Robert E. Lee

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Robert E. Lee summary

Robert E. Lee

Q: What was Robert E. Lee’s family like?

On both sides, Robert E. Lee’s family had produced many of the dominant figures in the ruling class of Virginia . His father, Col. Henry (“Light-Horse Harry”) Lee , had been a cavalry leader during the American Revolution , a post-Revolution governor of Virginia, and the author of a popular congressional memorial eulogy to his friend George Washington .

Q: What was Robert E. Lee’s childhood like?

Robert E. Lee’s father’s financial mismanagement left Lee, his mother, and his siblings in circumstances that rendered them less wealthy than the plantation owners in his extended family.

Q: Why is Robert E. Lee significant?

Robert E. Lee commanded the Army of Northern Virginia, the most successful of the Southern armies during the American Civil War , and ultimately commanded all the Confederate armies. As the military leader of the defeated Confederacy , Lee became a symbol of the American South.

Q: What was Robert E. Lee’s occupation after leaving the military?

Robert E. Lee spent several months recuperating from the Civil War and then, in 1865, became the president of Washington College (later Washington and Lee University ) in Lexington, Virginia. He died in 1870.

Confederate general

Also known as: Robert Edward Lee

Written by Gary W. Gallagher

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Apr 19, 2025 • Article History

Quick Facts

In full:: Robert Edward Lee

Born:: January 19, 1807, Stratford Hall, Westmoreland county, Virginia, U.S.

Died:: October 12, 1870, Lexington, Virginia (aged 63)

Awards And Honors:: Hall of Fame (1900)

Role In:: American Civil War; Battle of Antietam; Battle of Appomattox Court House; Battle of Chancellorsville; Battle of Fredericksburg; Battle of Gettysburg; Battle of Spotsylvania Court House; Battle of the Wilderness; Peninsular Campaign; Petersburg Campaign; Second Battle of Bull Run; Seven Days’ Battles; Shenandoah Valley campaigns; Battle of Cold Harbor; Battle of Five Forks

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What was Robert E. Lee’s family like?

What was Robert E. Lee’s childhood like?

Why is Robert E. Lee significant?

What was Robert E. Lee’s occupation after leaving the military?

Robert E. Lee (born January 19, 1807, Stratford Hall, Westmoreland county, Virginia, U.S.—died October 12, 1870, Lexington, Virginia) was a U.S. Army officer (1829–61), Confederate general (1861–65), college president (1865–70), and central figure in contending memory traditions of the American Civil War.