Robert E. Lee

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Roy Blount, Jr

Iconic Virginian, brilliant general, and complex human being---that last aspect of Robert E. Lee has daunted biographers and been disregarded by partisans. Now Roy Blount Jr. combines acute character insight with lively storytelling and full-hearted Southern directness to craft this unique portrait. Fascinated by what made Lee such a charismatic, though reluctant, leader, Blount delves into the influences of Lee's illustrious but scandal-clouded ancestry, his hero-turned-scapegrace father, and his beloved, beautiful, husband-forsaken mother. In 1861 Lee was Lincoln's first choice to lead the Union troops, but his Virginia roots drew him, instead, to Confederate command. Blount vividly conveys Lee's audacity and uncanny successes in battle, and also his humility, his quirky humor (certain jokes in particular), his faults as a communicator, and his sorrowful sense of responsibility for his outnumbered, half-starved army. Robert E. Lee, the first brief biography of this American legend, will appeal to history and military buffs, students of Southern culture, and every reader curious about the makeup of a man born to be a myth.

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Richard M. McMurry

This book focuses on John Bell Hood, a native of Kentucky bred on romantic notions of the Old South and determined to model himself on Robert E. Lee. Hood had a tragic military career, no less interesting for being calamitous. After conspicuous bravery in leading a Texas brigade, he rose in the ranks to become the youngest of the full generals of the Confederacy. The misfortune in store for Hood, a far better fighter than a strategist, illustrates the strain and risks of high command. One of the lasting images to come out of the Civil War is that of the one-legged General Hood strapped in his saddle, leading his men in a hopeless counter-offensive against Sherman's march on Atlanta.

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James I. Robertson, Jr

"A.P. Hill, whose name was on the lips of both Lee and Jackson as they lay dying, but whose highly important military career has been neglected by biographers, has been brought brilliantly to life in this book. With much new material, Dr. Robertson has created an unforgettable portrait of one of the great Confederate generals."

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John M. Taylor

"Confederate Civil War general Robert E. Lee has not had a good press in recent years. Beginning with Thomas Connelly's The Marble Man in 1977, a number of historians have written books designed to topple Lee from his lofty pedestal. In Duty Faithfully Performed, noted biographer John M. Taylor ably counters these revisionist criticisms with a forceful defense of General Lee's character and military accomplishments. Focusing on Lee's personal life and his attitude toward slavery, on his generalship, and on the erstwhile Confederacy's "Lee cult," it is a counter-revisionist biography of one of the most complex and controversial men in American history."--BOOK JACKET.