Reading the man : a portrait of Robert E. Lee through his private lettters /
Pryor, Elizabeth Brown.
Lee, Robert E.(Robert Edward),1807-1870.
New York : Viking,
2007.
For the 200th anniversary of Robert E. Lee's birth, a new portrait drawing on previously unpublished correspondence. Lee's war correspondence is well known, but the great majority of his most intimate letters have never been made public. They reveal a far more complex and contradictory man than the one who comes most readily to the imagination. This book presents dozens of these letters in their entirety, most by Lee but a few by family members. Each letter becomes a departure point for an essay that shows what the letter uniquely reveals about Lee's time or character. The material covers all aspects of Lee's life--his early years, West Point, his work as an engineer, his relationships with his children and his slaves, his decision to join the South, his thoughts on military strategy, and his disappointments after defeat in the Civil War.--From publisher description.
Includes bibliographical references (p. [619]-640) and index.
Torn to pieces -- Perplexity -- The torchbearers -- The long gray line -- Long to be remembered -- Seven Arias -- Pioneers -- The family circle -- Humanity and the law -- Adrenaline -- Crenellations -- Black-eyed fancies -- The headache bag -- Mutable shield -- Odyssey -- Theory meets reality -- "Upon a fearful summons" -- Field of honor -- "A general...is a rare product" -- Apogee/perigee -- Overwhelmed -- The political animal -- Ragged individualists -- A leap in the dark -- Blurred vision -- "If vanquished, I am still victorious".
For the 200th anniversary of Robert E. Lee's birth, a new portrait drawing on previously unpublished correspondence. Lee's war correspondence is well known, but the great majority of his most intimate letters have never been made public. They reveal a far more complex and contradictory man than the one who comes most readily to the imagination. This book presents dozens of these letters in their entirety, most by Lee but a few by family members. Each letter becomes a departure point for an essay that shows what the letter uniquely reveals about Lee's time or character. The material covers all aspects of Lee's life--his early years, West Point, his work as an engineer, his relationships with his children and his slaves, his decision to join the South, his thoughts on military strategy, and his disappointments after defeat in the Civil War.--From publisher description.
Lee, Robert E. (Robert Edward), 1807-1870.
Lee, Robert E. (Robert Edward), 1807-1870
Confederate States of America. Army
Generals
Generals