So his caliber as a student of military science was almost as unquestioned as his discipline and brilliance on the battlefield. He made few mistakes, but one of his weaknesses was his inability, at times , to listen to his junior commanders when they made suggestions about specific tactics and plans.
What was Robert E Lee weakness?
That no doubt suited the Confederate fighting man, who didn’t take kindly to being told what to do—but Lee’s only weakness as a commander, his otherwise reverent nephew Fitzhugh Lee would write, was his “ reluctance to oppose the wishes of others, or to order them to do anything that would be disagreeable and to which ...
What was Robert E Lee’s greatest defeat?
Lee’s Greatest Victory Lee’s Greatest Defeat: the Battle of Chancellorsville . Often viewed as one of the most resounding victories in the annals of military history, Chancellorsville was truly one of Robert E. Lee’s greatest achievements.
What was Robert E Lee against?
In 1865, Lee became president of Washington College (later Washington and Lee University) in Lexington, Virginia; in that position, he supported reconciliation between North and South. Lee accepted “the extinction of slavery ” provided for by the Thirteenth Amendment, but opposed racial equality for African Americans.
How did Robert E Lee’s plan fail?
like all the rest of the army I believed that it would come out right, because Gen. Lee had planned it.” But historian Bevin Alexander has severely criticized Lee’s order: “When his direct efforts to knock aside the Union forces failed, Lee compounded his error by destroying the last offensive power of the Army of ...
Was Robert E Lee a good leader?
Lee was a great leader and tactical leader who deserves to be remembered for his moral strengths. He is still the only person to graduate from West Point Military Academy with not a single demerit. His military tactics were studied and used during World War II even.
Why did General Lee surrender?
Fact #4: Lee decided to surrender his army in part because he wanted to prevent unnecessary destruction to the South . When it became clear to the Confederates that they were stretched too thinly to break through the Union lines, Lee observed that “there is nothing left me to do but to go and see Gen.
Why did the South lose the war?
The most convincing ‘internal’ factor behind southern defeat was the very institution that prompted secession: slavery . Enslaved people fled to join the Union army, depriving the South of labour and strengthening the North by more than 100,000 soldiers. Even so, slavery was not in itself the cause of defeat.
What was the biggest battle in history?
- Battle of Gettysburg, 1863. Belligerents: Union vs Confederacy. ...
- The Battle of Cannae, 216 BC. Belligerents: Carthage vs Rome. ...
- The first day of the Somme, 1 July 1916. Belligerents: Britain vs Germany. ...
- The Battle of Leipzig, 1813. Belligerents: France vs Austria, Prussia and Russia. ...
- The Battle of Stalingrad, 1942-1943.
Why did Hooker lose the battle?
Joe Hooker lost the Battle of Chancellorsville because of his own arrogance and errors . Joe Hooker lost Chancellorsville because he was no match for the Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia.
Why was Robert E Lee so successful?
Robert E. Lee was the most successful Confederate military leader during the American Civil War (1861–1865). This also made him, by virtue of the Confederacy’s defense of chattel slavery, the most successful defender of the enslavement of African Americans.
Why did Lee fight for the Confederacy?
Although he felt slavery in the abstract was a bad thing, he blamed the national conflict on abolitionists, and accepted the pro-slavery policies of the Confederacy. He chose to fight to defend his homeland .
What were Confederates fighting for?
The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or simply the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting against the United States forces in order to uphold the institution of ...
Did Pickett ever forgive Lee?
Pickett was inconsolable for the rest of the day and never forgave Lee for ordering the charge. When Lee told Pickett to rally his division for the defense, Pickett allegedly replied, “General, I have no division.” ... History may never know the true story of Lee’s intentions at Gettysburg.
Could Lee have won at Gettysburg?
In fact, Early claimed, Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia would have won the Battle of Gettysburg, the turning point in the Civil War, if his orders had been obeyed. ... But that sunrise attack, Early noted ominously, had never taken place.
Who is to blame for the Confederate loss at Gettysburg?
by Jeffry Wert Simon and Schuster, $27.50 527 pp. General James Longstreet has always been a question mark in the history of the American Civil War. For years he was blamed by his former Confederate associates for the South’s decisive defeat at the battle of Gettysburg.
