Thank you Mike. First, thanks again for recommending "Killer Angels". Remarkable dynamics between Lee and Longstreet. Compelling book. I look forward to reading his son's work.
I have often wondered why Lee had been reconstructed as a hero by so many people who call themselves "patriots". Lee may have been a mostly brilliant tactician (until he wasn't) and an "honorable" southern gentleman. But he was, along with every Confederate soldier, a traitor and a defender of a culture of brutality and murder. I hear echoes....
The fact that so many in the South still honor him and "the cause" gives us some clues as to why this nation is backsliding into blatant racism and hate for the "other". I put Robert Lee in the same category as Benedict Arnold.
The fact that the South was NEVER held accountable for a wretched war and the murders of countless African Americans is a disgrace and a huge mistake. Plantation owners should have been tried as criminals. We can thank Andrew Johnson, among others.
I'd make the case that the South should have been indefinitely occupied by Federal Forces. For generations, if necessary, to firmly establish equity for the poor - Black and White. Plantations should have been rebuilt to treat workers fairly. The "Planters Elite" removed from power. Bigotry made a "high crime".
We did the same thing we have frequently done. Invaded, won a few bloody battles, then left. The cruelty resumed. The slaves were still slaves - if not legally. All that Lincoln promised was lost. Black land stolen, owners lynched. Citizen rights (like voting) denied. Etc.
We should have finished the job or maybe never started it. If the South had left the Union successfully, would slavery have lasted long? I don't know. But the battle scene you described makes me wonder. Was it worth it?
As a 10 year old in 1863, I was a fan of Lee's. We attended the centennial events at Gettysburg in 1963 and I wore my grey kepi and had my picture taken at the Virginia Monument. It took awhile for my beliefs about Lee to evolve to where they are now. There's a very good book by Ty Seidule titled "Robert E Lee and me" that takes a good look at Lee and his place in our history. Thanks for your reflections...and have a good 4th.
Thank you Mike. First, thanks again for recommending "Killer Angels". Remarkable dynamics between Lee and Longstreet. Compelling book. I look forward to reading his son's work.
I have often wondered why Lee had been reconstructed as a hero by so many people who call themselves "patriots". Lee may have been a mostly brilliant tactician (until he wasn't) and an "honorable" southern gentleman. But he was, along with every Confederate soldier, a traitor and a defender of a culture of brutality and murder. I hear echoes....
The fact that so many in the South still honor him and "the cause" gives us some clues as to why this nation is backsliding into blatant racism and hate for the "other". I put Robert Lee in the same category as Benedict Arnold.
The fact that the South was NEVER held accountable for a wretched war and the murders of countless African Americans is a disgrace and a huge mistake. Plantation owners should have been tried as criminals. We can thank Andrew Johnson, among others.
I'd make the case that the South should have been indefinitely occupied by Federal Forces. For generations, if necessary, to firmly establish equity for the poor - Black and White. Plantations should have been rebuilt to treat workers fairly. The "Planters Elite" removed from power. Bigotry made a "high crime".
We did the same thing we have frequently done. Invaded, won a few bloody battles, then left. The cruelty resumed. The slaves were still slaves - if not legally. All that Lincoln promised was lost. Black land stolen, owners lynched. Citizen rights (like voting) denied. Etc.
We should have finished the job or maybe never started it. If the South had left the Union successfully, would slavery have lasted long? I don't know. But the battle scene you described makes me wonder. Was it worth it?
As a 10 year old in 1863, I was a fan of Lee's. We attended the centennial events at Gettysburg in 1963 and I wore my grey kepi and had my picture taken at the Virginia Monument. It took awhile for my beliefs about Lee to evolve to where they are now. There's a very good book by Ty Seidule titled "Robert E Lee and me" that takes a good look at Lee and his place in our history. Thanks for your reflections...and have a good 4th.