Birthday of Robert E. Lee
January 19
Hero of the South
Robert E. Lee was one of the greatest generals of all time. He is also
one of the best-loved men in the South.
In the United States, from 1861 to 1865, there was a long, bloody war
between the North and the South. Lee commanded an army for the South.
His men loved, trusted, and respected him. Even though his army was
outnumbered, Lee won many battles.
Shortly before the end of the war, Lee was made general in chief of all
the Southern armies. But it was too late. There was no way the South
could win. On April 9, 1865, Lee was forced to give up. Seated on his
famous horse, Traveller, Lee said a sad farewell to his soldiers.
After the war, there was still much anger and bitterness. But Lee did
his best to bring the people of the North and South together again. He
wanted Southerners to accept being beaten and rebuild their lives. “Make
your sons Americans,” he said.
Lee spent his remaining years as president of Washington College in
Lexington, Virginia. After he died, the college was renamed Washington
and Lee University in his honor. Lee is buried in the college chapel.
Sometimes called “The Shrine of the South,” the chapel is visited by
thousands of people each year.
On Stone Mountain, near the city of Atlanta, Georgia, there is a huge
carving of
three men on horses. One is Lee, riding his horse Traveller. The others
are \”Stonewall” Jackson, Lee’s finest general, and Jefferson Davis,
president of the Southern States. You can see pictures of the Stone
Mountain Memorial in Volume 10, Places to Know.
Lee’s birthday, January 19, is a holiday in most Southern states. But in
Virginia, it is celebrated on the third Monday in January. This is
because \”Stonewall” Jackson, also a Virginian, was born on January 21.
So Virginia celebrates the birthdays of both men on the same
day—Lee-Jackson Day.
