Robert Lee - a famous American general in the Confederate States Army, commanded the Northern Virginia Army. Considered one of the most famous and influential American military leaders in the 19th century. He fought in the Mexican-American War, built forts, served at West Point. With the outbreak of the Civil War, he took the side of the South. In Virginia, he was appointed commander in chief. He distinguished himself by brilliant victories over the army of the North, having managed at a critical moment to transfer actions to the side of the enemy. Personally, Lee twice led the invasion of the territory of the North, but failed. He inflicted significant damage on Grant's army, but was ultimately forced to admit defeat and surrender. After his death, he turned into one of the most popular figures in American history, became an example of valor and honor. He was one of the symbols of reconciliation between the previously warring parties, but after the civil rights movement of blacks, the attitude towards the figure of Lee was revised, as he was one of the symbols of racism and slavery.
Childhood andyouth
Robert Lee was born in 1807. He was born in Stratford Hill, Virginia. His father was a hero of the Revolutionary War.
The parents of the hero of our article belonged to prominent Virginia families, but Robert Lee was mainly raised by his mother, as his father was mired in failed money transactions at that time. Robert was brought up in patience, strictness and religiosity.
He received his primary education in Stratford, where his fate was largely determined. Contemporaries noted that Robert Lee got an attractive appearance from his mother, a sense of duty and excellent he alth from his father, even financial problems in the family eventually played a positive role. Throughout his life, he was cautious about everything related to money and business projects.
When he was 12 years old, his father and brothers were away from home, he actually became the head of the family, caring for his mother and sisters. They were in extremely poor he alth.
Military career
The decision to devote himself to military service was made because of money problems in the family. His older brother was studying at Harvard at the time, so there simply wasn’t enough money to send Robert there. Therefore, it was decided to enter the military academy at West Point.
For the first four years, Robert Lee, whose biography is given in this article, proved to be an exemplary cadet, without receiving a single pen alty. He graduated from an educational institution second in academic achievement. Among the bestgraduates, he was sent to the engineering troops. One of the first projects of the hero of our article was the construction of a dam in St. Louis and the strengthening of several coastal forts.
Private life
Robert Lee in 1831 married the daughter of Virginia aristocrat Mary Custis. She was the only daughter of the adopted grandson of George Washington. Robert highly honored the memory of the founding father, admiring his services to the country.
The couple moved to Arlington. They had seven children. First-born George became a major general in the Confederate army, William a major general, Robert served as a captain in artillery. The general's four daughters, Mary, Annie, Eleanor and Mildred, never married. In addition, Annie died of typhus at a young age, and Eleanor of tuberculosis.
War with Mexico
When the war with Mexico broke out in 1846, Robert was sent to Mexico to oversee the construction of roads. When he arrived there, General Scott drew attention to his cavalry bearing and enviable intelligence skills, for these qualities the hero of our article was included in the headquarters.
It was in Mexico that he first got acquainted in practice with the tactics of warfare, which he successfully applied a decade and a half later.
During this campaign, he solved the tasks of adjusting the plans of the area and compiling maps, which did not prevent him from time to time leading soldiers in hand-to-hand combat, showing his courage. Despite the heroism shown, this did not affect his advancement up the career ladder. Usually sent towild and remote places. This worried him very much, because he was painfully worried about parting with his family. Lee has repeatedly noted that the love of his wife and children remains the main thing in his life.
Brown Mutiny
In 1855 he was transferred to the cavalry. The most high-profile operation he led during this period of his service was the suppression of the uprising of the radical abolitionist John Brown in 1859.
He made a risky and daring attempt to seize the US government's armory at Harper's Ferry. The infantrymen under the command of Lee, who was then a colonel, were able to quickly break the resistance of the rebels.
In total, Lee spent 32 years of his life in the US Army. His high point came when Lincoln's presidential election led to the secession of South Carolina from the Union, followed by several other southern states. The Civil War was looming.
Participation in the Civil War
Almost before the start of the war, Lincoln offered just Lee to lead the combined ground forces of the feds. Lee was at that time a supporter of the union structure of the state, opposed the separation of the southern states, considered slavery an evil that must be got rid of. However, the solution was not as simple as it might seem at first glance. Lee was faced with a choice: forceful preservation of the unity of the country or love for his family and his native state of Virginia.
After a sleepless night, the hero of our articlewrote a letter of resignation. He could not go to war against his loved ones, against his native lands. After that, he immediately left Arlington, soon offered his services to the President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis. Lee was first promoted to brigadier and then to full general.
At the very beginning of the war, he was engaged in the collection and organization of regular units, only in 1861 he took over command of the troops in West Virginia. He soon became Davis' chief military adviser. In this post, he had a significant impact on the entire course of the military campaign.
When the Feds attacked Richmond, the President replaced Commander-in-Chief Johnston, who was worried about multiple wounds, with Lee. After that, the troops of the southerners were able to quickly go on the counteroffensive, forcing the troops of the northerners, who outnumbered them, to retreat. This was a successful conclusion for the southerners of the so-called Seven Days Campaign.
Uncle Robert
This was the first major military success of General Robert Lee, whose photo is presented in this article.
He was characterized by those around him as a sociable and cheerful person who was boundlessly devoted to duty. This can be judged by the quotes of General Robert Lee, which became very popular during the Civil War.
Do your duty in everything. You can't do more, but you should never wish for less.
I can't trust a person to manage others when they can't manage themselves.
Praise God that the war is terrible, because we would love it.
After the firstsuccess, the Army of Northern Virginia marched on Washington. On the way, John Pope was smashed on his head at Bull Run. Having consolidated the initial success, the detachments of Confederate General Robert Lee in the fall of 1862 overcame the Potomac and invaded Maryland. There he encountered McClellan's army. After the bloody battle at Entietam, they were forced to retreat in order to regroup.
In December, Lee repelled the Feds under Burnside, defeating them at Fredericksburg.
Battle of Chancellorsville
Lee's most famous victory is believed to have been at Chancellorsville in May 1863. Then the army of Joe Hooker came out against the southerners, which greatly outnumbered them in numbers and weapons.
Lee, along with his colleague Jackson, split up, going to Hooker's unprotected flank. Attacking, they inflicted one of the most significant defeats on the northerners in all the years of the Civil War.
This success inspired the Southerners to launch a second invasion of the North. They expected to finish off the federal army, thus ending the war. In the future, Lee was already dreaming of the way to Washington and the delivery of a petition for the recognition of the Confederate States of America to President Lincoln. To this end, his troops crossed the Potomac again, ending up in Pennsylvania.
Battle of Gettysburg
July 1, 1863, the key battle of the entire Civil War began near the small town of Gettysburg. Lee was opposed by an army led by General Meade. On the third day of the battle, it became obvious that the southernerslose.
Even Li's frontal attack failed to remedy the situation. The southerners suffered a crushing defeat, abandoning hopes of a march on Washington and an early triumphant end to the war. At the same time, the war itself continued for another two years.
Shaken by defeat, Lee then unconvincingly led several more military campaigns, constantly fighting against Ulysses S. Grant. Encircled near Richmond, Lee stubbornly resisted for 10 months, until he nevertheless retreated to Appomattox, where the official surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia took place.
During the American Civil War, Robert Lee has acquired a bunch of legends, everyone admired his talent as a commander. During individual battles, Li faced armies that outnumbered him three times. After the surrender, he returned to Richmond in the status of a pardoned prisoner of war. He devoted the rest of his life to alleviating the plight of former Confederate soldiers.
Declining various tempting offers, he took the small presidency of the College of Washington. The general died in 1870 at the age of 63 from a heart attack. By the way, until the end of his life, he was never finally restored in his civil rights. This was only done a century later, thanks to President Gerald Ford.
Memory of the military leader
In the US over the years, a large number of monuments to General Robert Lee appeared. At the beginning of the 21st century, a trend began to dismantle them.
First monument incidentRobert Lee happened in 2015 after the attack of 21-year-old Dylan Roof on the parishioners of the African Methodist Church in Charleston. He opened fire with a pistol on unsuspecting people. As a result, ten people were killed and one wounded. All victims were African American. After this incident, the dismantling of monuments to Robert Lee began throughout the country. He was reminded that he stood on the side of the southerners for the preservation of slavery. Confederate figures were clearly associated with racism.
In May 2017, Lee's famous monument in New Orleans was dismantled. Shortly before this, in Charlottesville, the local council voted to remove the statue of the general from the park as a symbol of racism. This caused discontent among the far right, who staged a large-scale two-day protest. It ended in riots in which one person died.
As a result, the demolition of Lee's monuments only intensified. At the moment, the statues of the general in B altimore, Washington, Dallas, and the University of Texas have been dismantled.
Women's Romance
If you want to know the features of the biography of the hero of our article, you can come across the novel by his namesake Roberta Lee "Clash of Characters".
This is the love story of two young people who were destined to become husband and wife one day. Everyone around was sure of this, only Amanda did not want to marry a playboy, and Pierre was not enthusiastic about an unsympathetic cousin.
