Lee Considered: General Robert E. Lee and Civil War History

by Alan T. Nolan

Overview

Of all the heroes produced by the Civil War, Robert E. Lee is the most revered and perhaps the most misunderstood. Lee is widely portrayed as an ardent antisecessionist who left the United States Army only because he would not draw his sword against his native Virginia, a Southern aristocrat who opposed slavery, and a brilliant military leader whose exploits sustained the Confederate cause.

Alan Nolan explodes these and other assumptions about Lee and the war through a rigorous reexamination of familiar and long-available historical sources, including Lee's personal and official correspondence and the large body of writings about Lee. Looking at this evidence in a critical way, Nolan concludes that there is little truth to the dogmas traditionally set forth about Lee and the war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807866092
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	06/01/2010
Series:	Civil War America
Edition description:	Large Print
Pages:	243
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	1430L (what's this?)

About the Author

Alan T. Nolan, an Indianapolis lawyer, is author of The Iron Brigade, a military history, and As Sounding Brass, a novel.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

This book will change our perception of the South's premier icon. With a deft pen and a sure grasp of the essential questions, Alan Nolan separates the Lee of reality from the Lee of mythology. No student of the Civil War can afford to ignore the challenging and controversial conclusions of this study.—James M. McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Battle Cry of Freedom: The Era of the Civil War



Nolan doesn't question Lee's undeniable greatness. [He] subjects the sources to brutal cross examinations. . . . His purpose is to place Lee within his proper historical context. . . . Nolan asks the right questions about Lee, especially his generalship.—Peter S. Carmichael, Civil War Times



Nolan dethrones the myth of 'the Marble Man' with meticulous research.—New Republic



Any future author dealing with Lee will have to face up to Nolan's material and we will all be the better for it.—Washington Post



General readers as well as Civil War buffs will enjoy serving as the jury for Mr. Nolan's case, evaluating the documents and incidents he presents as evidence for his conclusions. His argument is a persuasive one, artfully fashioned to stimulate the critical assessment he seeks.—New York Times Book Review



Alan Nolan has rendered an invaluable service in training a judicious lens on various elements of the traditional interpretation of Robert E. Lee. Was Lee a reluctant convert to secession? Did he oppose the institution of slavery? Did he abhor war, hold no bitterness toward his northern opponents, and urge reconciliation after Appomattox? Did Lee's record on the battlefield justify his towering military reputation? Nolan's rigorous examination of the evidence suggests answers that cannot be dismissed lightly and certainly will provoke controversy. Lee Considered should be required reading for anyone who would understand the Confederacy's most famous soldier.—Gary W. Gallagher

Editorial Reviews

"This book will change our perception of the South's premier icon. With a deft pen and a sure grasp of the essential questions, Alan Nolan separates the Lee of reality from the Lee of mythology. No student of the Civil War can afford to ignore the challenging and controversial conclusions of this study."—James M. McPherson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Battle Cry of Freedom: The Era of the Civil War

"Nolan doesn't question Lee's undeniable greatness. [He] subjects the sources to brutal cross examinations. . . . His purpose is to place Lee within his proper historical context. . . . Nolan asks the right questions about Lee, especially his generalship."—Peter S. Carmichael, Civil War Times

"Nolan dethrones the myth of 'the Marble Man' with meticulous research."—New Republic

"Any future author dealing with Lee will have to face up to Nolan's material and we will all be the better for it."—Washington Post

"General readers as well as Civil War buffs will enjoy serving as the jury for Mr. Nolan's case, evaluating the documents and incidents he presents as evidence for his conclusions. His argument is a persuasive one, artfully fashioned to stimulate the critical assessment he seeks."—New York Times Book Review

From the Publisher

Lawyer and historian Nolan considers how the historical Lee differed from the legends about him. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Marching in the tracks of such historians as Bruce Catton, Thomas Connelly, and T. Harry Williams, Nolan tries to unhorse the mythic Lee. In pointing out the contradictions between the legend and the man, Nolan shows that Lee the slaveholder was not antislavery, that the reluctant secessionist endorsed Southern independence, that the general lost the war by his repeated offensive thrusts and provincial vision--and more. Lawyer Nolan's brief challenges all the commonplaces by insisting that we look at the record rather than the legend in viewing the man, and through him, the war itself. Nolan's debunking is less original than he claims, and his own reading of Lee is somewhat idiosyncratic. But he makes a forceful case for rethinking Lee and all the myths his memory has draped over the Lost Cause. A provocative book, highly recommended for university and major public libraries.-- Randall Miller, St. Jo seph's Univ., Philadelphia

Library Journal

In this unorthodox consideration of Lee's career, Nolan explodes many longstanding assumptions about Lee and the war, viewing Lee as a strategically limited general and as a Southerner who did not differ greatly in his social and political views from others of his class and region. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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