General Robert E. Lee
Living in the United Kingdom, we’ve heard much about this statue of Lee that is causing so much controversy. However, there’s very little said about who he actually was and what he represented. I actually studied the fascinating history of America about 10 years ago at University, and retained a rather favourable impression of him as a great leader of men and battlefield tactician. Obviously, the particular statue has taken on some rather dodgy symbolism but it’s worth remembering what Lee stood for, why he fought and what he said. Here’s some highlights (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Lee):
- in a letter to his wife in 1865: “In this enlightened age, there are few I believe, but what will acknowledge, that slavery as an institution, is a moral & political evil in any Country.” In fact, he advocated freeing slaves, so they could fight in the Confederate Army and apparently would never have come into direct contact with the more brutal forms of slavery common in the Deep South states.
- he argued against the Confederacy in letters of early 1861 as a loyal soldier of the United States: “I can anticipate no greater calamity for the country than a dissolution of the Union. It would be an accumulation of all the evils we complain of, and I am willing to sacrifice everything but honor for its preservation.”
- Honour is the key word. His sense of duty and fealty to his home state of Virginia convinced him to defend it from the Union invasion. When offered the position of Major-General in defence of Washington, he replied: “I look upon secession as anarchy. If I owned the four millions of slaves in the South I would sacrifice them all to the Union; but how can I draw my sword upon Virginia, my native state.”
- he resisted calls from his officers to allow the Confederate army to engage in guerilla warfare after it was clear they could not prevail on the open battlefield. He believed in healing the wounds caused by this horrible conflict: “So far from engaging in a war to perpetuate slavery, I am rejoiced that slavery is abolished. I believe it will be greatly for the interests of the South.”
Having looked again at General Robert E. Lee, I’m convinced he’s the kind of man Americans should take more time to study. There’s much we all can learn from where he shines as a human being, especially in our current bitterly divided state. He became an icon of reconciliation between the North and South, and the reintegration of former Confederates into the national fabric. We all have within us darkness we must resist and goodness to strive for. We don’t make any progress when we are arguing, marching or fighting over pointless externals, like a statue! It’s the heart and soul of each individual that matters.
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This article from the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-40978515) also details some of the appalling things Washington and Jefferson said about and did to black slaves. It’s an excellent read. Basically, history and life is messy. I agree that the statues should be set in context but we must never forget our past.
