First published 2014
Michael Korda delivers a complete portrait of Robert E. Lee, the Confederate general who remains both celebrated and misunderstood in American memory. The New York Times bestselling author reveals Lee as a complex figure who opposed slavery and secession yet refused command of Union forces because loyalty to Virginia trumped all other considerations. Korda traces Lee's Civil War leadership through major campaigns, analyzing his tactical brilliance alongside strategic failures that prolonged the conflict. The biography examines Lee's role in the costly stalemate at Antietam and his crushing defeat at Gettysburg, while exploring the controversies that still surround these battles. Beyond the battlefield, Korda shows Lee as a devoted husband and father whose personal dignity and military skill earned respect from both North and South. This single-volume study combines military analysis with character study, supported by dozens of illustrations and detailed battle maps that bring the Civil War to vivid life.
Genres: biography, american-civil-war, historical, 20th-century, american, military-history, 19th-century, american-history
Vibes: emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: character-study
Setting: Antietam, Gettysburg, Virginia
Period: Civil War
785 pages · Hardcover · Harper