Recollections and Letters of Robert E. Lee
Dec 2008 · Cosimo, Inc.
Ebook
480
Pages
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About this ebook
A spectacular document of first-person history, this collection of correspondence written by Confederate general ROBERT E. LEE (1807-1870) offers an unparalleled look into the mind of one of the towering figures of American history. Compiled and introduced by Lee's son ROBERT EDWARD LEE (1843-1914) and first published in 1904, these missives follow Lee's life from his early service in the United States Army and years as superintendent at West Point through the Civil War to his final years and last thoughts on the war. From such intimate issues as Lee's missing the family pets while away at war and his desires to visit his daughter Annie's grave to such momentous matters as his perspective on great battles and his thoughts on the Reconstruction, this is a book for readers of history and personal biography to treasure.
About the author
Robert Edward Lee, 1807-1870 Robert Edward Lee was born on January 19, 1807, in Stratford, Virginia, the son of Lighthorse Harry Lee, and was educated at the U.S. Military Academy. He graduated second in his class in 1829, receiving a commission as second lieutenant in the engineers. He became first lieutenant in 1836, and captain in 1838. He distinguished himself in the battles of the Mexican War; for his meritorious service he received his third brevet promotion in rank. He became superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy and later was appointed colonel of cavalry. He was in command of the Department of Texas in 1860, but was summoned to Washington, D.C., when war between the states seemed imminent. President Abraham Lincoln offered him the field command of the Union forces, but Lee declined. On April 20, three days after Virginia seceded from the Union, he submitted his resignation from the U.S. Army. On April 23 he became commander in chief of the military and naval forces of Virginia. For a year he was military adviser to Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America, and was then placed in command of the army in northern Virginia. In February 1865 Lee was made commander in chief of all Confederate armies; two months later the war was virtually ended by his surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. Lee applied for but was never granted the official postwar amnesty. He accepted the presidency of Washington College, in the fall of 1865. He died there on October 12, 1870. In 1975, Lee's citizenship was restored posthumously by an act of the U.S. Congress.
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