By Doris Kearns Goodwin
"The day after Virginia seceded (April 17, 1861), Francis Blair, Sr., invited Colonel Robert F. Le to his yellow house on Pennsylvania Avenue. A graduate of West Point, the 54-year-old Lee had served in the Mexican War, held the post of superintendent at West Point, and commanded the forces that captured John Brown at Harpers Ferry. General (Winfield) Scott regarded him as "the very best soldier I ever saw in the field."
Lincoln had designated to tender Lee the highest-ranking military position within the president's power to proffer.
"I come to you on the part of President Lincoln," Blair began, "to ask whether any inducement that he can offer will prevail on you to take command of the Union Army?"
Lee responded "as candidly and as courteously" as he could: "Mr. Blair, I look upon secession as anarchy. If I owned the four millions of slaves in the South I would sacrifice them all to the Union; but how can I draw my sword on Virginia, my native state?"
When the meeting ended, Lee called upon old General Scott to tender his resignation from the U.S. Army.
"It would have been presented at once," Lee explained, "but for the struggle it has cost me to separate myself from a service to which I have devoted all the best years of my life and all the ability I possessed.
"The day after Virginia seceded (April 17, 1861), Francis Blair, Sr., invited Colonel Robert F. Le to his yellow house on Pennsylvania Avenue. A graduate of West Point, the 54-year-old Lee had served in the Mexican War, held the post of superintendent at West Point, and commanded the forces that captured John Brown at Harpers Ferry. General (Winfield) Scott regarded him as "the very best soldier I ever saw in the field."
Lincoln had designated to tender Lee the highest-ranking military position within the president's power to proffer.
"I come to you on the part of President Lincoln," Blair began, "to ask whether any inducement that he can offer will prevail on you to take command of the Union Army?"
Lee responded "as candidly and as courteously" as he could: "Mr. Blair, I look upon secession as anarchy. If I owned the four millions of slaves in the South I would sacrifice them all to the Union; but how can I draw my sword on Virginia, my native state?"
When the meeting ended, Lee called upon old General Scott to tender his resignation from the U.S. Army.
"It would have been presented at once," Lee explained, "but for the struggle it has cost me to separate myself from a service to which I have devoted all the best years of my life and all the ability I possessed.
During the whole of that time, more than 30 years, I have experienced nothing but kindness from my superiors, and the most cordial friendship from my companions...I shall carry with me to the grave the most grateful refcollections of your kind consideration, and your name and fame will always be dear to me."
On the same day, a distraught Lee wrote to his sister: "Now we are in a state of war which will yield to nothing." Though he could apprehend "no necessity for this state of thngs, and would have foreborne and pleaded to end for redress of grievances, real or supposed," he was unable, he explained, "to raise my head against my relatives, my children, my home. I have, therefore, resigned my commission in 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."
On the same day, a distraught Lee wrote to his sister: "Now we are in a state of war which will yield to nothing." Though he could apprehend "no necessity for this state of thngs, and would have foreborne and pleaded to end for redress of grievances, real or supposed," he was unable, he explained, "to raise my head against my relatives, my children, my home. I have, therefore, resigned my commission in 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."
Shortly thereafter, Lee was designated commander of the Virginia state forces.
2 comments:
So, you read White history by a writer accused of plagiarism.
whoop-de-doo.
April 12, 2022 at 6:33 AM
Plagiarism gringo style you should be familiar gringo/coco.
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