by Scott Shaddox

Created on: August 06, 2009   Last Updated: July 19, 2010

The prosecution of Robert Edward Lee for treasonous acts would have been unsuccessful. In fact, a trial would have opened a new front in the fight to calm the discontent still simmering in the reunited nation. Lee lived his entire life in pursuit of the virtues of honor, integrity, and duty. He was revered in the former Confederacy and respected in the north for his high character and military prowess. To convict Lee as a traitor would have been a monumental task, and an outcome evidence wouldn't have allowed.

Robert E. Lee was a man of infallible character. The Lee family was well known throughout Virginia and the United States for their patriotism and devotion to duty. Lee's father, "Light Horse" Harry Lee was a Revolutionary War hero and former Governor of Virginia. As a young man, Robert followed the course set by his father in regard to military service. He graduated second in his West Point class of 1829 without a single demerit. Lee went on to serve 32 years in the United States Armed Forces, distinguishing himself to his superiors in the Mexican-American conflict. By 1861, Lee was regarded as one of the most outstanding soldiers in the nation, and by many accounts, the first name on that select list .

As cries for secession grew louder, Lee spoke against it. He believed secession was counter to the dreams of the founding fathers. However, Americans living in the 19th century placed loyalty to their state ahead of loyalty to the collective union of states. In his letter to Winfield Scott, resigning from the United States Army, Lee demonstrated this when he said; "save in the defense of my native State I never desire again to draw my sword." For Lee the choice was difficult but clear, duty and honor required him to follow the lead of his native state; the Commonwealth of Virginia.

As Confederate forces were subdued and the Confederate Government dissolved, Lee pledged renewed allegiance to the United States. As a result of the high regard former Confederates had for Lee, his immediate call for unity helped limit the amount of southern resistance. In 1865, Lee applied for a complete pardon and signed an oath of allegiance to the United States government. His actions helped lead the way for other former Rebels to pursue reunification and resolution over dissolution and conflict.

A trial to convict Robert E. Lee for treason would have been the "trial of the 19th century." The Government of the United States would have found it very difficult to obtain a conviction of Lee. If a condemnation had come, the repercussions would have been devastating to a nation reunited in name only. Resentments found in most homes in the south would have grown deeper with Lee exiled to a northern prison. The Reconstruction Era would have lasted longer and proven more difficult if Lee had been determined a traitor by the victorious Union. In the end, the benefits of a conviction would not have outweighed the destructiveness of that result. Robert Edward Lee deserved better. Duty and honor would compel the United States to allow this great American to live the remainder of his life in peace.

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