Robert E. Lee (Brothers No More)

Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – July 28, 1880) was a Confederate general who served as the 2nd President of the Confederate States. He largely led the successful Southern War of Independence and later went on to run for president. He has gone down in Southern mythology as one of the great figures of the Confederacy.

Early Life
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Military Career
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Southern War of Independence
General Lee was credited with leading the Eastern Theater of the Southern War of Independence. He was the commander of several major victories for the South, including the final battle at Alexandria.

Lee fought in his native Virginia and Pennsylvania for the majority of the war. His invasion of the North tried to demoralize the Union and force a surrender, and in many respects he succeeded in this. The final battle at Alexandria crippled the remaining Union forces and forced a surrender. He negotiated the final surrender of Grant's army there in Alexandria, a few miles outside of Washington.

Lee returned home to a hero's welcome. He took up residence in Virginia after the war and was convinced to run for president in 1867.

President of the Confederate States
General Lee was initially unsure if he wanted to be president, or if he was the right person for the job. He was convinced by friends and politicians that the country wanted and needed him to be their second leader, and he decided to go for it. He announced his candidacy and was immediately endorsed by President Davis. Running unopposed, he won a unanimous victory to become the Confederacy's second president.

Lee started off his presidency by promising simply to maintain Davis's status quo and return the Confederacy to normal life. He worked with Congress on several issues over the next few years, but there wasn't much that excited him. He began seriously thinking about a war with Mexico, with the goal of expanding the C.S.A. and slavery. He was close to actually requesting a war declaration when Napoleon III of France contacted him with an offer- if the Confederacy invaded Mexico in support of Emperor Maximilian, they could take the northern Mexican states for themselves. This was a no-brainer for Lee, and within a week Congress declared war.

President Lee led the war effort from Richmond. He greatly missed being out on the battlefield, but just leading another war was enough to satisfy him. Working with his generals, Lee made quick work of Mexico and ended up taking all the Northern Mexican states for the C.S.

Lee went on a celebratory tour of the nation in 1872, meeting with war veterans and awarding presidential medals. He didn't have much else to do, as the Confederate Congress wasn't doing much either. Lee never got to nominate a Supreme Court justice, since all five justices had been appointed by President Davis the term before. He was the only full-term Confederate president that never experience one Supreme Court vacancy.

Lee was well-liked up until he exited office in 1874. In 1873, he endorsed his close friend Stonewall Jackson for president. Jackson won the election over Alexander H. Stephens. Lee left office just as popular as he entered it, and returned to Virginia to live out the rest of his life.

Post-Presidency
Lee remained at his home for the rest of his life, though he did travel a bit to visit old friends. He supported Jackson throughout Jackson's presidency. The president's visit to the North did trouble Lee a bit, but being from Virginia and originally not fond of succession he wasn't too off put by it. He still had many friends in the U.S. and was thus relatively forgiving of them. He thought that it could only be damaging to the South if the people held a grudge.

Lee kept in constant contact with Jackson and advised him on many matters. Near the end of Jackson's term, the two men met to determine who to endorse for the 1879 election. They decided to endorse another member of their Independence War army, James Longstreet. Lee was very displeased with the formation of the Southern Party and political parties in general in the Confederacy. He campaigned hard for Longstreet, trying to prevent the rise of parties before it began.

Alexander H. Stephens ended up winning the election, to the displeasure of Lee. The old general endlessly criticized Stephens' time in office, but didn't have much time to experience it. He died of heat stroke on a hot July day at the age of 73.

Lee's funeral was one of the biggest events held in the post-war Confederacy. Friends and dignitaries from far and wide, including the U.S., traveled to Virginia to witness it. Like all other former presidents, Lee lied in state at the Confederate Congress. He was buried at his home complex.

Legacy
Lee is remembered as the man who won the Confederacy's independence and then guided the country through its young post-war years. He is remembered fondly for winning two major wars and shaping the modern Confederate States. Among presidents, he often ranks among the top ten. His one weakness was in his domestic policy, where he didn't do anything revolutionary and simply signed the legislation that Congress passed. Even the Southern Party eventually came around to support him.

Regardless of his actual actions, and opposition by the early Southern Party, General and President Lee is known as a hero of the C.S.A. and is the face of the first golden era of the Confederacy.