Robert E. Lee

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Robert E. Lee > Battle of Chancellorsville

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In one sense, Chancellorsville was Lee’s perfect battle. He’d repeatedly divided his army in the face of superior numbers and overcome his primary foe through audacity, exceptional scouting, and superior morale.

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Robert E. Lee > an invasion of the North

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Moreover, Lee was convinced that an invasion of the North was a war-winning strategy. Lee believed that Northern morale was nearing collapse.

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Lee > Union war effort

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Consequently, Lee incorrectly believed that the Union war effort was as close to collapse as the Confederacy’s. Therefore, a victory on Northern soil would finally win international recognition and force the war to end.

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Robert E. Lee > Pickett's Charge

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Lee’s plan was characteristically audacious. Longstreet’s corps would assemble with Pickett in the lead behind Seminary Ridge while Stuart moved around the Union right flank. Following a mass artillery barrage, both would charge the Union center somewhere near where Cemetery Hill became Cemetery Ridge, splitting the army in half.

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Robert E. Lee > the disaster at Gettysburg

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Back on Seminary Ridge, Lee simply hung his head and said, “It’s all my fault.” He never explained his thinking beyond telling Jefferson Davis not to blame the soldiers for Lee asking too much of them.