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In reply to the discussion: Nazi war hero. Confederate war hero. [View all]sarisataka
(19,527 posts)145. You are right
LEE, Robert Edward, soldier, born in Stratford, Westmoreland County, Virginia, 19 Jan., 1807; died in Lexington, Virginia, 12 Oct., 1870. He was the son of the Revolutionary general Henry Lee (q. v.), known as " Light-Horse Harry," was graduated from the U. S. military academy at West Point in 1829, ranking second in a class of forty-six, and was commissioned as a 2d lieutenant in the engineers.
At the beginning of the Mexican war he was assigned to duty as chief engineer of the army under General Wool, his rank being that of captain. His abilities as an engineer, and his conduct as a soldier, won the special admiration of General Scott, who attributed the fall of Vera Cruz to his skill, and repeatedly singled him out for commendation. Lee was thrice brevetted during the war, his last brevet to the rank of colonel being for services at the storming of Chapultepec.
In 1852 he was assigned to the command of the military academy at West Point, where he remained for about three years. He brought great improvements in the academy, notably enlarging its course of study and bringing it to a rank equal to that of the best European military schools. In 1855 he was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the 2d regiment of cavalry, and assigned to duty on the Texan frontier, where he remained until near the beginning of the civil war, with the exception of an interval when, in 1859, he was ordered to Washington and placed in command of the force that was sent against John Brown at Harper's Ferry.
On 20 April, 1861, three days after the Virginia convention adopted an ordinance of secession, he resigned his commission, in obedience to his conscientious conviction that he was bound by the act of his state. His only authenticated expression of opinion and sentiment on the subject of secession is found in the following passage from a letter written at the time of his resignation to his sister, the wife of an officer in the National army; "We are now in a state of war which will yield to nothing. The whole south is in a state of revolution, into which Virginia, after a long struggle, has been drawn; and though I recognize no necessity for this state of things, and would have forborne and pleaded to the end for redress of grievances, real or supposed, yet in my own person I had to meet the question whether I should take part against my native state. With all my devotion to the Union, and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relatives, my children, my home. I have therefore resigned my commission m the army, and, save in defense of my native state--with the sincere hope that my poor services may never be needed--I hope I may never be called upon to draw my sword."
http://www.robertelee.org/
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Not sure. But the answer is presumably the same as for "Is there a hero of the Iraq war?"
redgreenandblue
Jul 2012
#1
there is so long as there's a culture remaining that venerates said 'heroes'. i'd say there is in
HiPointDem
Jul 2012
#2
Lee was commanding an army and was fighting for his state, same as generals like Rommel etc
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#12
I would think the Welsh would consider him a hero as well for fighting a common enemy.
geardaddy
Jul 2012
#69
I always thought Lee served in the federal army before taking command of the army of nova
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#144
well both ultimately fought against their previous employer so the comparison is pretty good
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#152
We are sympatico at the first part of your statement, but not all the way through:
freshwest
Jul 2012
#90
You know... I am a dissident now and I would have been a dissident then.
Luminous Animal
Jul 2012
#112
The reason why I asked is that even though the South lost, as a cultre..,
Luminous Animal
Jul 2012
#7
he dosent have one, not sure why you ascribe to Lee being the same as hitler
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#14
Davis and Lee should have been destroyed, They should have been lead from
Luminous Animal
Jul 2012
#18
okay i guess its not a discussion you want rather some sort of wierd one upmanship
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#20
regardless of your thoughts on it, a large chunk of your fellow americans dont see it that way
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#10
question is where does loyalty lie. if you ar scots is it scotland or the UK
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#121
DU seriously needs a hyperbole jar. The servers would be platinum-plated in hours. (nt)
Posteritatis
Jul 2012
#123
no it makes no difference when it comes to heroics which comes down to individual deeds
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#16
Apparenty, some people had morals, because (you know) they fought for the other side,
Luminous Animal
Jul 2012
#30
If the South ends up winning, there will be a great many Confederate War heroes. n/t
dogknob
Jul 2012
#5
So, then, were the terrorists that killed and maimed a bunch of us on 9/11 heroes also?
Zorra
Jul 2012
#53
It's not about "win or lose". It is about which side was morally correct.
redgreenandblue
Jul 2012
#38
each side has heroes because in a war each side believes they are morally correct...
dionysus
Jul 2012
#47
it's not saying the nazis were on the right side or anything. in a generic sense, if someone does
dionysus
Jul 2012
#88
8 guess it depends if you believe people have a right to fight against what they believe they dont w
loli phabay
Jul 2012
#151
Neither soldiers on the winning or losing side can fight with honor - bravery maybe, but not honor
1-Old-Man
Jul 2012
#45
I believe that the young conscripts who landed on the Normandy beaches fought with honor.
Nye Bevan
Jul 2012
#49
Would you consider a German national holiday honoring Wehrmacht soldiers appropriate then?
redgreenandblue
Jul 2012
#61
The problem is that very few "acts of heroism" in warfare revolve around saving someone.
redgreenandblue
Jul 2012
#153
Sherman was hailed as a hero and liberator by many southern newspapers at the time.
ieoeja
Jul 2012
#156
My problem with Lee is that he considered himself a Virginian rather than as an American.
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#63
And that is why my great-great grandfather died. The Constitution was a document for Americans,
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#74
My great-great grandfather fought as an American working to keep the United States united. Lee
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#95
This could go on. You don't know how my ancestor felt. I know he died to keep thiis country
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#118
In the UK the people were at one time part of different countries. The ? I ask is:is it more
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#130
Why did people volunteer to go to war during the Civil war, not after? If they had not thoght of
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#129
Because they followed their states, towns, family and friends to war, entire regiments were made up
Uncle Joe
Jul 2012
#131
They fought as Americans. Listening to the Battle Cry of Freedom. The Union Forever.
libinnyandia
Jul 2012
#137
The vast majority of those Americans followed the direction of their elected state governments.
Uncle Joe
Jul 2012
#138
The same can be said for the majority of people from every other state, including the North.
Uncle Joe
Jul 2012
#79
Most of the soldiers in both cases were conscripts. Not heroes. Not villains. Lots of boys. nt
Romulox
Jul 2012
#67
Yes they might be heroes for their own side. But I wouldn't honor them for it.
NYC Liberal
Jul 2012
#81
As someone who was born and still living in the South I have no respect for the Confederacy.
white_wolf
Jul 2012
#82
One Confederate "Hero": Nathan Bedford Forrest, war criminal and founder of the KKK.
backscatter712
Jul 2012
#83
To one who considers himself a patriot to the US, "confederate war hero" is an oxymoron.
lumberjack_jeff
Jul 2012
#91
This post seems to imply "Confederacy" and "South" are largely the same thing.
2ndAmForComputers
Jul 2012
#98