Robert Edward Lee was considered one of the greatest generals in the history of the United States. Lee was opposed to many views of the south, including succession and slavery, yet his loyalty to his native state of Virginia forced him to fight for the south and refuse command of the Union armies during the Civil War. Because of this, he was respected by every man in America including Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant.Robert Edward Lee was born to parents, Henry Lee of Lee Sylvania, and mother Ann Hill Carter of Shirley, in Stratford Hall near Montross, Virginia, on January 19, 1807. He grew up with a great love for country living and his state, which would be instilled in him for the rest of his life. He was a very serious boy and spent many hours in his father's library reading as many books as he could get his hands on. He loved to play with his friends, swim and hunt. Lee looked up to his father and always wanted to know what he was doing. George Washington and his father, "Light-Horse Harry Lee," were his two heroes and he wanted to be just like them when he grew up.In 1811 the Lee family moved to a larger home in Alexandria, Virginia. The next year his father received injuries in a Baltimore riot from which he never fully recovered and that also caused his leaving of Alexandria for a warmer climate. He died six years later at Cumberland Island, Georgia when Robert was only 12. Robert was forced to become the man of the family and cared for his mother and sisters because his father and elder brothers had left. Robert would stuff papers to block cracks in the carriage and go driving to help his mother get out during her failing health. Years later, when Robert left for West Point, Ann Lee wrote to a cousin, "How will I ever get on with out Robert, he is both a son and a daughter" ( www.stratfordhall.org/rel.htm 1). In 1825, at the age of 18, Lee entered the United States Military Academy at West Point ...
