In the history of all American war no other American general has a victory record as good as Robert E. Lee's. During his service in the Civil War he was renowned for his defensive way of campaigning that resulted in many Southern victories. To the world at that time, Robert E. Lee was the greatest weapon any army could have. Robert E. Lee is the greatest American general to ever live.
One facet of his greatness would have to be his undying loyalty. When his home state of Virginia made the decision to secede from the Union he was fiercely against it. Although when President Abraham Lincoln offered Robert E. Lee the position as commander of the Union forces he rejected it and chose to defend his home state of Virginia. Throughout the war with unyielding resolve he led the Confederate army into battle after battle, even at times of defeat. Even through Ulysses S. Grant's “Overland campaign” and the “Siege of Petersburg” he fought on with bravery. He cared very much for the troops in his care and always looked out for there best interests. He did that by fighting a defensive campaign so his losses would be minimal and Union losses would be monumental.
What Robert E. Lee is known for most is his style of fighting on a large scale. He fought a defensive campaign that insured heavy Union losses and few Confederate losses, or at least less than the Union. Although not everyone agreed with his style of fighting in the beginning, many people said that he was too defensive and his style was in no way going to work. In the beginning of the war some soldiers even called him Granny Lee because of how allegedly timid he was. Although he proved them wrong when his defensive style of fighting worked after the Seven Days Battles when he had his men dig trenches for weeks before the battle. Although after a huge success at the Seven Days Battles his style of fighting was no longer questioned. At one part in the war he launched a series of attacks at General McClellan defeating his armies and forcing him to retreat far into the Union territory. Those battles stopped those final words of questioning that some people still had on their minds in the South.
One other attribute that makes Robert E. Lee the best American general ever is his ability to plan and think on his feet. As the South ran out of manpower the issue of arming the slaves became vital if the Confederacy was to win the war. Robert E. Lee began a program to train and arm the slaves near the end of the war. The deal was that the slaves that fought would be “eventually freed” and their families would be freed as well. Robert E. Lee fought hard to win the ability for the slaves to fight but the first units were only in training during the last months of the war.
All other American generals pale in comparison to strong willed Robert E. Lee in any way that can be named. He never once backed down from a fight, he fought smart not tough, and he was a good man to his soldiers. Some said that Robert E. Lee was a weak man incapable of staging an aggressive campaign. I laugh at their words knowing all of the qualities that Robert E. Lee had and how he applied them to the battlefield. He truly was the greatest American general who ever lived.
