America Remembers Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee, Idol of the South
Lord Acton - General Lee Correspondence
Why This Man, and His Era, Merit Our Consideration
Posted on 01/18/2007 9:03:30 PM PST by stainlessbanner
Friday will mark the 200th birthday anniversary of future Confederate Gen. Robert Edward Lee. Lee was born Jan. 19, 1807, at Stratford House in Westmoreland County, Virginia, the son of "Light Horse" Harry Lee and Ann Hill Carter Lee.
Lee would be educated in the schools of Alexandria, Va., and in 1825 he entered West Point Military Academy. He graduated from West Point in 1829, second in his class and without a single demerit, a record that still stands today.
In June 1831, Lee wed Mary Anna Randolph Custis, the daughter of George Washington Parke Custis, who was the grandson of Martha Washington and the adopted son of our first president, George Washington.
Lee continued his career in U.S. military, serving in the Mexican War. He was wounded at the Battle of Chapultepec. He was appointed superintendent of West Point in 1852.
Secession of the Southern states was inevitable after the firing on Fort Sumter in the spring of 1861.
Lee considered secession to be the wrong answer to the country's struggle, yet he firmly stated that any attempt to "pin the States in the Union with a bayonet" was a violation of the fundamental principles for which the fathers fought in 1776.
Abraham Lincoln would offer Lee command of the entire Union Army; however, after Virginia voted to leave the Union, Lee resigned his commission in the U.S. Army, stating, "Save in defense of my native State, I never desire to again draw my sword."
His old home at Arlington would be occupied by Federal troops, and Lee went south to Richmond. [He served] first as an adviser to Confederate President Jefferson Davis and then as the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, and finally commander of all Confederate forces.
After the end of the war, Lee retired to private life and eventually became the president of Washington College, today known as Washington and Lee University.
Lee would pass away Oct. 12, 1870.
Of the many tributes given in the honor of Lee, Prime Minister Winston Churchill wrote: "His noble presence and gentle, kindly manner were sustained by religious faith and exalted character."
Lest we forget a great American hero.
200 Years. Leadership. Integrity. Faithful. Honorable.
America Remembers Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee, Idol of the South
Lord Acton - General Lee Correspondence
Why This Man, and His Era, Merit Our Consideration
"You must do your duty in all things you can never do more, you should never wish to to less." - Robert E. Lee
"Remember, gentlemen, the eyes of the South are upon you" -- Gen. Lee
These guys remember too !
The crews of the USS Robert E Lee SSBN-601
http://www.ssbn601.com/home.asp
Lee was a true American hero
I am so glad you posted this. I was going to. I love Robert E. Lee. He was a man of integrity, honor, and decency. Now don't forget (and I know you won't) that there is another birthday on Sunday. Stonewall Jackson born January 21, 1824.
Happy Birthday, General Lee!
(Happy Birthday, James!)
And there it is folks - the basic reason why the South fought!
I heard a story on TV about the end of the Civil War. In a church in Richmond, one Sunday morning, a newly freed black man was the first to approach the alter and kneel to take communion. The white congregation froze in horror. It had not happened before. Robert E. Lee was the first white person to kneel beside the black man to take communion. The rest of the congregation followed.
I will never be convinced that the cause for which he fought was just, but he fought for it honorably, and ably, and when it was over, for him, it was over.
God Bless America's Greatest General!
Deo Vindice!
Amazing.
There are so many amazing things about Lee.
Lil' James! Two birthdays to celebrate. What an honorable day to be born.
HAPPY BRITHDAY R.E. LEE!
God bless Robert E. Lee!
Bump!
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