Robert E. Lee's Resignation
Nolan Anselmi
Colonel Robert E. Lee resigned from the United States Army two days after he was offered to command the Union army. Three days after his native state, Virginia, seceded from the Union. Lee opposed secession, but he was a loyal citizen of Virginia. His official resignation letter was only one sentence long, but he wrote a longer explanation to his best friend and mentor, General Winfield Scott later during the day of his resignation. Lee had fought under General Scott during the Mexican War, and he revealed to his former commander about his struggle. Lee spoke with Scott on April 18, and explained that he would have resigned then but he said, "For the struggle it has cost me to separate myself from a service to which I have devoted the best years of my life and all the ability I possess." Lee expressed gratitude for the kindness shown by all in the army during his 25 years of service, but Lee was very grateful to Scott. "To no one, general, have I been as much indebted as to yourself for uniform kindness and consideration..." He finished with this touching statement: "Save in the defense of my native State, I never desire again to draw my sword." But his final statement was false. Two days later, Lee was appointed commander of Virginia's forces receiving the rank of major general. He spent the next few months raising troops in Virginia, and in July he was sent to West Virginia to guide Confederate commanders in struggle to maintain control over the mountainous area. Lee did very little to build his reputation there as the Confederates experienced a series of setbacks, and he returned to Richmond when the Union gained control of the mountainous area. The next year, Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia after General Joseph Johnston was wounded in battle. Lee quickly turned around on Union General George B. McClellan, as he would several other commanders later on of the Army of the Potomac. His brilliance as a battlefield tactician earned him a place with the great military leaders of history. Robert E. Lee was a Confederate during the war. Throughout the time period that he was involved in the war, he was seen as one of the most looked up to, and the most respected person out of all the Civil War commanders during the war. General Lee had successfully won all of his battles he was in minus two. His two battles that he had invaded in the North. His opponents he was battling in those 2 wars he had been defeated in were because of the leaders he was facing. Neither of them were going to withdraw from battle no matter how bad the conditions became or how many lives were lost. His failures in these two wars were because he invaded in the wrong areas. His forces were pushed back like a person would be pushed into a corner, and he couldn't do anything to help himself. Despite the facts of his two lost wars, he was a very powerful and talented war General, possibly one of the best America has ever seen. |