The following material provides a comprehensive breakdown of Robert E. Lee’s views on the Union, his letters regarding slavery, and the specific reasons behind his fateful decision to turn down command of the Union Army. This context illustrates how even moderate Southern leaders who viewed secession as a disaster ultimately chose a path that protected the Confederacy.
Robert E. Lee viewed the dissolution of the Union as a great calamity. Before the Civil War, he expressed open pride in the United States and believed the Constitution established a perpetual union.
Opposition to Secession: In early 1861, Lee wrote to his son stating that he saw no good in secession and deeply hoped for a peaceful solution. He famously wrote that "secession is nothing but revolution."
Allegiance to Virginia: Despite his opposition to disunion, Lee felt his highest duty was to his home state. He explicitly stated that if Virginia stood by the Union, he would too, but if his native state seceded, he would follow her.
Resignation: When Virginia voted to secede in April 1861, Lee turned down the offer to lead the Union forces, resigned his U.S. Army commission, and chose to fight for the Confederacy out of loyalty to his home state.
Lee’s personal writings and real-life actions present a highly debated and complicated history filled with deep contradictions. While he wrote letters criticizing the institution, his practical actions and racial views firmly supported the slave-holding South.
The 1856 Letter to His Wife: In a December 1856 letter to Mary Custis Lee, he wrote that slavery was "a moral & political evil in any Country". However, in the very next sentences, he claimed the institution was a greater evil to the white race than to the Black race. He argued that painful slavery was necessary for the instruction of Black people as a race, and that emancipation should be left to the will of God rather than political abolitionists.
Management of Enslaved People: In 1857, Lee became the executor of his father-in-law’s large estate, putting him in charge of nearly two hundred enslaved people. The will required them to be freed within five years. Lee faced heavy contemporary criticism for demanding a harsh work regime and taking the maximum allowed time—until late 1862—to legally free them.
Beliefs in White Superiority: Lee held firm views of white supremacy before, during, and after the Civil War. Following the war's conclusion, he actively opposed granting political or social equality to newly emancipated African Americans.
On April 18, 1861, just days after the war began at Fort Sumter, Lee was unofficially offered effective command of the Union Army. The offer was delivered by Francis Blair, an advisor to President Abraham Lincoln, on behalf of Union General Winfield Scott. Lee rejected the offer immediately based on three clear factors:
Refusal to Invade the South: Lee made it clear that he could take no part in an invasion of the Southern states. He told Blair, "though opposed to secession and deprecating war, I could take no part in an invasion of the Southern States".
Defending His Home: Lee viewed himself as a citizen of Virginia first and a citizen of the United States second. When his state seceded, he chose to follow her rather than fight against his own family, neighbors, and heritage.
The "Equivocal Men" Decision: Lee initially hoped he could sit out the war and remain completely neutral at his home. However, his mentor, General Winfield Scott, firmly told him, "I have no place in my army for equivocal [hesitant] men". Realizing he had to choose a side, Lee resigned his commission on April 20, 1861.
In a final letter to Scott, Lee wrote that he hoped he would never again have to draw his sword, "save in the defense of my native State". Within days, he accepted command of Virginia's military forces.
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