He was a great general for awhile, but he lost his way as the war wore on. He's not a Top 10 general when you consider Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Genghis Khan, Napoleon, Gustavus Adolphus, etc. He made some serious tactical mistakes and fought on when it was clear that the war couldn't be won.

If he was so great, how come he lost the war???? Poor oppressed Southerners, can't get over the fact that they lost.

When he started at West Point didn't he take an oath to protect, preserve and defend the constitution of the United States ?

If you don't like him, it's because you might have a extreme dislike of the Confederacy, which he was with, but his character, morale, military skills, and discipline are the best this country has seen.

Very strong and charasmatic leader!His confidence got him in trouble at times.Would have defeated the North with equal resources.

the bytch of the civil war. nothing like being the punk slave trader who had to surrender to Grant.

Should really be on top with Stonewall second, Lee+Stonewall=Undefeatable (That sums it all up).

Bah. After Stonewall died Lee never won another battle.

As a Civil War Veteran, I can unequivocally say that Robert E. Lee was a punk.

Robert E. Lee is not the best general on this list, but he was a man of solid character. Obviously I'm not downplaying his abilities, he was an excellent tactican who could do with very little if need be. A war hero during the Mexican American War, he distinguished himself by finding weaknesses in the Mexican armies flanks; he found routes that were not defended and thought to be unpassable. Lee made use of this and he mounted a successful attack. Like any great military leader, he was willing to take a risk. Later at the beginning of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln had selected him to lead the Union Army, but Lee rejected this due to his loyalty to his native Virginia. Lee went on to become a highly distinguished general in the Confederate Army. It was clear that the North had numerical and industrial superiority, but the South had a incredible amount of talent within its military ranks such as Stonewall Jackson, a daring commander who utilized divide and conquer stategies very well. Initially during the Civil War, Lee was highly successful, his exploits in the Battle of Second Manassas and during the Seven Days campaign were legendary. Lee's ultimate goal was to force the North to accept Confederate independence. Initially he had to pull back after the Battle of Antietam in Maryland, but after a series of failed offensives on the part of a numerically superior North, Lee decided to push his hand by attacking Pennsylvania; ultimately it did prove to a be a major failure for Lee. A new Union general, Ulysses Grant, proved to be fairly aggressive against Lee's army. They were forced into a defensive line near the capital of Richmond, Virginia. In a last ditch attempt to rejuvinate the Confederate Army, Lee sought in early 1865 to include slaves in the fighting force, but his request was never granted; he actually really didn't support slavery or even secession. At this point however, the fight was all but over. A new offensive against Richmond was on and Lee's army couldn't resist, the South's forces were stretched thin throughout the rest of the region. He surrendered on April 1865, defeated but still having possession of his honor. What Lee will be remembered most for is his integrity and character. He was someone who never had a single demerit when he was in school, who conducted him with humility at every turn, he never claimed to know it all or even made much of his own talents. Lee knew that in joining the Confederate army he would face an uphill battle against better armed opponents, yet he fought valiently, effectively and efficiently. He really the North a fight, even though he lost his exploits will always be remembered. On a side note, Lee was a strong advocate for education; as superintendent of West Point during the 1850's he helped to improve the facilities and the quality of the curriculum. An even more telling tale of his character came after the Civil War when he accepted a job with a small college rather than taking a $50,000 position, a large sum in his day. His explanation was that I have led the young men of the South in battle. I must teach their sons to discharge their duty in life. He might not have joined the right side in the Civil War, but Robert E. Lee was a great American who deserves his due.

Great character. Good strategist. Of course the south was right in many ways. Have you ever studied the constitution. The states have most of the power. Plus the war was not over slavrey but the states right to govern themselves. God bless him. Kids today need to turn out like he instead of Smoking,drug-heads, drunkerds it goes on and on. This world is coming to an end.

He knew he was fighting a losing cause when he took command of the Army of Northern Virginia, but did his duty to his country anyway... Maybe not the absolute best tactician, but probably a better leader of men than any general in history...

Robert E. Lee was leader of the whole U. S. Army before the War beteen the State.

Lee was a very educated individual, he finished near the top of his West Point class. Many people like Stonewall, but I think it's because of his nickname. His strategies against the north nearly won him the war. Similar to Hannibal and Rommel, his victories against superior forces in a losing cause made him as famous as, if not more famous than, the general who defeated him. Had the south been more industrial at the time of the war, also, Lee may have won.

A good military leader, not a great one. Many of his supporters make the mistake of confusing his military prowess --B+ to A- at best--with his human qualities (and he was a FAR finer human being than any of history's great military leaders, Alexander, Hannibal, Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon). He did a lot with what he had, and most importantly he was better than any of the Union generals who opposed him, but he was no Napoleon.

Robert E. Lee was the epitome of the great tactician and risk taker who could win battles against incredible odds (eg the Seven Days leading to Second Bull Run and Chancellorsville). Knowing when to take chances, Lee single handily prolonged the American Civil War. Lee also quickly realized that the tactics of Napoleon which were taught at West Point were not going to suffice with the improvements in infantry weapons. Robert E. Lee finished 2nd in his class as West Point.

Lee Fought for what he loved most, his home. As it turned out, the state that his home was in durring the war was not a member of the United States, therefore his actions were not traitorous. As for marconej and myownangelicself Lee was not fighting for slavery. If you had actually done some research you would know that he was seriously thinking about being a general for the north, and did not join the southern states untill the day that his own state joined the confederacy. He ownwed slaves but did not torture them. I do not know where that myth got started but it is horribly not true. To add to this, the North was not fighting over slavery. While some northerners, including the president, were abolishionists, most didn't want slavery in the north because they didn't want black people in their area, period. The reason the war was fought was not because of slavery, but because of a fight between national individuality and unity. So get it right before you sling insults at the great general.

Lee deserves credit for being a daring general, who defied convention and kept his enemies guessing. But in some cases his aggresive tactics cost the South more lives than she could afford to give, leaving him vulnerable to attrition. While the odds against him in the civil war were fairly difficult to overcome, greater victories have been scored in the past - ie US Colonies vs. Great Britian, US vs. Vietnam. He deserves 3 stars as a person for defending his home country, but he scored most of his major victories against 3rd rate Northern Generals. Again, ahead of his time without a doubt, but not a true 5 star who would've found a way to drag the war on longer (Guerilla Warfare, perhaps?)

Great General. But he fought for SLAVERY - where's the honor in that???

man, Lee was AWEFUL! the man tortured his slaves, http://templeofdemocracy.com/LeeWhipping.htm, and he commited a traitorous act when he put his state over his country.

He was a decent man, just fought for the wrong side. But it irks me in this time of newfound patriotism, that so many Southerners seem to think of themselves as Confederates first, Americans second. The Confederacy was a nation conceived in opposition to the United States, and although they constitutionally had the right to leave, I ask them, if the South had won the Civil War, would their lives be better off? Like Jesus and Abe Lincoln said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand."

Man this guy was a military genius.

What many fail to realize, first and foremost about Robert E. Lee is that he personally was not an advocate of slavery. As so many people on this board pointed out, the war was not entirely about slavery itself. Robert E. Lee planned on accepting an offer to be the Commanding General of the Union. However, when his home state, Virginia, seceded from the Union to the Confederacy, he offered his services to Jefferson Davis. Had Lee commanded the Union Army, with his brilliant military saavy and an army as large as that of the Union, the war would have been over much sooner. Lee's greatest victory was the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. Lee was faced with a much larger army of Union soldiers. Lee and his most trusted officer, Stonewall Jackson, divided their forces and through a forced march around the Union soldiers and crushed the Union forces once again. His greatest defeat came at Gettysburg, but in all actuality, with the brutality which swelled during that battle, no particular army could actually claim victory. Lee surrendered in an honorable way in 1865 in Virginia. Lee was indeed a great military leader who was able to beat the Union in a series of contested battles for the first two years of the war. He took the Confederate Army, small in numbers compared to the Union Army, and trained them to be soldiers. Regardless as to which side he was on, he was a very intellegent leader, and perhaps, if he had not been so consumed by his "loss" at Gettysburg, and had the Union not brought in the equally competent General Ulysses S. Grant, the South may have prevailed.

Extremely brilliant soldier. Possesed strategies that kept a very superior army at bay for years. He deserves to be up on the top of the list.

The Gray Fox....nuff said

An icon and hero for now and the future. His example is clearly under-rated. The War between the States is the least of his accomplishments. His life after the War is the example for study. God bless Robert E Lee. Too bad character isn't valued lately.

Apparently, no one has heard of the Bell Curve. He was a very good general; but not the best.

Bob Lee was a great general. A confederate he may be, but he was honorable despite of it. The thing that most people (especially northerners) dont understand is that this war was for more than just slavery. This war was about a lot of political advantages that the North had (factories, ports, money). The south didnt like how their cotton would be shipped up north, and they would have to buy it at an expensive rate. This wasnt all about slavery. The confederates werent bad people. I am not saying that they were correct, but I am just straightening out the issue. And dont even bring the KKK into this issue. The biggest KKK state is Indiana, and has been Indiana, which at the time, was a northern state. That is not a good argument at all. But anyways, Robert E. Lee was one of the best generals in history, albeit, he should have listened to Longstreet up at the Battle of Gettysberg, but he was still great.

Amazing that he led his army for as long as he did considering the circumstances. The South's revolution shouldnt have lasted that long, but the North's leadership was incompetent. If you havent, read up on this guy, especially about him before the Civil War...he really was an interesting person.

The man did what he felt he had to do. I don't begrudge his wanting to defend his own state. I suppose I would defend my family too if I had ben in his position. Nevertheless, he did raise arms against his own country (read: the UNITED STATES of AMERICA, NOT the "Country of Virginia." I believe in a strong federal system, and Lee was simply on the wrong side! As the Unionists sang to the tune of "Dixie": "Each Dixie boy must understand/That he must mind his Uncle Sam." This lesson Lee and the Southrons failed to comprehend. No wonder they're still mad at the Union. My ancestors fought for New York, Ohio, and Iowa, and fact of the matter is: THE SOUTH LOST! YANKEES RULE!!! AMERICA, BAY-BEE!!!!

At Sharpsburg he was fortunate to of faced a timid leader in Mcelland.He sould of lost there.At chancellorsville he was up against a complete nitwit who ignored picket reports ,and at Gettysburg he was dam lucky Mead was timid in not sending the sixth corps to crush him.or even purse him on july 4/5th decent human being ,fortunate as a general at most.

The beloved Leader of the Confederate army.