A look at the life and times of Robert E. Lee, one of the most mythologized men in American history. From his turbulent childhood, his years of service in the U.S. army, his fame as a Confederate general in the Civil War, how did this man become an American myth and what was the real story?
A friend who knew editor Carolyn Yoder passed along that she was interested in a book on Lee. Turns out, I’d worked with Carolyn years ago and had even written a magazine article for her about Lee’s childhood! I worked up a 40-page book proposal and the publisher offered me a contract based on that. However, the finished book ended up far different than the proposal. Instead of a 40,000-word middle grade book with 8 chapters it turned into a 70,000 plus word book for young adults with 20 chapters. It’s a journey!
How long did it take you to research and write this book, and how did you go about your research?
I worked on this book for about 3 years. As always, the research involved tons of reading and note-taking. Tip: Use the bibliographies and source notes at the back of a book to find even more great resources. I especially relied on Lee’s letters and the letters of those who knew him. I also needed background on the politics and events of the day to give readers context. Lee’s life includes major events of American history—westward expansion and the treatment of Native nations, the war with Mexico that doubled the size of the U.S., the American Civil War, and Reconstruction. And of course, slavery and its aftermath influenced all these things. The book also covers 19th century family life, the role of women, and education.
Besides reading I also traveled to Virginia and visited various places associated with Lee. For me, this is the most fun of research! At Stratford Hall, Lee’s birthplace, I visited a place plagued by Lee family scandal and debt, though the tour guide touched on none of this which amused me. Lee’s childhood hometown of Alexandria gave me a sense of where he grew up during a time of uncertainty for the family. A special treat was a private tour of Arlington House (at what is today Arlington National Cemetery), the home built by Lee’s father-in-law, which was Lee’s home for 30 years. It was wonderful to explore the home with a park ranger and ask whatever I wanted! I also visited Harpers Ferry where Lee led the marines that captured abolitionist John Brown, and several key Civil War battlefields, including Appomattox Court House where Lee surrendered to Grant April 9, 1865. I ended my tour at Washington and Lee University where Lee served as president before his death in 1870. He designed several buildings still used today, including the president’s home, which he made wheelchair accessible for his wife. Can you tell how much fun I had on this busy trip!
The most surprising documents to me were items published long after Lee’s death by groups like the United Daughters of the Confederacy. These documents rewrote or tried to suppress history to vindicate the Old South. The UDC distributed a booklet to libraries nation-wide to control what was printed about the South. It shaped Civil War memory and classroom teaching for generations. Among the reasons listed to condemn a book: “Reject a book that says the South fought to hold her slaves. Reject a book that speaks of the slaveholder of the South as cruel and unjust to his slaves. Reject a textbook that glorifies Abraham Lincoln and vilifies Jefferson Davis (President of the Confederacy).” There was also A Confederate Catechism for children belonging to The Children of the Confederacy. Kids recited lessons like this, “What did the South fight for? It fought to repel invasion and for self-government, just as the fathers of the American Revolution had done.”
This is hard to say. I felt a lot of pressure writing this book, especially after Charlottesville where a young woman was killed, and Confederate statues were in the news a lot. I needed to give readers context for Lee’s time that helps us understand our own. I needed to use Lee’s own words to help readers discover the real man, and not just the symbol that was too-good-to-be-true.
I hope that librarians and teachers will use the book to provide this context for the removal of Confederate monuments and other aspects of American history. I hope parents will buy the book for their children that love history or are fascinated by the Civil War. Honestly, I’m not sure this has happened. People who admire Lee may fear the book is not kind to him, while people who view Lee only as a traitor and enslaver may not think the book worth their while. The book received a starred review from Booklist and was a National Council for the Social Studies Notable Book, and a Bank Street College Best Book so it has gotten some recognition, which I’m grateful for.
Photo research is a fun but time-consuming part of writing history. It involves tracking down images, filling out permission forms, and often paying for images. Luckily this can be done online now. Most images in the book are from the Library of Congress, the National Archives, Washington and Lee University, and Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial. Sometimes you send an email and ask for something general, and they send you wonderful things! It’s very exciting to find just what you need or an image that you weren’t expecting, like a Union soldier’s drawing of the Arlington bedroom used by Lee’s daughters or a signed map Lee drew of Mexico City in July 1847 as an army engineer.
In the decades after the Civil War Lee became the handsome hero of the South elevated to near saint-like perfection. The ugliness of slavery couldn’t tarnish this image. So, over time, the most destructive myths about Lee became the ones dealing with slavery such as Lee didn’t own slaves and he believed in emancipation. These myths became truths in both the South and the North. Lee became this righteous symbol for the South with statues and honors celebrating his life. White Americans found these myths soothing that Lee was a kind, honorable, Christian gentleman, to be revered. It was more important to preserve the myth than to address the economic suppression, the voting rights suppression, and the murder of African Americans happening during Reconstruction and Jim Crow. The myths of Lee have hurt us as a nation.
The book addresses these myths in some detail using Lee’s own words and his actions over the course of his life. A few examples: Lee recognized that slavery was a “moral and political evil,” but he thought slavery “a greater evil to the white than to the black race.” He believed God approved of slavery to civilize Black people. Even the “painful discipline” inflicted was “necessary for their instruction as a race.” He felt slavery messy, inefficient, forcing “unwilling hands to work.” He found slaves ungrateful for the clothes and food and shelter given them. “…do not trouble yourself about them,” he once wrote his wife, “as they are not worth it.” He believed that the relation of master and slave was “the best that can exist between the white & black races.” He also offered rewards for the capture of runaway slaves and sold or loaned out slaves he labeled as troublemakers.
As for emancipation, Lee believed in “gradual” emancipation which would only come when God decided, perhaps several thousand years in the future. With Lee’s logic, if it’s God’s business, it isn’t up to white southerners or northern abolitionists to free the enslaved. He did not free his family’s enslaved people until a court ordered him to do so based on his father-in-law’s will.
What did you learn about him that was most interesting to you?
For me, the most interesting thing about any subject is their personal relationship with their families. I loved learning about Lee’s relationship with his wife and children, as well as his siblings and many cousins. For example, he loved his children and was proud of them, but his letters to them lean heavily into nagging. He preached about their behavior, doing their “duty,” hitting their studies, improving their posture, you name it, he covered it in his letters. I imagine there was some eye-rolling among the sons and daughters. When Lee’s eldest son entered West Point Lee told him he had to be number 1 in his class, “It is a fine number. Easily found & remembered. Simple and unique. Jump to it fellow!” Lee had been number 2 in his West Point class!
I never thought this biography would end up being so timely. But one way we fight racism and white supremacy is by facing and accepting truths about our past. 150 years after Lee’s death he remains in history’s spotlight. Some people claim he did not own slaves, he hated slavery, he favored emancipation, and he promoted reconciliation after the Civil War. Some people believe the Civil War was not about slavery. This book takes a close look at all these things, often using Lee’s own words as well as other historical documents. I hope it helps young people question what myths we are taught as history.
Is this a good source for teachers?
Definitely! The book is rich in primary source materials and has 28 pages of source notes, a bibliography, timeline, and Author’s Note about research. It covers a wide range of important historical topics including slavery, western expansion, secession, the Civil War, and Reconstruction—all of which still impact our country today. The book is listed for ages 10 and up, so more for middle school and high school students. I also think it makes a well-researched, quick read for adults wanting to know more about Lee and his times.
Where can interested readers find this book?
Please order it through your local bookstore or use an online bookstore like bookshop.org or Barnes and Nobel.
Do you have any other projects you are working on? Did you get much writing done during Covid? If not, how did you keep busy?
I’m tinkering with a couple manuscripts of historical fiction. I really did not write much at all during Covid. All writerly events, meetings, and critique groups were cancelled or went online. There was a disconnect for me. I seemed to spend the time doing puzzles, playing games, watching BritBox, gardening, watching news, and cooking comfort food.
What is the best book you’ve read recently?
I can’t give you just one! Recently I’ve reread some classics like Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey. I also really liked The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys and Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and for nonfiction, Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson. I also read a terrific middle grade novel called Sisters of the Neversea by Cynthia Leitich Smith that’s a retelling of Peter Pan from an Indigenous perspective.
What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday afternoon?
It depends on the time of year, but usually puttering around the house or garden, reading, watching sports or home and garden shows, and later, playing cards or games with friends or family.
Brandon also loves to travel, read, play games, drink tea, watch old movies, talk, and although she likes cats, considers herself a dog person. More information may be found on her website at www.brandonmariemiller.com.