A comprehensive new biography that seeks to give a balanced
portrait of the famed Confederate general. Thomas (History/Univ. of
Georgia; The Confederacy as a Revolutionary Experience, not
reviewed) undertakes a daunting task here, seeking to recover the
real, living human from the mythology surrounding Lee since his
death in 1870. In this effort he hews a middle ground between early
20th century hagiographies and revisionist contemporary
interpretations. Born in 1807, Lee was the son of Revolutionary War
hero Light Horse Harry Lee; but he never knew his father, who was
sent to debtor's prison when the boy was only 2 years old and died
when he was 11. Attending West Point, the younger Lee was second in
his class and graduated without accruing a single demerit. After
fighting valorously and decisively during the Mexican War, and
suppressing abolitionist John Brown's raid at Harpers Ferry, Lee
became military advisor to Confederate President Jefferson Davis
and later a field commander as the Civil War broke out. After the
Confederate defeat, he was named president of Washington College
(today Washington and Lee) and sought to transform it into a
first-rate liberal arts school. As presented by Thomas, Lee was
possessed of very human flaws. He considered himself a failure and
was disappointed in his children. Although he viewed slavery as
evil, he nonetheless owned slaves and believed in whites' innate
superiority to blacks. His extreme inability to confront either
superiors or subordinates often resulted in tragedy, as at the
disatrous Battle of the Wilderness, which Lee knew he couldn't win
but undertook because he didn't want to argue with Jefferson Davis.
Lee considered restraint, discipline, and self-mastery the greatest
virtues; Thomas candidly shows their negative aspects as well. Well
written and based largely on primary documentation, a good effort
at understanding a complex personality. (Kirkus Reviews)
"The best and most balanced of the Lee biographies."—New York Review of Books The life of Robert E. Lee is a story not of defeat but of triumphtriumph in clearing his family name, triumph in marrying properly, triumph over the mighty Mississippi in his work as an engineer, and triumph over all other military men to become the towering figure who commanded the Confederate army in the American Civil War. But late in life Lee confessed that he "was always wanting something."
In this probing and personal biography, Emory Thomas reveals more than the man himself did. Robert E. Lee has been, and continues to be, a symbol and hero in the American story. But in life, Thomas writes, Lee was both more and less than his legend. Here is the man behind the legend.
- "A gripping, flesh-and-blood portrait."—Barrett R. Richardson, Virginia Pilot and Ledger
- "Splendid. . . . The most even-tempered and sophisticated portrait that we are likely to see for another thirty years."—T. Michael Parrish, Civil War News
- National Book Critics Circle nominee
- Regional bestseller
- A New York Times Notable Book
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