harry ." He was born at Stratford, Westmoreland county, Virginia, on the 19th of January 1807, and entered West Point in 1825. Graduating four years later second in his class, he was given a commission in the U.S. Engineer Corps. In 1831 he married Mary, daughter of G. W. P. Custis, the adopted son of Washington and the grandson of Mrs. Washington. In 1836 he became first lieutenant, and in 1838 captain. In this rank he took part in the Mexican War, repeatedly winning distinction for conduct and bravery. He received the brevets of major for Cerro Gordo , lieut.-colonel for Contreras - Churubusco and colonel for Chapultepec .
After the war he was employed in engineer work at Washington and Baltimore, during which time, as before the war, he resided on the great Arlington estate, near Washington, which had come to him through his wife. In 1852 he was appointed superintendent of West Point, and during his three years here he carried out many important changes in the academy. Under him as cadets were his son G. W. Custis Lee, his nephew, Fitzhugh Lee and J. E. B. Stuart , all of whom became general officers in the Civil War. In 1855 he was appointed as lieut.-colonel to the 2nd Cavalry, commanded by Colonel Sidney Johnston , with whom he served against the Indians of the Texas border. In 1859, while at Arlington on leave, he was summoned to command the United States troops sent to deal with the John Brown raid on Harper's Ferry . In March 1861 he was made colonel of the 1st U.S. Cavalry; but his career in the old army ended with the secession of Virginia in the following month. Lee was strongly averse to secession, but felt obliged to conform to the action of his own state. The Federal authorities offered Lee the command of the field army about to invade the South, which he refused. Resigning his commission, he made his way to Richmond and was at once made a major-general in the Virginian forces. A few weeks later he became a brigadier-general (then the highest rank) in the Confederate service.

Robert E. Lee Later in Life

The military operations with which the great Civil War opened in 1861 were directed by President Davis and General Lee. Lee was personally in charge of the unsuccessful West Virginian operations in the autumn, and, having been made a full general on the 31st of August, during the winter he devoted his experience as an engineer to the fortification and general defense of the Atlantic coast. Thence, when the well-drilled Army of the Potomac was about to descend upon Richmond, he was hurriedly recalled to Richmond. General Johnston was wounded at the battle of Fair Oaks (Seven Pines) on the 31st of May 1862, and General Robert E. Lee was assigned to the command of the famous Army of Northern Virginia which for the next three years " carried the rebellion on its bayonets." Little can be said of Lee's career as a commander-in-chief that is not an integral part of the history of the Civil War. His first success was the " Seven Days' Battle " in which he stopped McClellan 's advance; this was quickly followed up by the crushing defeat of the Federal army under Pope , the invasion of Maryland and the sanguinary and indecisive battle of the Antietam . The year ended with another great victory at Fredericksburg . Chancellorsville , won against odds of two to one, and the great three days' battle of Gettysburg , where for the first time fortune turned decisively against the Confederates, were the chief events of 1863. In the autumn Lee fought a war of maneuver against General Meade . The tremendous struggle of 1864 between Lee and Grant included the battles of the Wilderness , Spotsylvania , North Anna, Cold Harbor and the long siege of Petersburg , in which, almost invariably, Lee was locally successful. But the steady pressure of his unrelenting opponent slowly wore down his strength. At last with not more than one man to oppose to Grant's three he was compelled to break out of his Petersburg lines (April 1865). A series of heavy combats revealed his purpose, and Grant pursued the dwindling remnants of Lee's army to the westward. Headed off by the Federal cavalry, and pressed closely in rear by Grant's main body, General Lee had no alternative but to surrender. At Appomattox Court House , on the 9th of April, the career of the Army of Northern Virginia came to an end. Lee's farewell order was issued on the following day, and within a few weeks the Confederacy was at an end. For a few months Lee lived quietly in Powhatan county, making his formal submission to the Federal authorities and urging on his own people acceptance of the new conditions. In August he was offered, and accepted, the presidency of Washington College, Lexington (now Washington and Lee University), a post which he occupied until his death on the 12th of October 1870 He was buried in the college grounds.
By his achievements he won a high place amongst the great generals of history. - Though hampered by lack of materials and by political necessities, his strategy was daring always, and he never hesitated to take the gravest risks. On the field of battle he was as energetic in attack as he was constant in defense, and his personal influence over the men whom he led was extraordinary. No student of the American Civil War can fail to notice how the influence of Lee dominated the course of the struggle, and his surpassing ability was never more conspicuously shown than in the last hopeless stages of the contest. The personal history of Lee is lost in the history of the great crisis of America's national life; friends and foes alike acknowledged the purity of his motives, the virtues of his private life, his earnest Christianity and the unrepining loyalty with which he accepted the ruin of his party.
See A. L. Long, Memoirs of Robert E. Lee (New York, 1886) ; Fitzhugh Lee, General Lee (New York, 1894, " Great Commanders " series) ; R. A. Brock, General Robert E. Lee (Washington, 19o4); R. E. Lee, Recollections and Letters of General R. E. Lee (London, 19o4); H. A. White, Lee (" Heroes of the Nations") (1897) ; P. A. Bruce, Robert E. Lee (1907) ; T. N. Page, Lee (1909) ; W. H. Taylor, Four Years with General Lee; J. W. Jones, Personal Reminiscences of Robert E. Lee (1874).


From Encyclopedia Brt., 11th edition, Volume 16

Source: Son of the South - Biography
 
      
     
   
     
  Quotes  
      
 
  • Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less.

  • I cannot trust a man to control others who cannot control himself.

  • Whiskey - I like it, I always did, and that is the reason I never use it.

  • My chief concern is to try to be an humble, earnest Christian.

  • Obedience to lawful authority is the foundation of manly character.

  • It is well that war is so terrible -- lest we should grow too fond of it.

  • [W]e made a great mistake in the beginning of our struggle, and I fear, in spite of all we can do, it will prove to be a fatal mistake. We appointed all our worst generals to command our armies, and all our best generals to edit the newspapers.

  • [T]here is no more dangerous experiment than that of undertaking to be one thing before a man's face and another behind his back.

  • You must study to be frank with the world: frankness is the child of honesty and courage. Say just what you mean to do on every occasion, and take it for granted that you mean to do right.

  • With all my devotion to the Union and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relatives, my children, my home. I have therefore resigned my commission in the Army, and save in defense of my native State, with the sincere hope that my poor services may never be needed, I hope I may never be called on to draw my sword...

  •  A true man of honor feels humbled himself when he cannot help humbling others.

  • My experience through life has convinced me that, while moderation and temperance in all things are commendable and beneficial, abstinence from spirituous liquors is the best safeguard of morals and health.

  • The gentleman does not needlessly and unnecessarily remind an offender of a wrong he may have committed against him. He can not only forgive; he can forget; and he strives for that nobleness of self and mildness of character which imparts sufficient strength to let the past be put the past.

  • The education of a man is never completed until he dies.

  • We failed, but in the good providence of God apparent failure often proves a blessing.

  • What a cruel thing is war: to separate and destroy families and friends, and mar the purest joys and happiness God has granted us in this world; to fill our hearts with hatred instead of love for our neighbors, and to devastate the fair face of this beautiful world.

  • You can have anything you want - if you want it badly enough. You can be anything you want to be, have anything you desire, accomplish anything you set out to accomplish - if you will hold to that desire with singleness of purpose.

  • Get correct views of life, and learn to see the world in its true light. It will enable you to live pleasantly, to do good, and, when summoned away, to leave without regret.

  • Never do a wrong thing to make a friend or keep one.

  • They do not know what they say. If it came to a conflict of arms, the war will last at least four years. Northern politicians will not appreciate the determination and pluck of the South, and Southern politicians do not appreciate the numbers, resources, and patient perseverance of the North. Both sides forget that we are all Americans. I foresee that our country will pass through a terrible ordeal, a necessary expiation, perhaps, for our national sins.

  • You cannot be a true man until you learn to obey.

  • My trust is in the mercy and wisdom of a kind Providence, who ordereth all things for our good.

  • So far from engaging in a war to perpetuate slavery, I am rejoiced that Slavery is abolished.  I believe it will be greatly for the interest of the South. So fully am I satisfied of this that I would have cheerfully lost all that I have lost by the war, and have suffered all that I have suffered to have this object attained.
 
Source: Son of the South - Quotes
      
   
     
   
     
  Letters  
      
  "I can anticipate no greater calamity for the country than the dissolution of the Union. It would be an accumulation of all the evils we complain of, and I am willing to sacrifice everything but honor for its preservation."

Col. Robert E. Lee, U.S.A. in a letter to his son Custis, January 23, 1861

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"I shall carry with me to the grave the most grateful recollections of your kind consideration, & your name & fame will always be dear to me. Save in the defense of my native State, I never desire again to draw my sword."

Robert E. Lee to General Winfield Scott,
Resigning his commission with the US Army.
The Wartime Papers of R. E. Lee (New York: Bramhall House, 1961), pages 8-9.

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"With all my devotion to the Union, and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relative, my children, my home. I have, therefore, resigned my commission in the Army..."

Robert E. Lee to his sister, Anne Marshall April 20, 1861
The Wartime Papers of R. E. Lee
(New York: Bramhall House, 1961), pages 9-10.

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"It is believed that the enemy suffered severely in these operations, but our own loss has not been light. General Barksdale is killed. Generals Garnett and Armistead are missing as prisoners. Generals Pender and Trimble are wounded in the leg, General Hood in the arm, and General Heth slightly in the head. General Kemper, it is feared, is mortally wounded. Our losses embrace many other valuable officers and men. General Wade Hampton was severely wounded in a different action in which the cavalry was engaged yesterday."

General Lee in a letter to President Jefferson Davis,
July 4, 1863
Official Records of the Rebellion, page 299 , Chapter XXXIX.

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"Abandon your animosities and make your sons Americans."

Robert E. Lee, 1865;
"He Lost a War and Won Immortality" Louis Redmond

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"You must remember me very kindly to Mrs. Longstreet and all your children. I have not had an opportunity yet to return the compliment she paid me. I had, while in Richmond, a great many inquiries after you, and learned that you intended commencing business in New Orleans. If you become as good a merchant as you were a soldier, I shall be content. No one will then excel you, and no one can wish you more success and more happiness than I. My interest and affection for you will never cease, and my prayers are always offered for your prosperity."

Robert E. Lee in a letter to James Longstreet,
January 19, 1866.

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"My Dear Mrs. Davis:

Your letter of the 12th inst. reached Lexington during my absence at Washington. I have never seen Mr. Colfax's speech, and am, therefore, ignorant of the statements it contained. Had it, however, come under my notice, I doubt whether I should have thought it proper to reply. I have thought, from the time of the cessation of hostilities, that silence and patience on the part of the South was the true course; and I think so still. Controversy of all kinds will, in my opinion, only serve to continue excitement and passion, and will prevent the public mind from the acknowledgment and acceptance of the truth. These considerations have kept me from replying to accusations made against myself, and induced me to recommend the same to others. As regards the treatment of the Andersonville prisoners, to which you allude, I know nothing and can say nothing of my own knowledge. I never had anything to do with any prisoners, except to send those taken on the fields, where I was engaged, to the Provost Marshal General at Richmond. I have felt most keenly the sufferings and imprisonment of your husband, and have earnestly consulted with friends as to any possible mode of affording him relief and consolation. He enjoys the sympathy and respect of all good men; and if, as you state, his trial is now near, the exhibition of the whole truth in his case will, I trust, prove his defense and justification. With sincere prayers for his health and speedy restoration to liberty, and earnest supplications to God that He may take you and yours under His guidance and protection, I am, with great respect,

Your obedient servant,
R. E. LEE."

Robert E. Lee, Letter to the wife of Jefferson Davis,
February 23, 1866.
"Recollections And Letters Of General Robert E. Lee", Captain Robert E. Lee

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"...The duty of its citizens, then, appears to me too plain to admit of doubt. All should unite in honest efforts to obliterate the effects of the war and to restore the blessing of peace. They should remain, if possible, in the country; promote harmony and good feeling, qualify themselves to vote and elect to the State and general legislatures wise and patriotic men, who will devote their abilities to the interests of the country and the healing of all dissensions. I have invariably recommended this course since the cessation of hostilities, and have endeavoured to practise it myself...."

Robert E. Lee, letter to Governor Letcher
"Recollections And Letters Of General Robert E. Lee",
Captain Robert E. Lee, as published on-line by Project Gutenberg

 
Source: The American Civil War
 
   
     
   
     
 

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Source: Son of the South