I'm not sure what the cult was but it is referenced to in many American Civil War and Robert .E. Lee books.
I would imagine that it is like the students at the Washington and Lee university who use Lee as a role-model and try to become Gentlemanly, Honorable and Gallant men like the great Robert .E. Lee was.
I would also think that at the time it would involve singing Lee's praises as a military commander.
And, lets face it, if any man deserves praise from that time it is Robert .E. Lee. Lee who was a quiet humble man who was uncomfortable in the company of statesmen and Generals, who believed that his true calling was education and always behaved as a gentleman.
Did you know also that actor and director Robert Duvall (who played Lee in the film 'Gods and Generals') is a relative of Robert .E. Lee on his mothers side.
"there's only one way to win a war: shout, shout, and shout again!" - The Duke of Wellington ((Blackadder - Stephen Fry))
I found this on Wikipedia and thought I might put it on here.
The Definition of a Gentleman By Robert E. Lee:
The forbearing use of power does not only form a touchstone, but the manner in which an individual enjoys certain advantages over others is a test of a true gentleman.
The power which the strong have over the weak, the employer over the employed, the educated over the unlettered, the experienced over the confiding, even the clever over the silly; the forbearing or inoffensive use of all of this power or authority, or a total abstinence from it when the case admits it, will show the gentleman in a plain light.
The gentleman does not needlessly and unnecessarily remind an offender of a wrong he may have committed against him. He cannot only forgive, he can forget; and he strives for that nobleness of self and mildness of character which impart sufficient strength to let the past be but the past. A true man of honor feels humbled when he cannot help humbling others.
"there's only one way to win a war: shout, shout, and shout again!" - The Duke of Wellington ((Blackadder - Stephen Fry))
Both the Souths best Generals in this war were born Unionist but died Confederates. Stonewall Jackson died during the war so that is obvious but Robert .E. Lee died after the war.
The fact is that Lee applied for citenship again but he was never given it in his lifetime. It was President Gerald Ford who finally reconised Lee's American Citizenship in 1975. 105 years after Lee died.
"there's only one way to win a war: shout, shout, and shout again!" - The Duke of Wellington ((Blackadder - Stephen Fry))
I read somewhere they took all of Lee's property in Washington as well. I think they said the land taxes had to be paid in person, and took all his land by default.
I have recently found out the series of events that led to the Confederate defeat at Gettysburg.
The Battle was a victory for the Union but caused more through the actions of the Confederate commanders of Longstreet, Stuart and Ewell than the better tactics of General Meade and the Union.
General J.E.B. Stuart, in a rare act of ill-judgement, had attempted to regain some of his pride back after being beaten by Union cavalry a little while earlier. He was told three or four times by Lee that he was to scout the enemies positions and strenght and report them back to the Confederate commander however Stuart, uncharacteristically, put pride before duty and did not arrive at Gettysburg until the battle was already in progress. This resulted in General Lee being blinded to his enemies strength, position and the landscape of the battlefield until the fighting had reached it's peak.
On the very first day of the battle the Confederates had a victory and the Union soldiers were retreating to cemetary hill. Lee urged general Ewell to push his advantage and take the heights that day but Ewell, in blatent disregard of Lee's orders, told his men to set up camp and thus allowed the Unionist to escape to the heights.
When General Longstreet arrived he argued the strategies with Lee but Lee already had a plan that he believed would work and disredarded Longstreet's veiw. Lee ordered Longstreets's advance but 'Old Pete' was in one of his moods and advanced slowly. One of the generals in his comand found that the Union flank was in the air and requested Longstreet's permission to attack. Longstreet refused and told him that he had to follow General Lee's orders. He did not imform Lee of the open flank until much later. Despite his mood Longstreet's corps did gain victory but failed to succour the heights.
While Longstreet attacked on the Confederate right Ewell was supposed to attack on the Confederate Left but he did not attack until much later. His seperate attack allowed the Unionist to manorver to defend their positions and repulse Ewells attack.
On the famed 'Picketts Charge' Longstreet was reluctant to order Pickett to advance as Lee had told him to and made General Pendleton advise Pickett to advance. at the moment Pickett attack Ewell was supposed to attack on the Confederate Left and Longstreet on the Confederate right however Both commanders did not attack when they were supposed to.
Whilst history tell us that Longstreet may have been right to have attempted his flank attack and that Gettysburg should have been abandonded by the Confederat General after he failed to succour the heights on the first few days those fact are besides the point. Lee's strategdey may have worked if not for the insubordinance of his Generals at Gettysburg.
"there's only one way to win a war: shout, shout, and shout again!" - The Duke of Wellington ((Blackadder - Stephen Fry))
After furthur research into the American Civil War I feel I must add a few more names of importance to my original list. Those names are James Longstreet, Braxton Bragg, JEB Stuart, Jefferson Davis and Jubal Early
First to Old Pete. Longstreet was the great defensive general. He never lost a defensive battle thoughout the Wars entirity however he was an eratic attacker. He was vicious in attack however and I pity the Army that faced him when he was in the mood to attack. He is denied his rightful place in Southern heritage mostly due to other Confederate Generals attacking him for his escapades at Gettysburg. However had he not fallen out with Braxton Bragg he could have won the war for the Army of Tennessee.
Braxton Bragg maintained his position as Commander of the Army of Tenessee through his connections with Jefferson Davis. His subordinates lost faith in him after the battle of Chickamauga and tried to remove him from power only to have Davis prevent them from doing so. Braxton Bragg would fail to capitolise on the decisive victory at Chickamauga and thus allow the Union Army to regroup, gain strength and defeat his army later on. He also sent Longstreet into an impotent position and so lost the best general in the Army of Tennessee.
JEB Stuart is probably best remembered for his failure to do his duty at Gettysburg. However he also ran rings around the Union Army(Literally) and held off Cavalry more than twice the size of his own towards the end of the war and his life. He death was felt almost as much as Stonewall Jacksons throughout the Confederacy and lowered the morale by a large margin.
Jefferson Davis best decision during this war was to put Robert .E. Lee in charge of the Army of Northern Virginia. He chose to hold onto over all power of the Armys and would prove himself ineffective in that department many times during the war. Whether it was in failing to supply the Armys with food and supplies (despite Lee's constant requests) or failing to remove generals who had lost their troops confidence.
Jubal Early could have ended the war even when Robert .E. Lee was held up in Petersburg. If he had continued his assault on Washington when General Grant and Sherridan were occupied with Lee and General Sherman was occupied with Johnson then he would have won the war for the South. However he chose to retreat back to the Shennandoah Valley and allow Grant time to send someone to deal with him.
"there's only one way to win a war: shout, shout, and shout again!" - The Duke of Wellington ((Blackadder - Stephen Fry))
08-03-2006 08:06 PM
