Union or Confederate: Robert E. Lee

Union or Confederate: Robert E. Lee

• A. Union, General
• B. Confederate, General
• C. Confederate, Politician
• D. Union, President

Answer: (B)

Robert E. Lee was a career military officer from Virginia who chose to fight for his home state when it seceded. He became the Confederate Army’s top general, leading the Army of Northern Virginia in major battles like Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, and he ultimately surrendered at Appomattox in 1865. He was offered command of the Union Army by Lincoln but declined, reinforcing his allegiance to Virginia. He was not part of the Union, did not hold a political office for the Confederacy, and was not a president. So the description that fits him best is Confederate, General.

Robert E. Lee was a career military officer from Virginia who chose to fight for his home state when it seceded. He became the Confederate Army’s top general, leading the Army of Northern Virginia in major battles like Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, and he ultimately surrendered at Appomattox in 1865. He was offered command of the Union Army by Lincoln but declined, reinforcing his allegiance to Virginia. He was not part of the Union, did not hold a political office for the Confederacy, and was not a president. So the description that fits him best is Confederate, General.