Robert Edward Lee Confederate States Of America 1807-1870

Robert Edward Lee was born at Stratford in Westmoreland County, Virginia, on January 19,1807. He was one of five children. His parents were Ann Hill Carter and Henry (Light - Horse Harry") Lee. Lee married Mary Custis the granddaughter of George and Martha Washington, and later in his life he lived for a period of time in the Custis house located in Arlington, Virginia. In fact the Custis house is located at the top of the hill above the graves of John and Robert Kennedy at Arlington National Cemetery. This house was the family home of Mary Custis Lee through her father George Washington Cuistis. During the War Between The States, the Custis plantation was taken over by Federal troops and turned into a National Cemetery.

Although he was offered the command of the Union Forces by General Winfield Scott, during the War Between the States, Lee choose not to raise his hand against his beloved Virginia which he considered to be his home. He became the Commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, and toward the end of the war became Commander of all the Confederate Armies. Lee is admired as a military genius, and his victory over the Union Forces under General Hooker at Chancellorsville is studied by students of military science even today.

After the War, Lee became President of Washington College which is today Washington and Lee University located in Lexington, Virginia, and next door to Virginia Military Institute (VMI). Lee died on October 12, 1870 around 9:00 in the morning from a stroke suffered about two weeks earlier. Robert E. Lee is one of the most admired figures from American history, and is buried in the Lee Chapel on the University grounds. The following are some of the pictures that I acquired on my visit during the Spring of 1995.

The Lee Chapel is located on the grounds of Washington and Lee University and houses the graves of Robert E. Lee, and many of the Lee family. Among those buried in the Lee Chapel are Anne Carter Lee (his mother), Henry Lee (his father) , Mary Custis Lee (his wife) and all seven of his children.