Editing Robert E. Lee (section)

===Monuments, memorials and commemorations===
{{See also|List of memorials to Robert E. Lee}}

Lee opposed the construction of public memorials to Confederate rebellion on the grounds that they would prevent the healing of wounds inflicted during the war.<ref name="Romero">Simon Romero, [https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/22/us/lee-family-confederate-monuments-legacy.html {{"'}}The Lees Are Complex': Descendants Grapple With a Rebel General's Legacy"], ''The New York Times'' (August 22, 2017).</ref> Nevertheless, after his death, he became an icon used by promoters of "[[Lost Cause of the Confederacy|Lost Cause]]" mythology, who sought to romanticize the Confederate cause and strengthen [[white supremacy]] in the South.<ref name="Romero"/> Later in the 20th century, particularly following the [[civil rights movement]], historians reassessed Lee; his reputation fell based on his failure to support rights for [[Freedman|freedmen]] after the war, and even his strategic choices as a military leader fell under scrutiny.<ref name="Foner"/><ref>{{Cite news |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/05/19/the-truth-about-confederate-gen-robert-e-lee-he-wasnt-very-good-at-his-job/ |title= Analysis {{!}} The truth about Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee: He wasn't very good at his job |last=Rosenwald |first=Michael S. |date=October 8, 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date= October 9, 2017 |issn= 0190-8286}}</ref>

[[File:Arlington House front view.JPG|thumb|Facade view of Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial — at Arlington National Cemetery, in Virginia, pictured in 2006]]

[[Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial]], also known as the Custis–Lee Mansion,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/today/may13.html|title=Today in History: May 13: Arlington National Cemetery |publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|access-date=August 22, 2011}}</ref> is a [[Greek Revival architecture|Greek revival]] mansion in Arlington, Virginia, that was once Lee's home. It overlooks the [[Potomac River]] and the [[National Mall]] in Washington, D.C. During the Civil War, the grounds of the mansion were selected as the site of [[Arlington National Cemetery]], in part to ensure that Lee would never again be able to return to his home. The United States designated the mansion as a [[National Memorial (United States)|National Memorial]] to Lee in 1955, a mark of widespread respect for him in both the [[Northern United States|North]] and [[Southern United States|South]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Arlington_House |title=Arlington House |website=Encyclopedia Virginia |access-date=June 13, 2014}}</ref>

[[File:1890 Lee statue unveiling.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Unveiling of the Equestrian Statue of Robert E. Lee, May 29, 1890, Richmond, Virginia]]

In Richmond, Virginia, a [[Robert E. Lee Monument (Richmond, Virginia)|large equestrian statue of Lee]] by French sculptor [[Jean Antonin Mercié]] was the centerpiece of [[Monument Avenue]], along with four other statues of Confederates. This monument to Lee was unveiled on May 29, 1890; over 100,000 people attended this dedication. That has been described as "the day white Virginia stopped admiring Gen. Robert E. Lee and started worshiping him".<ref>{{cite news |title=The day white Virginia stopped admiring Gen. Robert E. Lee and started worshiping him |first=Steve |last=Hendrix |date=October 8, 2017 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/08/22/the-day-white-virginia-stopped-admiring-gen-robert-e-lee-and-started-worshipping-him/}}</ref> The four other Confederate statues were removed in 2020, and the equestrian statue of Lee was removed on September 8, 2021, at the direction of the state government.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/article/robert-e-lee-statue-virginia-removed-92955a351d9fda6319f379ddc28df8a0 |title=Statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee comes down in Virginia capital |last=Rankin |first=Sarah |publisher=apnews.com|date=September 8, 2021|access-date=September 8, 2021}}</ref>

Lee is also shown mounted on Traveller in [[Gettysburg National Military Park]] on top of the Virginia Monument; he is facing roughly in the direction of [[Pickett's Charge]]. Lee's portrayal on a mural on Richmond's [[flood wall]] on the [[James River]], considered offensive by some, was removed in the late 1990s, but currently is back on the flood wall.

In [[Baltimore]]'s Wyman Park, a large double equestrian statue of Lee and Jackson is located directly across from the Baltimore Museum of Art. Designed by Laura Gardin Fraser and dedicated in 1948, Lee is depicted astride his horse Traveller next to Stonewall Jackson who is mounted on "Little Sorrel". Architect John Russell Pope created the base, which was dedicated on the anniversary of the eve of the [[Battle of Chancellorsville]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Outdoor Sculpture in Baltimore: A Historical Guide to Public Art in the Monumental City|last=Kelly|first=Cindy|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|location=Baltimore, MD|year=2011|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_sdQNyf4q-IC&q=wyman%20park%20russell%20pope%20lee&pg=PA198|pages=198–199|isbn=978-0801897221}}</ref> The Baltimore area of [[Maryland]] is also home to a large nature park called [[Robert E. Lee Memorial Park]].

[[File:Stone mountain closeup mosaic crop.jpg|thumb|[[Jefferson Davis]], Lee, and Stonewall Jackson at [[Stone Mountain#Confederate Memorial Carving|Stone Mountain]]]]

A statue of Robert E. Lee was one of the two statues (the other is George Washington) representing [[Virginia]] in [[National Statuary Hall|Statuary Hall]] in the [[United States Capitol|U.S. Capitol]] in Washington, D.C. It was removed from the Capitol on December 21, 2020, after a state commission voted to replace it with a statue of Civil Rights activist [[Barbara Rose Johns]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Robert E. Lee statue removed from U.S. Capitol|date=December 21, 2020 |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/robert-e-lee-statue-removed-u-s-capitol-n1251925|access-date=April 3, 2021 |publisher=NBC News}}</ref> Lee is one of the figures depicted in [[bas-relief]] carved into [[Stone Mountain]] near [[Atlanta]]. Accompanying him on horseback in the relief are Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stonemountainpark.org/text/Stone%20Mountain%20History.pdf|title=Stone Mountain History|publisher=Stone Mountain Memorial Association|access-date=June 13, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141228085242/http://www.stonemountainpark.org/text/Stone%20Mountain%20History.pdf|archive-date=December 28, 2014}}</ref>

The birthday of Robert E. Lee is celebrated or commemorated in several states. In Texas, he is celebrated as part of [[Confederate Memorial Day|Confederate Heroes Day]] on January 19, Lee's birthday.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/GV/htm/GV.662.htm|title=Chapter 662. Holidays and Recognition Days, Weeks, and Months|publisher=Texas Legislature|access-date=June 11, 2014}}</ref> In Alabama and Mississippi, his birthday is celebrated on the same day as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/alcode/1/3/1-3-8|title=Alabama Code – Section 1-3-8|work=FindLaw|access-date=June 11, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sos.ms.gov/education_and_publications_holidays.aspx|title=State Holidays|publisher=Mississippi Secretary of State|access-date=June 11, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140625101840/http://www.sos.ms.gov/education_and_publications_holidays.aspx|archive-date=June 25, 2014}}</ref> while in Georgia, this occurred on the day after Thanksgiving before 2016, when the state stopped officially recognizing the holiday.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://georgia.gov/popular-topic/observing-state-holidays|publisher=GeorgiaGov|title=Observing State Holidays|access-date=June 11, 2014|archive-date=February 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170226175333/https://georgia.gov/popular-topic/observing-state-holidays|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/10/georgia_does_away_with_confede.html |title=Georgia does away with Confederate Memorial Day, Robert E. Lee Birthday |last=Gore |first=Leada |date=October 16, 2015 |work=AL.com |access-date=August 18, 2017 }}</ref> In Virginia, [[Lee–Jackson Day]] was celebrated on the Friday preceding [[Martin Luther King, Jr. Day]] which is the third Monday in January,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.has.vcu.edu/mac/cns/on-the-lege-2000/holiday.htm |title=Virginia creates holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr |access-date=June 11, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100711171616/http://www.has.vcu.edu/mac/cns/on-the-lege-2000/holiday.htm |archive-date=July 11, 2010}}</ref> until 2020, when the Virginia legislature eliminated the holiday, making Election Day a state holiday instead.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Stewart |first=Caleb |title=A roundup of new Virginia laws taking effect in July |work=WHSV |url=https://www.nbc29.com/2020/06/26/roundup-new-virginia-laws-taking-effect-start-july/ |access-date=August 3, 2020}}</ref>

One United States college and one junior college are named for Lee: [[Washington and Lee University]] in Lexington, Virginia; and [[Lee College]] in Baytown, Texas, respectively. [[University Chapel]] at Washington and Lee University marks Lee's final resting place. Throughout the South, many primary and secondary schools were also named for him as well as private schools such as [[Robert E. Lee Academy]] in Bishopville, South Carolina.

Lee is featured on the 1925 [[Stone Mountain Memorial half dollar]].

<gallery class="center">
File:Lee r.jpg|''[[Robert E. Lee (Valentine)|Robert E. Lee]]'', [[National Statuary Hall]], Washington, D.C. [[Edward Virginius Valentine]], sculptor, 1909
File:Robert-E-Lee-by-Sievers.jpg|Robert E Lee, [[Virginia]] Monument, [[Gettysburg, Pennsylvania]], [[Frederick William Sievers]], sculptor, 1917
File:Monument Ave Robert E. Lee.jpg|[[Robert E. Lee Monument (Richmond, Virginia)|Robert E. Lee Monument]] by [[Mercié]], Monument Avenue, [[Richmond, Virginia]], 1890
File:Lee4.JPG|Statue of Lee at the [[Confederate War Memorial (Dallas)|Confederate War Memorial]], Dallas, 1896
File:Confederate Monument in Murray cropped.JPG|Statue of Lee in [[Murray, Kentucky]]
File:Lee Chapel.jpg|[[University Chapel]] on the campus of [[Washington and Lee University]]
</gallery>

[[File:CSSRobertELee.jpg|thumb|CSS ''Robert E. Lee'']]
In 1862, the newly formed Confederate Navy purchased a 642-ton iron-hulled side-wheel gunboat, built in at Glasgow, Scotland, and gave her the name of [[CSS Robert E. Lee|CSS ''Robert E. Lee'']] in honor of this Confederate General. During the next year, she became one of the South's most famous [[Blockade runners of the American Civil War|Confederate blockade runners]], successfully making more than twenty runs through the Union blockade.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Konstam|first1=Angus|last2=Bryan|first2=Tony|title=Confederate Blockade Runner 1861–65|publisher=Osprey Publishing|location=Wisconsin|page=48|year=2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pO8VeEgAk0QC|isbn=978-1841766362}}{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

The [[Mississippi River]] [[steamboat]] ''[[Robert E. Lee (steamboat)|Robert E. Lee]]'' was named for Lee after the Civil War. It was the participant in an 1870 [[St. Louis]]&nbsp;– [[New Orleans]] race with the ''Natchez VI'', which was featured in a [[Currier and Ives]] lithograph. The ''Robert E. Lee'' won the race.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Great American Steamboat Race: The Natchez and the Robert E. Lee and the Climax of an Era|last=Patterson|first=Benton Rain|publisher=McFarland and Company|location=Jefferson, NC|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7864-4292-8}}</ref> The steamboat inspired the 1912 song ''[[Waiting for the Robert E. Lee]]'' by [[Lewis F. Muir]] and [[L. Wolfe Gilbert]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/composition/waiting-for-the-robert-e-lee-mc0002559402|title=Waiting for the Robert E. Lee|website=allmusic|access-date=June 13, 2014}}</ref> In more modern times, the {{USS|Robert E. Lee|SSBN-601|6}}, a {{sclass|George Washington|submarine}} built in 1958, was named for Lee,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ssbn601.com/history_Overview.asp|title=USS Robert E. Lee Historical Overview|access-date=June 13, 2014|archive-date=July 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714231126/http://www.ssbn601.com/history_Overview.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref> as was the [[M3 Lee]] tank, produced in 1941 and 1942.

The Commonwealth of [[Virginia]] issues an optional [[license plate]] honoring Lee, making reference to him as 'The Virginia Gentleman'.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scvva.org/relee_plate.htm|title=Robert E. Lee Commemorative License Plates|publisher=Sons of Confederate Veterans, Virginia Division|access-date=June 12, 2014|archive-date=September 2, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140902215520/http://www.scvva.org/relee_plate.htm|url-status=usurped}}</ref> In February 2014, a road at [[Fort Bliss]] previously named for Lee was renamed to honor [[Buffalo Soldier]]s.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_25176180/fort-bliss-rename-robert-e-lee-road-honor|title=Fort Bliss to rename Robert E. Lee Road to honor Buffalo Soldiers|first=David|last=Burge|newspaper=[[El Paso Times]]|date=February 19, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20141021055037/http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_25176180/fort-bliss-rename-robert-e-lee-road-honor|archive-date=October 21, 2014|access-date=October 21, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.kvia.com/news/ft-bliss-renames-street-buffalo-soldier-road/24592474|date=February 20, 2014|title=Ft. Bliss renames street Buffalo Soldier Road|first=Andrew J.|last=Polk|access-date=October 21, 2014|archive-date=October 21, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021094147/http://www.kvia.com/news/ft-bliss-renames-street-buffalo-soldier-road/24592474|url-status=dead}}</ref>

A recent biographer, Jonathan Horn, outlines the unsuccessful efforts in Washington to memorialize Lee in the naming of the [[Arlington Memorial Bridge]] after both Grant and Lee.<ref>Horn, Jonathan. (2015). ''The Man who would not be Washington: Robert E. Lee's Civil War and his decision that changed American History''. New York: Scribner. p.&nbsp;249. {{ISBN|978-1-4767-4856-6}}.</ref>

====Unite the Right rally and removal of monuments====
[[File:Lee Removal.jpg|thumb|left|The removal of Lee's statue from [[Robert E. Lee Monument (New Orleans, Louisiana)|a monument]] in New Orleans]]
In February 2017, the City Council of [[Charlottesville, Virginia]], voted to remove a [[Robert Edward Lee (sculpture)|sculpture of Lee]], who has no historical link to the city, as well as one of Stonewall Jackson. This was temporarily stayed by court action, though the city did rename Lee Park: first to Emancipation Park, then later to Market Street Park.<ref>{{cite web|title=City Council Meeting (video)|date=July 18, 2018|access-date=October 25, 2018|url=http://charlottesville.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=1308&meta_id=31074}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> The prospect of the statues being removed and the parks being renamed brought many out-of-towners, described as [[white supremacist]] and [[alt-right]], to Charlottesville in the [[Unite the Right rally]] of August 2017, in which 3 people died. As of July 2021, the statue [[Robert E. Lee Monument (Charlottesville, Virginia)#Removal|has been permanently removed]]. The statue was melted in October 2023.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Neus |first=Nora |date=October 26, 2023 |title=Robert E Lee statue that sparked Charlottesville riot is melted down: 'Like his face was crying' |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/oct/26/charlottesville-robert-e-lee-melted-confederate-statue |access-date=October 27, 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

[[File:Robert E Lee Stain Glass.JPG|thumb|150px|[[Stained glass]] of Lee's life in the [[Washington National Cathedral|National Cathedral]] (removed in 2017)]]
Several other statues and monuments to Lee were removed in the aftermath of the incident, including:
* A {{convert|60|ft|m|0|adj=on}}-tall [[Robert E. Lee Monument (New Orleans, Louisiana)|monument]] in the center of [[Lee Circle]] (formerly Tivoli Circle) in [[New Orleans]]. Installed in 1884, it featured a {{convert|16.5|ft|adj=on}} bronze statue of Lee on a marble column. Former Confederate soldier [[George Washington Cable]] described it in a tribute: "His arms are folded on that breast that never knew fear, and his calm, dauntless gaze meets the morning sun as it rises."<ref>''Silent South'', 1885, The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine</ref> The statue was removed on May 19, 2017, the last of four Confederate monuments in New Orleans to be taken down.<ref name="guardian-19may2017">{{cite news|title=New Orleans removes its final Confederate-era statue|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/19/new-orleans-robert-e-lee-statue-removed-confederacy|access-date=May 22, 2017|agency=Associated Press|newspaper=The Guardian|date=May 19, 2017}}</ref>
* A [[stained-glass window]] in the [[Washington National Cathedral]], showing Lee on horseback at [[Battle of Chancellorsville|Chancellorsville]], as well as one in honor of Stonewall Jackson.<ref name="Boorstein">Michelle Boorstein, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/09/06/washington-national-cathedral-to-remove-stained-glass-windows-honoring-robert-e-lee-stonewall-jackson/ Washington National Cathedral to remove stained glass windows honoring Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson], ''Washington Post'' (September 6, 2017).</ref> Sponsored by the [[United Daughters of the Confederacy]], they were installed in 1953 and removed in September 2017.<ref>Bill Chappell, [https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/09/06/548929726/national-cathedral-is-removing-stained-glass-windows-honoring-confederate-leader National Cathedral Is Removing Stained-Glass Windows Honoring Confederate Leaders], NPR (September 6, 2017).</ref> The cathedral plans to keep the windows and eventually display them in historical context.<ref name="Boorstein"/>
* A bust of Lee in the [[Hall of Fame for Great Americans]] (the first Hall of Fame in the United States, completed 1900), in what is now [[Bronx Community College]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rosenberg |first1=Zoe |title=Confederate general busts at Bronx Community College will be removed (updated) |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/8/16/16158414/bronx-community-college-confederate-busts-nyc |website=[[Curbed]] |language=en |date=August 16, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Barron |first1=James |title=Why the Hall of Fame for Great Americans Is 'At Risk' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/05/nyregion/hall-of-fame-bronx-sculptures.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=November 5, 2018}}</ref>
* [[Statue of Robert E. Lee (Austin, Texas)|A bronze statue of Lee]] which had been on display at the [[University of Texas at Austin]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/21/us/texas-austin-confederate-statues.html|title=University of Texas at Austin Removes Confederate Statues in Overnight Operation|first=Jonah Engel|last=Bromwich|date=August 21, 2017|access-date=August 21, 2017|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/university-texas-removes-four-confederate-statues-overnight-n794411|title=University of Texas removes four Confederate statues overnight|newspaper=[[NBC News]]|agency=Associated Press|date=August 21, 2017|access-date=August 21, 2017}}</ref> and [[Robert E. Lee (Proctor)|another]], with his horse Traveller, in Robert E. Lee Park in [[Dallas]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Curry |first1=Rex |title=Dallas removes Robert E. Lee's statue from city park |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-dallas-statue/dallas-removes-robert-e-lees-statue-from-city-park-idUSKCN1BQ07Z |website=[[Reuters]] |language=en |date=September 15, 2017}}</ref>