Robert E. Lee - Southern Hero
When we think of the south, we usually tend to think of home-cooked meals, big family outings, and warm weather. But narrow that topic down to the Civil War; now what comes to mind? Things like the Union, the Confederacy, and the freedom of slaves are what we usually remember. But one defining factor about the Civil War would have to be Robert E. Lee, general of the Confederacy, and one of the South’s biggest heroes.
Robert Edward Lee, born in Stratford, Virginia on the 19th of January 1807, created his fame in the United States Army as an officer. He was raised in the southern state of Virginia, and graduated from West Point, 2nd in his class. Lee married a woman by the name of Mary, and came into the possession of her family’s great Arlington Estate, where he, his wife, and his son G. W. Custis Lee lived. Before the war started and after it ended, Lee had the occupation of engineer, and worked at Washington and Baltimore. One thing that makes Robert E. Lee a true southerner, in my opinion, was that in early 1861, President Abraham Lincoln had invited Lee to take the command of all the Union Army, and to help win the war for the north. Although it was a tempting offer and would ensure Lee power and fame in the Union States after the war was over, Lee already had his mind made up. “Though opposed to secession,” he said, “I could take no part in an invasion of the Southern states.” So Lee declined and decided to side with his home state of Virginia, whom had seceded from the Union. Politically, Robert E. Lee was a Whig; he was ironically attached strongly to the Union and to the Constitution. He had no sympathy towards slavery. He did however hold around a half-dozen slaves under his own name; then after his father-in-law-died in 1857, came into the possession of around 200 more slaves. But, it is said that after the Civil War, Lee was in some sense opposed to the idea of slavery. Although he did not agree with the views of his home state, he stayed, and joined the Confederate Army.
On April 23rd, Robert E. Lee assumed the command of the naval and military forces in Virginia, which he thoroughly organized. Lee then became senior military adviser to the Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, and was made a Confederate General.
After the Confederate victory at Chancellorsville in May of 1863, General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia embarked on their 2nd invasion of the north. General Lee’s first campaign into the north resulted in the Confederate defeat at Antietam. The failure of Lee’s first northern campaign raises the question of his motives. The Confederate Army was...
Nevertheless, an attitude they show is their cause for engaging in the war. On page 110, Lee describes, “With every step of a soldier, with every tick of the clock, the army was gaining safety, closer to victory, closer to the dream of independence.” His words reveal that their reason for coming was to gain their long overdue independence. Without a cause worth fighting for on each side, the war would have no fuel or reason to continue. In like manner, another attitude of the South was their admiration for their commander general. On page 251, Longstreet proclaims, “Colonel, let me explain something. The secret of General Lee is that men love him and follow him with faith in him. That’s one secret.” I believe this clarifies that the bond of brotherhood and respect for each other in this army would allow for these soldiers to follow their leader blindly. The overwhelming amount of faith and trust among the Army of the Northern Virginia is inspiring. The Confederates prove in these appearances that they do indeed have an important cause that they are willing to die
Lee had supreme confidence in his army, and believed that it could accomplish whatever he asked of it. This confidence sometimes led him to ask too much, such as in the case of Picket’s charge during the battle of Gettysburg. In Lee’s mind he was first and foremost a Christian, and a gentleman. These facts, although not bad, certainly caused Lee to be less aggressive, and to fight the war in a very old-fashioned manner. This was not so with Grant, who seemed to believe in a more modern type of total warfare. Perhaps because this war, as many contend, was the first modern war, it was impossible for the South, and it’s leaders to adapt to the situation.
One of the best commanders in the Confederate army was Lee still; the Union stood at a better standpoint during the battle. “Perhaps the most significant lesson from July 3, 1863, concerns the method of decision-making. Though he may not have seen it as such, Lee’s decision to attack was at best a close call.” (Gompert 2006, pg.7). The battle of Gettysburg did not happen intentionally, planned however Lee did an astounding job and his best to defeat the Union army. Ultimately Robert E. Lee was responsible for the South’s loss
Robert E. Lee was the best General for the South, and out smarted every Union General that was put against him. To The South, Lee is like a godly figure to them. He inspired The South even when the North controlled the battlefield, and is still thought highly of by some people in the confederate states. To the North, Lee was a traitor and even lost his citizenship. Although he lost, Lee is still a giant face in history.
Lee”). By 1855, he had returned to military service, where he would remain through the Civil War’s entirety, fighting for American forces in the Mexican-American War until 1861, when he resigned to lead the Confederate Army in the Civil War (“Robert E. Lee” Washington and Lee University). Lee had been offered command of both Union and Confederate forces, but chose the Confederates, as he was a Virginian. After the war and much consideration, he accepted the position of president of Washington College. Lee was focused on expanding educational opportunities. By bringing a law school to Washington College, increasing emphasis on the sciences, as well as adding programs in business and journalism, Lee essentially created the concept of college majors. He also imposed an honor system, stressing that every student “ought to be a gentleman”, which is followed closely and revered by students and staff of the college to the present day (“Robert E. Lee” Washington and Lee University). After his death, Washington College became Washington and Lee University because Lee had had such a positive impact on the university (“Robert E. Lee”). Despite his many accomplishments in war, Lee would be better remembered for his legacy on education. He was a highly skilled military leader, yet he led the losing side. Seeing defeat for what
Ulysses S. Grant was an American general and 18th president of the United States. Grant was born in Point Pleasant, Ohio, on April 27, 1822, the son of Hannah Simpson and Jesse Grant, the owner of a tannery. Taken to nearby Georgetown at the age of one, he was educated in local and boarding schools. In 1839, under the name of Ulysses Simpson instead of his original Hiram Ulysses, he was appointed to West Point. Graduating 21st in a class of 39 in 1843, he was assigned to Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. There he met Julia Dent, a local planter's daughter, whom he married after the Mexican War.
Henry Steele Commager’s essay “The Defeat of the Confederacy: An Overview” is more summary than argument. Commager is more concerned with highlighting the complex causality of the war’s end rather than attempting to give a definitive answer. Commager briefly muses over both the South’s strengths
In his extraordinary book, Lee the Last Years, Charles Flood gives a rare blend of history and emotion. After Lee’s surrender at Appomattox courthouse, he only lived a total of five years before his death. Some people might think that he was just a general, but the best years of his life were after the war because he changed the minds of the south and he changed education. Even though Robert E. Lee is best remembered for his military campaigns, this is a part of history not told in many history books because he did more than any other American to heal the wounds of the south and he served as a president for Washington College, which was later renamed after his death to be Washington and Lee University.
The Civil War is one of the defining wars in the history of this great nation. The Battle of Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle in American history, and a turning point in the four year war. At the time, Gettysburg was a small, quiet town generally unaffected by the war. General Robert E. Lee of the Confederate States of America and General George Meade of the Union converged in Gettysburg, and a conflict quickly arose. After three long days of battle the Union pulled away with a victory, though not an easy one. This essay will outline the six themes of history; in essence the who, what, when, where, why, and who cares of this infamous battle.
“Why did the North win the Civil War?” is only half of a question by itself, for the other half is “Why did the South lose the Civil War?” To this day historians have tried to put their finger on the exact reason for the South losing the war. Some historians blame the head of the confederacy Jefferson Davis; however others believe that it was the shear numbers of the Union (North). The advantages and disadvantages are abundant on either sides of the argument, but the most dominate arguments on why the South lost the war would be the fact that state’s rights prevented unification of the South, Jefferson Davis' poor leadership and his failure to work together with his generals, the South failed to gain the recognition of the European nations, North's superior resources made the outcome inevitable, and moral of the South towards the end of the war.
Book Title: The American Civil War: A Handbook of Literature and Research. Contributors: Robin Higham - editor, Steven E. Woodworth - editor. Publisher: Greenwood Press. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. Publication Year: 1996
In 2003, Roy Blount Jr. published the book Robert E. Lee through the Penguin Group Inc. This book is different then other books published about Lee due to the fact that this book looks behind the man in uniform, and shows how Lee became the legend that we know today. Blount brings an element of humor that some would not expect to find when writing about Lee. Through this type of writing, Lee transforms into the everyday person who we all can relate to.
Robert E Lee is very quick and smart. He knows how to improve the quality of troops and to nullify the Union’s advantage. Lee is willing to make bold and risky moves, and does not let his defeats hinder his performance. General Lee has great relations with his soldiers, and uses his engineering experience to his advantage.
The American Civil war is considered to be one of the most defining moments in American history. It is the war that shaped the social, political and economic structure with a broader prospect of unifying the states and hence leading to this ideal nation of unified states as it is today. In the book “Confederates in the Attic”, the author Tony Horwitz gives an account of his year long exploration through the places where the U.S. Civil War was fought. He took his childhood interest in the Civil War to a new level by traveling around the South in search of Civil War relics, battle fields, and most importantly stories. The title “Confederates in the Attic”: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War carries two meanings in Tony Horwitz’s thoughtful and entertaining exploration of the role of the American Civil War in the modern world of the South. The first meaning alludes to Horwitz’s personal interest in the war. As the grandson of a Russian Jew, Horwitz was raised in the North but early in his childhood developed a fascination with the South’s myth and history. He tells readers that as a child he wrote about the war and even constructed a mural of significant battles in the attic of his own home. The second meaning refers to regional memory, the importance or lack thereof yet attached to this momentous national event. As Horwitz visits the sites throughout the South, he encounters unreconstructed rebels who still hold to outdated beliefs. He also meets groups of “re-enactors,” devotees who attempt to relive the experience of the soldier’s life and death. One of his most disheartening and yet unsurprising realizations is that attitudes towards the war divide along racial lines. Too many whites wrap the memory in nostalgia, refusing...