Robert E. Lee: An Exemplary American

The assaults on Robert E. Lee and anyone who

fought for Southern Independence never abate. Lee

symbolizes most things his critics hate – he was a

devout Christian, he believed in the sovereignty of

the States within a voluntary federal republic, his

primary allegiance was to Virginia (his “country”),

and he felt “Union” at the point of a bayonet

undermined the entire American experiment in

self-government. One might ask: Why did the

colonies seek independence if the goal was

replication of the mercantilist British Empire they left? Lee’s beliefs are

typically criticized by the usual suspects: neocons/Trotskyites, “globalists,”

“socialists,” and others who despise the traditional Christian South. These

individuals dominate “higher education,” corporate media, and what some

generously call “entertainment.”

There are many areas concerning Lee that rile those who harbor strong hatred

for the South. For example, many criticize Lee because he was the steward over

the Custis slaves. They conveniently ignore that Lee opposed slavery, treated

those under his control in the manner prescribed in the Holy Bible, and freed

the slaves under his stewardship on December 29, 1862. Lee stated: “If I owned

four millions of slaves, I would cheerfully sacrifice them for the preservation

of the Union, but to lift my hand against my own State and people is

impossible.” (Abbeville)

Lee has also been criticized for believing Blacks were better off in America than

Africa (most were slaves in both). He was a man of his times but, unlike many

of his contemporaries (like Lincoln), Lee was not known to advocate deportation

of Blacks or to refer to them in derogatory terms (like Lincoln, William T.

Sherman, John Sherman, Ben Wade, etc.)

Lee opposed secession, even referencing it as “revolution” but, once Virginia

voted to secede (after Lincoln called for the invasion of sovereign States), he

felt duty-bound to follow. He saw the horrors of fighting against one’s own

family. Furthermore, invasion of a State was deemed to be a treasonous act of

which Lee, or anyone who understands a voluntary federal republic, would take

no part in.

At the behest of Winfield Scott, Lincoln offered Lee command of Union forces.

He respectfully declined, a major reason being his unwillingness to fight against

his own people. Lee loved the original Union and dutifully served in the U.S.

Army for decades; however, he did not view the federal government as a de

facto God (as did Sherman and others).

Lee fought for independence. Ironically, this angers many Americans –

especially those who believe Hamilton’s invention that the sovereign States are

not really sovereign.

In the West Point Class of 1829, Lee finished second and received no demerits.

Lee was adamant about duty, contra our present world of “What is in it for me?”

Lee won the admiration of Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight D.

Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and others. He has been praised worldwide by

statesmen, religious leaders, scholars, etc. The present military “woke

leadership,” which distances itself from Lee, is like a parody from the old

National Lampoon magazine or Saturday Night Live. What a sad world we live

in when great Christian men like Lee are demonized. The Book of Isaiah states:

“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light,

and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” These are

the times in which we live.

On February 18, 1874, four years after Lee’s death, Georgia Senator Benjamin

Harvey Hill addressed the Southern Historical Society: “When the future

historian shall come to survey the character of Lee, he will find it rising like a

huge mountain above the undulating plain of humanity, and he must lift his eyes

high toward heaven to catch its summit. He was a foe without hate, a friend

without treachery, a soldier without cruelty, a victor without oppression, and a

victim without murmuring. He was a public officer without vices, a private

citizen without wrong, a neighbor without reproach, a Christian without

hypocrisy, and a man without guile. He was a Caesar without his ambition, a

Frederick without his tyranny, a Napoleon without his selfishness, and a

Washington without his reward. He was obedient to authority as a servant, and

loyal in authority as a true king. He was gentle as a woman in life; modest and

pure as a virgin in thought; watchful as a Roman vital in duty; submissive to

law as Socrates, and grand in battle as Achilles!" (Martin)

Lee stated: “My chief concern is to try to be an humble, earnest Christian.”

“Woke” statists e.g., Seidule, Warren, Milley, Austin, will likely never

understand honor and integrity as they are antithetical to their world. Thus, they

will never understand great men like Robert E. Lee.

Sources: “The Christian Character of Robert E. Lee,” by Pastor David Martin,

Solid Rock Baptist Church, 2006, at: http://www.solidrockbaptist.net/thechristian-

character-of-general-robert-e-lee.html; “Why Lee Still Matters,”

Abbeville Blog at: https://www.abbevilleinstitute.org/why-lee-still-matters/ ;

“Secession is Nothing but Revolution,” from A Letter of R. E. Lee to His Son

“Rooney”, William M. E. Rachal Note: From the January 1961 issue of The

Virginia Magazine of History and Biography (volume 69), pp. 2–6, at:

https://leefamilyarchive.org/reference/essays/rachal/index.html ; Robert E. Lee

Quotes at: http://www.sonofthesouth. net/leefoundation/Notable %20

Lee%20Quotes.htm; and “Tom DiLorenzo’s Guide to American History,” by

Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr., at: https://www.lewrockwell.com/2023/12/lew-rockwell/

tom-dilorenzos-guide-to-american-history/