Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through His Private Letters

Book Description

For the 200th anniversary of Robert E. LeeÂ's birth, a new portrait drawing on previously unpublished correspondence

Robert E. LeeÂ's war correspondence is well known, and here and there personal letters have found their way into print, but the great majority of his most intimate messages have never been made public. These letters reveal a far more complex and contradictory man than the one who comes most readily to the imagination, for it is with his family and his friends that Lee is at his most candid, most engaging, and most vulnerable. Over the past several years historian Elizabeth Brown Pryor has uncovered a rich trove of unpublished Lee materials that had been held in both private and public collections.

Her new book, a unique blend of analysis, narrative, and historiography, 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 LeeÂ's time or character. The material covers all aspects of LeeÂ's lifeÂ—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. The result is perhaps the most intimate picture to date of Lee, one that deftly analyzes the meaning of his actions within the context of his personality, his relationships, and the social tenor of his times.

Customer Reviews:

`The Great General Robert E. Lee - .......2007-09-08

To put to rest the suggestion of "faulty" research, with which Ms. Pryor wrote her book, I found it to be of an impeccable nature as well as being fully noted.

Of all of the Civil War books I have read, "Reading the Man" has certainly had the most impact on this 7th generation Georgian, whose forebears fought and died in this terrible war. I remain a loyal daughter of the South and deplore what our battle flag has come to represent. The house I grew up in was on the site of one of the fiercest battles fought for the City of Atlanta, and only after becoming an adult, I learned that the "alley" behind my Grandmother's house was really a rifle pit used in that battle. Thus, my familiarity has been with the battles fought in this part of the Confederacy and on Sherman's devastation during his march to the sea. Therefore, I began this book with little knowledge of General Lee, the man.

Ms. Pryor's fine book has brought to life a man who "did the best he could", at all things for which he took responsibility. His striving for excellence became both a blessing and a curse as he and his soldiers fought against terrible odds. His loyalty to his beloved home state of Virginia, which caused him to regretfully resign from the US Army and a much enjoyed position in the Army Corp of Engineers and to turn his back on his mentor, General Winfield Scott, was a true measure of the man's unbreakable bond with the places and things he loved more than the offer, coveted by many others,to be the commander of the Union Army.

This loyalty to his state, to his home, to his wife and extended family, and the men he commanded, never wavered throughout all the times of this terrible war.

I was moved to tears when, after Lee's honorable surrender, I read about a group of "Richmond Grandees" watching these tattered men file past them; they "stood at a turnpike intersection and watched ten thousand soldiers file by." In place of the bright eyes and gold braid flashing from every passing parade, "now they saw rags and tags - nothing alike - most garments and arms taken from the enemy - such shoes, such tin pans and pots tied to their waists, bread or bacon stuck on the ends of their bayonets. For many, these tough veterans still represent the greatest army that has ever fought on this continent. Who they were and how they mocked deprivation and danger is a fascinating story."

Ms. Pryor has brought to life the human story of the gallant General Robert E Lee, his family and the thousands of brave Southern boys turned men, who fought to defend their beloved homes and against the invasion of the mighty Army of the North.

With his human shortcomings, at the heart of the man, he was gallant and honorable. I would recommend this book to anyone as a shining example of a man who overcame the terrible reputation of his father, "Lighthorse Harry Lee", and lived his life in the most honorable way possible - in love and loyalty to those he loved and what he believed in. He would be a wonderful example to the men of our times.

Lee the Man.......2007-08-19

Reading The Man is a refreshing analysis of Robert E. Lee the human being. Indeed, this is the central goal of her book in that there is much that needs to be revealed to show the humanness of the man who has often been placed on a pedestal. Her book is well researched as her endnotes and sources cited clearly reveals. There are still many admirable traits to the man, e.g. his innate dignity, his sense of duty, his love of his family as well as his abilities as a general, but he is also revealed to have less admirable traits, such as his domineering tendencies, his inability to admit error on his own part, his views on slavery, and so forth. This is the kind of treatment we need of all figures in history to show that even though they may have possessed unusual abilities and played significant roles in major events, they are still fallible human beings.

Pryor traces Lee's entire life's journey, from the influence of his father (Light Horse Harry of Revolutionary War fame) and mother as well as the reputation the family name bestowed on young Robert (both good and bad), his years as a cadet at West Point, his role as husband and father, and through his years in the military, culminating in his leading role as commander of the Army of Northern Virginia during the Civil War. I personally enjoyed reading of his friendships, his affectionate letters to his children and family, and his periods of difficulty (which show once again more of the human side of Lee). There is no question that the subject of this book was and led an unusual life with a driven sense of purpose and duty and who consistently displayed the strengths and weaknesses of every human being.

His personality traits came through in many of these letters as well. He was extremely friendly with the ladies, had a conscious sense of his own reputation, was warm in his letters to family (though he certainly could evince the attributes of a stern disciplinarian), enjoyed the camaraderie of the army and so forth. But he could also be self-justifying, fall into bouts of depression, and reveal a bitterness and disappointment, especially in the postwar years. His religious views and experiences are also well discussed in this book and the role various family members played in his life is also valuable.

Without reciting all the events of Lee's life, which most who read this book will be familiar with, it is doubtless the most heartbreaking period to read about during those years during and after the Civil War. Perhaps Lee felt this was his surest form of duty, but his actions can not go without criticisms. His role contributed to the carnage that resulted. His battlefield successes, which could be remarkable, still don't negate the fact that huge casualties were incurred on his own side. In my opinion, slavery played the major factor in that war, and the cry of the defense of states rights implicitly meant that a state could perpetuate the institution that considered other human beings as property. This denied the South the moral high ground in my opinion, and I'm a Southerner. It was partly this same defense of states rights that often showed itself in some of Lee's postwar writings.

Lee is credited with making statements against secession before the war and against the institution of slavery, but his actions certainly seemed to prove the contrary. Yes, Lee was a product of his time, but as Pryor mentioned in this book, he certainly wasn't ahead of his time either; he was no progressive or liberal on the slave issue. In fairness, neither were many Northerners. I have certainly come more around to the view of Lee as a tragic figure, though as Pryor stated, he made his own choices. Lee did much with little in the course of that terrible four year conflict. He possessed many remarkable traits and abilities, yet, as Pryor's book reveals, he was still human.

Robert Lee -- He's Human After All (and Still a Legend).......2007-08-05

Having read a couple of reviews in the "main stream" print media that appeared to celebrate this book's exposure of Robert E. Lee's true sentiments about slavery (e.g., the Philadelphia Inquirer's review focused ad nauseum on the most negative report of Lee's ordered whipping of a captured runaway slave), I relunctantly bought this book (from Amazon, of course), fearful that this would prove to be yet another exercise in political correction by a less-than-objective historian.

Reading it, however, revealed something altogether different -- Lee was a man of his times (high society in the antbellum south, 19th Century) and also a real and very moral man, who focused more on the practical than the theoretical.

That is not to say that the author, Elizabeth Pryor Brown, sought to try prove that Robert E. Lee wasn't the icon that he is held to be, even to this day, in many parts and in many hearts of the South. She dramatized the presence of a whipping post for errant slaves, with little proof that it was ever used. But as is often the case with historians who delve deeply into their subjects, her heart was touched the humanity, grace and character of Lee, through a thorough and scintillating read of private letters that had been locked away in a bank vault for more than a century.

Things I learned in the book: He was a mega-flirt, but never unfaithful to or threatened by his strong-willed, secure and relatively independent wife. He loved the company of others, particularly his fellow soldiers and officers. None of three daughters ever married. He was confident yet humble,loved his family, and had a tireless devotion to duty, both an an engineer and a soldier.

He, not unlike almost anyone who has ever served in the military, expressed his share of frustrations with the military life, and even showed a little jealousy when peers were promoted ahead of him (but also showing that he was not particularly adept at, or fond of, politics). Except, possibly, for his flirtations, apparently done with the full knowledge of Mary Lee, none of this would be a surprise to any devotee or student of the General.

This book is very well written; it is fair and balanced, and gives more time and attention to Lee, the man, than Lee the general or even the soldier. The book was a joy to read and very hard to put down, even for a historical tome, with difficult to understand reprints of entire letters by Lee and members of his family and a bit too much ink on Harry "Light Horse" Lee, Robert's heroic but badly flawed and largely absent father. Her final chapter, and its final words, are wonderfully insightful at answering an important question -- why, after all these years, are we stil fascinated by this lengdary man? This book is a wonderful achievement and a worthy read.

No minds will likely be changed about Lee, whether you're a son of the South or South-hating liberal yankee who will be disappointed that Lee isn't thorough demystified. The careful and thoughtful reader will come away with greater appreciation and respect for the man.

Critics have an agenda. They miss the point........2007-07-16

I have just finished this excellent work and am dumbfounded by the two star reviews left by some readers. Clearly they didn't read the same book I did. Did Fruit Loop actually say it was "shoddily researched?" Did he see the 140 pages of footnotes? The 21 page bibliography? That he should question Ms. Pryor's credibility is laughable considering he makes major flaws in his own information. The slave whipping story did not only appear as an anonymous accusation in the New York Tribune. It appeared many times including one first hand account by one of the slaves who was whipped! Ms. Pryor's so-called "shoddy" research clearly shows this. And Fruit Loop's description of other aspects of Lee's relationship with his father-in-law's slaves is full of errors. GWP Custis's near bankruptcy had nothing to do with slaves emigrating to Liberia. Those that did go, the Burke family, went when Mr. Custis was still alive. Also, Lee had almost nothing to do with educating the slaves. That was done almost entirely by his mother-in-law, wife and even his daughters. He was pretty detached from it.

I think what is at the heart of the criticism of this book is an inability by some to consider that Lee had flaws; that there were unpleasant aspects of his character. Those unpleasant aspects were very common for his time and Ms. Pryor clearly states that Lee was no worse than others but he was no better either. He was very much a man of his time. These defenders of Lee and the Old South need to come to grips with the fact that slavery was bad and slaveowners, while not evil, did something bad by owning other human beings.

That said, Ms. Pryor's book is remarkably evenhanded and forgiving of Lee. She has said that she has a fondness for Lee and she certainly highlights his virtues as much as his vices.

This is a new kind of study of Lee. Finally we can see the whole man. And, for this reader and student of the Civil War, I can say that for the first time we have an explanation of Lee that actually makes sense. Bravo.

Revolutionary and vital. Absolutely indispensable........2007-07-15

I have been a park ranger at Arlington House, The Robert E. Memorial for 17 years now and I can honestly say that I have read at least five biographies, assessments, evaluations or interpretations of Robert E. Lee for each of those years. I am certain that when all the books and articles are added together they number close to a hundred. It's important that I do that. It's my job and my responsibility to have as comprehensive an understanding of Robert E. Lee's life as is possible so that I can honestly and accurately convey it to the people who visit and the students who partake in our education programs. But with all of these books and articles there is a certain consistency, not with interpretation but with information. It is safe to say that since Douglas Southall Freeman wrote his landmark, Pulitzer Prize winning four volume biography in the 1930's the assumption has been that there is nothing new that can be found out about Lee. Freeman's work was so exhaustive, seemingly leaving no stone or document unturned, that, it seems, every biographer of Lee since then has taken the approach that no new research was needed or possible. Instead, it became the fashion for biographers and other historians to simply take what Freeman researched and interpret it in whatever way they wanted. Thomas Connelly chose to psychoanalyze Lee in a groundbreaking and exceptionally flawed work, The Marble Man while Alan Nolan chose a lawyerly approach, constructing the case against Robert E. Lee in his book, Lee Considered, as if Lee had never been considered before. And there have been others, many quite reverential but the problem with all of them is that they've all used the same information. Writing about Lee ceased being about scholarship and instead became bickering op ed pieces. And the greatest crime of it has been that it has made Robert E. Lee uninteresting. How many times can you read the same things, no matter what way they've been spun, and still remain excited? I stopped being interested in reading things about Lee over five years ago. I have forced myself to keep reading but there has been no joy in it.

Until now. Elizabeth Brown Pryor and her extraordinary new book, Reading The Man, has single-handedly revived what was hitherto unrevivable. She has made Robert E. Lee come to life in a way that no other writer has ever been able to do and she has done it in a way that should make every other biographer of Lee blush: she has let the man speak for himself and she has done it through new research. Yes, new research. Certainly much of the new material she has uncovered has been locked away in trunks for almost a century so other researchers including Freeman had no access to it. But some of what she's used has been available to researchers for decades they just chose not to look. Intellectual laziness? Or have researchers just been content with what they've had? Fortunately, Elizabeth Pryor was neither lazy nor content and what she has constructed is a masterpiece of biographical examination. The Lee that springs from her pages is dynamic and emotional, conflicted and complex, playful and loving and nothing like he has ever been portrayed before. But the magic of this work, what truly elevates it beyond mere interpretation into what can only be described as revolutionary, is how Ms. Pryor manages to be both critical and sympathetic with her subject. With Lee it has always been you either revere or revile him. There has been no middle ground. Those that simplified him to the point of mere symbolism insured that. He was either the Christ like martyr of the Lost Cause or the white supremacist Benedict Arnold of the Civil War. But Elizabeth Pryor has shown us, has proven beyond reproach, that you can be critical of someone and still like him. You can point out his flaws but empathize with his humanity. You can be honest without defilement. What Ms. Pryor has done for all of us interested in history, the Civil War and Robert E. Lee is incalculable. She has, quite literally, shown us a new way to examine our common history and truly learn from it. We would be fools not to follow her.

Memoirs of Robert E. Lee: His Military and Personal History

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A superior look at Lee
Outstanding and reveals insight into Lee

Memoirs of Robert E. Lee: His Military and Personal History
A. L. Long
Manufacturer: Book Sales
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0890096945

Customer Reviews:

A superior look at Lee.......2003-02-21

One time when Lee was on his travels, a woman ran from her house, grabbing his arm and dragging him into her front arm. She told of how her grandfather had plant the tree in the front yard, how it had grown so tall and perfect. The tree was now nothing but dead limbs. She told how the dreadful Yankees came and stayed in her home, and they destroy the tree for fun and target practise. To her the tree was her 'red badge of courage', and she was proud to show Lee how terrible the in justice the Yankees visited up her, how she suffered. Lee quietly told her to cut it down. Not the reaction the woman hoped for, but so like Lee. When the war ended, it ended. He made sure there the war did not devolve from armies fighting armies, into a situation similar to Northern Ireland, local resistance prolonging the fighting, likely bringing down swift retribution from the Northern Reformations.

Lee started his memoirs, but never finished, and at his death, the part of history was never really addressed by Lee. There have been many like Longstreet who wrote about the war, but not Lee.

His father had been Lighthorse Harry Lee, a friend of George Washington and a Revolutionary War Hero - a role that would have been Lee's had the Confederacy won. Instead of helping to forge a new nation of independence as his father had, by the simple act of the South losing, he was on the 'wrong side'. Instead of hero, he was a rebel. Lee was troubled deeply by his decision to leave the Union Army and take up leadership for the Army of Northern Virginia. He was the husband of Mary Ann Randolph Custis, great-granddaughter of Washington. Arlington, our national cemetery that is so honoured, was her plantation, and the dead originally put there was done so as an insult to the Lee family.

Lee was a brilliant tactician, did what so few did before him, divide his army in the face of superior forces, and succeeded until the fiasco at Gettysburg in Pickett's Charge.

Since Lee could not or would not complete his memoirs, A.L. Long, with backing of Lee and later his family, took up the role, an amazing chore since most of his work was done when he was losing his sight, and the writings accomplished with a slate used for the blind. Long was military secretary to Lee and the vast amount of information was unpublished before this work. The papers were collected with the assistance of Marcus J. Wright, formerly Brig. General of the Army of Tennessee and Agent for the Collections of Confederate Records.

This books provides a wealth of information on a gentleman, a husband, a father, a lady's man, but first and foremost a soldier and leader.

I highly recommend this for anyone wanting a clear pictures of Robert E. Lee.

Outstanding and reveals insight into Lee.......1998-10-26

Long knew Lee in the pre-war army and was with him in notth-west Va. and the sea coast defenses in '61 through Appotamox. As his milt. secretary, Long drew on his own resources as well as those of Taylor and Venable also on Lee's staff, in addition to corrospondance with Lee's family members after the war. When one wonders why Lee resigned his commission to offer service to his Virginia, one can readily find the answers in this text....As a professional soldier being above politics, Lee merely was"doing his duty" to Vriginia and his family. Who won was not as important as duty, in the life and times of Lee. One can readily understand the resolve displayed by Kempe, Gordon, Armistead and others after reviewing the text. A recommended reading for any serious student of history studying the period

Lee and His Army in Confederate History (Civil War America)

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Outstanding view of Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia
A top notch critical evaluation

Lee and His Army in Confederate History (Civil War America)
Gary W. Gallagher
Manufacturer: The University of North Carolina Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0807826316
Release Date: 2000-12-08

Book Description

Was Robert E. Lee a gifted soldier whose only weaknesses lay in the depth of his loyalty to his troops, affection for his lieutenants, and dedication to the cause of the Confederacy? Or was he an ineffective leader and poor tactician whose reputation was drastically inflated by early biographers and Lost Cause apologists? These divergent characterizations represent the poles between which scholarly and popular opinion on Lee has swung over time. Now, in eight essays, Gary Gallagher offers his own refined thinking on Lee, exploring the relationship between Lee's operations and Confederate morale, the quality of his generalship, and the question of how best to handle his legacy in light of the many distortions that grew out of Lost Cause historiography.

Using a host of contemporary sources, Gallagher demonstrates the remarkable faith that soldiers and citizens maintained in Lee's leadership even after his army's fortunes had begun to erode. Gallagher also engages aspects of the Lee myth with an eye toward how admirers have insisted that their hero's faults as a general represented exaggerations of his personal virtues. Finally, Gallagher considers whether it is useful--or desirable--to separate legitimate Lost Cause arguments from the transparently false ones relating to slavery and secession.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding view of Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia.......2003-03-14

This book is a collection of Gallagher's essays published elsewhere. In this format however, they take on an added dimension and explaination of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and its commander, Robert E Lee.
Gallagher begins by examining Lee's Maryland campaign, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg and the army's campaigns in 1864. His conclusions on the Battle of Gettysburg and its effects on the Confederate home front are particularly interesting. He concludes that the battle was not the overwhelming defeat to the Army of Northern Virginia and the Confederate home front that it would later be portayed as by historians. He makes the argument that the loss of Vicksburg was seen as a vastly bigger loss and Gettysburg was more seen as a small defeat or even a victory because of Meade's failure to chase the Confederates in retreat.
Gallagher also includes an interesting essay evaluating the claims of some historians that Lee was not fighting a modern war with modern tactics and if he had done so, the Confederacy would have been better off. He ably demonstrates that indeed Lee did understand the difference in technology such as the minie ball and its impact on strategy and tactics.
However, the best essay is Gallagher's essay on the Lost Cause "myth". Gallagher explains that many of the claims that were later associated only with Lost Cause historians such as Jubal Early or Douglass Southall Freeman, were actually developed during the war and immediately following the war prior to any claims made by Early and others. Thus some of the "myths" such as the overwhelming numerical superiority of the Union as part of the central cause of the Confederacy's defeat, is actually true. He draws the wonderful and correct conclusion that to dismiss the Lost Cause myths in their entirety does a major disservice to the historical profession and that discussing those Lost Cause claims that do have a basis in fact is not in fact giving any legitimacy to any neo-Confederate point of view concerning the centrality of slavery to the origin of the Civil War.
The one quibble, and the reason I gave this book four stars instead of five concerns Gallagher's essay "Fighting the Battles of Second Fredericksburg and Salem Church." I really couldn't find a point as to why this essay was included in the book, unless it was to demonstrate a hard and fast friendship link between Early and Lee that Gallagher does build upon in his essay on the Lost Cause. However, I still think the essay about Fredericksburg really doesn't belong in this format.

A top notch critical evaluation.......2002-06-03

With the skill of a surgeon, Gary W. Gallagher dissects the myths and legends surrounding Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia, past and current, to reveal a fascinating new look at the "marble man". Positioning himself squarely between the Lost Cause proponents and the current pack of revisionists, Gallagher relies on primary sources (newspapers, diaries and letters of civilians and soldiers, official correspondence) and careful, well-reasoned analysis to discover the real truth surrounding Robert E. Lee, and in the process lands an effective blow worthy of the general himself upon both sides. Gallagher's claims that Robert E. Lee was indeed an able proponent of modern warfare (though I would dispute the term modern) and also a capable administrator fully capable of being as strict or lenient with his subordinates as the case required breathes new life into the continuing quest to discover this fascinating man and effectively destroys the myths held by both sides (ironically enough, both sides often seem to wind up arguing both sides of the same coin) that Lee was first of all a member of the landed Virginia gentry far too short-sighted and stuck in the past for command of the Confederacy's main eastern army as well as being far too gentlemanly to deal strictly with subordinates. In fact, Gallagher presents Lee, through his own words and letters, as a man fully aware of the forces arrayed against him and as one who from the beginning knew full well that the Confederacy needed to marshall all of its resources in order to win the war and gain independence and that tough decisions and hard sacrifices would be required, and that a strong government would be required to take charge in order to ensure this was done and coordinate everyone's effort. Also, the idea that Lee "bled" his army to death (the fact that Lee's army at the beginning of the 1864 Overland Campaign was basically the same size as it ever was seems to have escaped the notice of many) also comes across as rather weak thanks to Gallagher's fine research. The weakest argument Gallagher refutes is that Lee's myth was wholly created after the war, and he does this by proving most emphatically that Lee and his army were indeed the primary source Confederates looked to for hope as well as the national symbol of the Confederacy (much like Washington's Continentals) worldwide. The fact that the main part of Grant's thrust against the South hit here against Lee proves this as well. However, do not mistake Gallagher as a Lost Cause proponent in disguise; though he defends the points Lost Cause proponents make that are actually rooted in fact, he spares them not his swift, sharp sword in pointing out the concerted effort to preserve and protect the memory of the Confederate armies, and Lee in particular, by shaping history through their own eyes. Also, he cuts like a knife through as many of their arguments as those of the revisionists, who, in their zeal to cut through the myth of the Lost Cause (and rightfully so, since we must be as objective as possible) often go too far and wind up rejecting legitimate conclusions and research in favor of their own modern myth. In conclusion, Gallagher, the good professor has taught us all a valuable lesson; look not through the lens of your own eyes to view history, but search ever more diligently for the real facts and take nothing for granted. Though I'm sure we all carry our own biases (I fully admit my admiration for Lee, and I fail to see how anyone can remain truly and completely aloof), we can all separate ourselves, at least partially, from our opinions in order to get at the facts and reach reasonable conclusions, as Gallagher has so beautifully done. Good job, Professor Gallagher.

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Lee and his generals in war and memory
Great Detail on Lee, worthy of Douglas Freeman
Thoughtful Essays on the Confederate War Effort
A CIVIL APPROACH
Interesting compilation of essays but it's got flaws

Lee and His Generals in War and Memory
Gary W. Gallagher
Manufacturer: Louisiana State University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0807122866

Book Description

Historical images of Robert E. Lee and his lieutenants have been shaped to a remarkable degree by former Confederates, who in reminiscences and other writings constructed the Lost Cause interpretation of the conflict. They portrayed Lee as a perfect Christian warrior, Stonewall Jackson as his peerless right arm, and the Army of Northern Virginia as the backbone of Confederate resistance. In this collection of thirteen essays, prominent Civil War historian Gary W. Gallagher explores the effect of Lost Cause arguments on popular perceptions of Lee and his most famous subordinates, astutely examining the ways in which historical memory is created and perpetuated.

Customer Reviews:

Lee and his generals in war and memory.......2005-03-14

A collection of essays by Gary Gallagher (not an anthology like many of the other books with his name on them) mostly about Lee, his generals, and Lee's image during and after the war.

Gallagher writes with clear, sensible precision, tending to rationally examine evidence and the arguments of others rather than to leaping to "definite" conclusions or shoehorning the evidence into predetermined pet theories. I found his comments on Ken Burns' The Civil War and on the preservation of battlefields to be interesting, pertinent and something a bit different from the usual historical paper. Other articles here examine Lee and the ideology of the Lost Cause, Confederate leadership at Gettysburg (about which I am in entire agreement with Gallagher's conclusions except that I would be less generous to Hill), the 1862 and 1864 Valley campaigns, and other, often controversial, topics.

Great Detail on Lee, worthy of Douglas Freeman.......2004-04-19

Excellent book on Lee and his generals. Covers Lee's unique hands off style and his relationships with his senior staff with mini biographies. The best part of the book is how Lee deals with adversity particularly after Longstreet is shot down in the Wilderness, Ewell is relieved at Spotsylvania and Hill becomes bed ridden. Lee has to rise above it all and pick interim successors in a time of crisis with Grant bearing down. Lee has to make crucial personal decisions with limited experienced staff and take a greater role. One of Gallagher's best books.

Thoughtful Essays on the Confederate War Effort.......2004-03-10

Professor Gary Gallagher is a rarity among writers on the Civil War in his ability to appeal to both scholarly and lay audiences. He shares this ability with Professor James McPherson but with few others. Unlike Professor McPherson, Gallagher's writings concentrate on the Confederate war effort. He brings an obvious sympathy and understanding for his subject without overromanticizing of glorifying it. This is also highly unusual among writers on the Civil War. His essays are informed, through, balanced, and inspiring. They are a pleasure to read.

Professor Gallaher's "Lee and his Generals in War and Memory" (1998) consists of thirteen essays, most of which have been published elsewhere. I think the unifying theme of this collection is Professor Gallagher's attempt to find a middle ground between the "Lost Cause" interpretation of the Confederate war effort and recent, critical and revisionist accounts.

The "Lost Cause" school sees the Southern cause as entirely noble, tends to glorify Robert E. Lee and the valor of the Confederate troops, and attributes the defeat of the Confederacy almost entirely to the Federal's overwhelmingly superior resources and numbers. The revisionist school emphasizes the origins of the Civil War in the institution of slavery, tends to be critical of Lee and his aggressive and costly (in terms of casualties) approach to battle, and emphasizes Union skill and tenacity, among other factors, in finally winning the war.

The first section of Professor Gallagher's book consist of four essays on Lee which both explain the high regard in which he was held in the South while acknowledging mistakes and shortcomings. There is an introductory essay, "Lee and the Southern People" followed by essays on the Seven Days Battles against McClellan, Lee's actions on the second day of Gettysburg, and Lee's role in the Wilderness campaign of May, 1864.

The second part of the book, "Lee's Generals" includes a discussion of Stonewall Jackson's military reputation and how it was in large part deserved but also partly the result of chance and circumstance. In this regard, the section also includes an excellent essay comparing Jackson's 1862 Shenendoah Valley campaign, which was one of Jackson's great successes, with Early's 1864 campaign, generally regarded as a disaster. Professor Gallagher offers some unusual insights. This section also includes a thoughtful essay on A.P. Hill's and Richard Ewell's controversial roles during the first day of Gettysburg, as well as essays on Longstreet and John Magruder.

The third section of this book covers the history of Southern interpretations of the War, particularly the "Lost Cause" school of interpretation. Gallagher presents a well-balanced account of Jubal Early, whose writings became predominant in the "Lost Cause school" and a discussion of the Civil War letters frequently attributed to George Pickett -- of Pickett's charge on the third day of Gettysburg. Gallagher describes the history of these letters and concludes, in common with most scholars today, that they are in fact forgeries written by Pickett's wife.

A final section of the book offers a discussion of Ken Burns' "Civil War" series on public TV, which has much good to say about it, and Professor Gallagher's assessment of the continued importance of Civil War battlfield preservation to help educate the public about our Nation's history and about this seminal conflict.

I learned a great deal about the Civil War and about Confederate leadership from Professor Gallagher's fine collection of essays.

A CIVIL APPROACH.......2004-03-03

Dr. Gallagher brings Civil War discussion into the modern era by using first rate scholarship and sound reasoning to evaluate many of the lingering controversies. Eschewing many of the ideologically driven, axe to grind efforts that often taint Civil War history, Gallagher has produced a balanced account of such topics as "Lost Cause" Historiography, the Longstreet blame game, and a candid assessment of Lee. Gallagher, a historian from the Univ. of Virginia, has attained one of those rare feats in historical writing by compiling a work that is congenial reading for both the academic and the layman. Seeking neither to glorify or desecrate some of the luminaries of the conflict, the author relies on the evidence, and letting such evidence speak for itself. There is also thoughtful commentary on the current state of historical sites, and the flood of film and print fiction works. The latter is particularly instructive, as it commends the likes of Burns and Shaara for promoting interest, while cautioning about the Eastern Theater biases contained in such productions. Teachers seeking an excellent supplemental reading to Civil War courses can do no better than LEE AND GENERALS. It is a masterful job of separating the fact from the fiction and should remain an enduring contribution to Civil War Historiography.

Interesting compilation of essays but it's got flaws.......2003-03-22

Gary Gallagher has compiled 13 interesting essays on Robert E. Lee and his CSA Army and its generals. Each individual essay is very interesting, especially his concentration on Jubal Early and the development of the "Lost Cause" myth to explain the defeat of the CSA. Gallagher expertly details how Jubal Early and other early Civil War historians explicitly wanted to make sure that the soldiers of the CSA were portrayed in a positive light, sometimes, regardless of the facts.
Gallagher also attempts to rebuild the reputation of Early destroyed by his defeat in his campaign in the Valley. In doing so, Gallagher explains that a comparison between Early's lack of success and the success in the valley of "Stonewall" Jackson is inappropriate. Early inflicted as many casualties as he could on the forces opposing him, however he was faced with superior generals on the Union side than most of those that faced Jackson. In essance, Gallagher explains that Jackson's success must at least in part be attributed to the fact that he faced incompitent opponents, and Early did not.
There are a couple drawbacks to this book, and while they don't detract from the individual essays, they do detract a bit from the book in its entirety. First, much of the first third of the book, particularly the essays, "The Idol of His Soldiers and the Hope of His Country: Lee and the Confederate People" and "If the Enemy Is There, We Must Attack Him: Lee and the Second Day at Gettysburg" address larger issues than just Lee and his generals, they both seem to me they would have been more appropriately included in Gallagher's work "Lee and His Soldiers."
While the section on the "Lost Cause" and Jubal Early is very interesting, it also seems that it's misplaced in this book. It seems that it should belong in Gallagher and Nolan's book on the lost cause.
The last section in the book on "historical memory" which includes essays on Ken Burn's miniseries "The Civil War" as well as battlefields, seems also to be out of place in this book.
I'm not sure why Gallagher chose to title this work "Lee and His Generals in War and Memory" when so few of the essays included deal directly with the relationship between Lee and his lieutenants.
Another drawback is that the book doesn't have an epologue that attempts in any way to tie each essay together in a larger framework. Absent this, it really lacks a central focus as a book.

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Lee and His Generals
Captain William P. Snow
Manufacturer: Gramercy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0517381095
Release Date: 1996-02-14

Lee and His Men at Gettysburg: The Death of a Nation

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Who to blame?

Lee and His Men at Gettysburg: The Death of a Nation
Clifford Dowdey
Manufacturer: Bison Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0803266162

Book Description

Written in Clifford Dowdey’s engaging, sweeping style, Lee and His Men at Gettysburg: The Death of a Nation details the battle from the Confederate point of view. In this first volume in a trilogy of works focusing on the campaigns of the Army of Northern Virginia, Dowdey details the disastrous Confederate experience at Gettysburg during those three crucial July days in 1863. Leading up to the climax of Pickett’s Charge, Dowdey’s narrative offers an examination of the reasons for the ultimate defeat of the Army of Northern Virginia.

Dowdey offers a very clear picture of events, faulting Lee’s command subordinates for failures of reconnaissance and nerve and for disregarding orders. He assesses and probes the personalities and decisions of these chief lieutenants, including Ewell, Stuart, and Longstreet. Lee and His Men at Gettysburg depicts "Lee’s worst-fought battle" in all its agonizing drama.

Customer Reviews:

Who to blame?.......2001-06-07

Accounts of the Battle of Gettysburg always seem to focus on who is to blame for the Confederate loss. Dowdey's version happens to blame Longstreet, primarily. However, Longstreet fans shouldn't avoid the book on that account. Dowdey gives a clear, well-written, though inevitably at this date somewhat old-fashioned, account. As no other author that I'm aware of does, he discusses the preparation for the invasion: the way that Davis refused Lee the reinforcements he'd requested, the way that Lee failed to rethink his method of dealing with subordinates after Jackson's death. I think Dowdey is a little scanty on Culp's Hill, but then I think that about everyone but Pfanz. Overall, this is a good basic analysis, definitely worth reading.

Lee and His Army in Confederate History.(Book Review): An article from: Journal of Southern History

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Lee and His Army in Confederate History.(Book Review): An article from: Journal of Southern History
Lesley J. Gordon
Manufacturer: Southern Historical Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B0008DGZFI
Release Date: 2005-07-31

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Journal of Southern History, published by Southern Historical Association on May 1, 2003. The length of the article is 625 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Lee and His Army in Confederate History.(Book Review)
Author: Lesley J. Gordon
Publication: Journal of Southern History (Refereed)
Date: May 1, 2003
Publisher: Southern Historical Association
Volume: 69 Issue: 2 Page: 434(2)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Lee and His Army in Confederate History (Civil War America)
Gary W. Gallagher
Manufacturer: University of North Carolina Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N6B9EC

LEE AND HIS ARMY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY. Civil War America Series

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LEE AND HIS ARMY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY. Civil War America Series
Gary W. Gallagher
Manufacturer: UNC Press,
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000PYBJR4

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