Praise For Lee And Jackson
By Chuck Baldwin
January is often referred to as "Generals Month" since no less than four
famous Confederate Generals claimed January as their birth month: James
Longstreet (Jan. 8, 1821), Robert E. Lee (Jan. 19, 1807), Thomas Jonathan
"Stonewall" Jackson (Jan. 21, 1824), and George Pickett (Jan. 28, 1825). Two
of these men, Lee and Jackson, are particularly noteworthy.
Without question, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson were two of the
greatest military leaders of all time. Even more, many military historians
regard the Lee and Jackson tandem as perhaps the greatest battlefield duo in
the history of warfare. If Jackson had survived the battle of
Chancellorsville, it is very possible that the South would have prevailed at
Gettysburg and perhaps would even have won the War Between the States.
In fact, it was Lord Roberts, commander-in-chief of the British armies in
the early twentieth century, who said, "In my opinion, Stonewall Jackson was
one of the greatest natural military geniuses the world ever saw. I will go
even further than that--as a campaigner in the field, he never had a
superior. In some respects, I doubt whether he ever had an equal."
While the strategies and circumstances of the War of Northern Aggression can
(and will) be debated by professionals and laymen alike, one fact is
undeniable: Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. Jackson were two of the finest
Christian gentlemen this country has ever produced. Both their character and
their conduct were beyond reproach.
Unlike his northern counterpart, Ulysses S. Grant, General Lee never
sanctioned or condoned slavery. Upon inheriting slaves from his deceased
father-in-law, Lee freed them. And according to historians, Jackson enjoyed
a familial relationship with those few slaves that were in his home. In
addition, unlike Abraham Lincoln and U.S. Grant, there is no record of
either Lee or Jackson ever speaking disparagingly of the black race.
As those who are familiar with history know, General Grant and his wife held
personal slaves before and during the War Between the States, and, contrary
to popular opinion, even Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation did not free
the slaves of the North. They were not freed until the Thirteenth Amendment
was passed after the conclusion of the war. Grant's excuse for not freeing
his slaves was that "good help is so hard to come by these days."
Furthermore, it is well established that Jackson regularly conducted a
Sunday School class for black children. This was a ministry he took very
seriously. As a result, he was dearly loved and appreciated by the children
and their parents.
In addition, both Jackson and Lee emphatically supported the abolition of
slavery. In fact, Lee called slavery "a moral and political evil." He also
said "the best men in the South" opposed it and welcomed its demise. Jackson
said he wished to see "the shackles struck from every slave."
To think that Lee and Jackson (and the vast majority of Confederate
soldiers) would fight and die to preserve an institution they considered
evil and abhorrent--and that they were already working to dismantle--is the
height of absurdity. It is equally repugnant to impugn and denigrate the
memory of these remarkable Christian gentlemen.
In fact, after refusing Abraham Lincoln's offer to command the Union Army in
1861, Robert E. Lee wrote to his sister on April 20 of that year to explain
his decision. In the letter he wrote, "With all my devotion to the Union and
the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I have not been able
to make up my mind to raise my hand against my relatives, my children, my
home. I have therefore resigned my commission in the army and save in
defense of my native state, with the sincere hope that my poor services may
never be needed . . ."
Lee's decision to resign his commission with the Union Army must have been
the most difficult decision of his life. Remember that Lee's direct
ancestors had fought in America's War For Independence. His father, "Light
Horse Harry" Henry Lee, was a Revolutionary War hero, Governor of Virginia,
and member of Congress. In addition, members of his family were signatories
to the Declaration of Independence.
Remember, too, that not only did Robert E. Lee graduate from West Point "at
the head of his class" (according to Benjamin Hallowell), he is yet today
one of only six cadets to graduate from that prestigious academy without a
single demerit.
However, Lee knew that Lincoln's decision to invade the South in order to
prevent its secession was both immoral and unconstitutional. As a man of
honor and integrity, the only thing Lee could do was that which his father
had done: fight for freedom and independence. And that is exactly what he
did.
Instead of allowing a politically correct culture to sully the memory of
Robert E. Lee and Thomas J. Jackson, all Americans should hold them in a
place of highest honor and respect. Anything less is a disservice to history
and a disgrace to the principles of truth and integrity.
Accordingly, it was more than appropriate that the late President Gerald
Ford, on August 5, 1975, signed Senate Joint Resolution 23, "restoring
posthumously the long overdue, full rights of citizenship to General Robert
E. Lee." According to President Ford, "This legislation corrects a 110-year
oversight of American history." He further said, "General Lee's character
has been an example to succeeding generations . . ."
The significance of the lives of Generals Lee and Jackson cannot be
overvalued. While the character and influence of most of us will barely be
remembered two hundred days after our departure, the sterling character of
these men has endured for two hundred years. What a shame that so many of
America's youth are being robbed of knowing and studying the virtue and
integrity of the great General Robert E. Lee and General Thomas J.
"Stonewall" Jackson.
Furthermore, it is no hyperbole to say that the confederated, constitutional
republic so ably declared by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of
Independence of 1776 and codified into statute by the U.S. Constitution of
1787 was, for the most part, expunged at the Appomattox Court House in 1865.
After all, it was (and is) the responsibility of the states to be the
ultimate vanguard of liberty. Without a tenacious, unrelenting defense of
liberty by the sovereign states, we are reduced to ever-burgeoning
oppression--which is exactly what we see happening today.
Thankfully, freedom's heartbeat is still felt among at least a few states.
State sovereignty resolutions (proposed in over 30 states), Firearms Freedom
acts (passed in 2 states--Montana and Tennessee--and being proposed in at
least 12 other states), and official letters (Montana), statements (Texas
Governor Rick Perry), and resolutions (Georgia and Montana) threatening
secession have already taken place.
Yes, freedom-loving Americans in this generation may need to awaken to the
prospect that--in order for freedom to survive--secession may, once again,
be in order. One thing is for sure: any State that will not protect and
defend their citizens' right to keep and bear arms cannot be counted on to
do diddlysquat to maintain essential freedom. It is time for people to start
deciding whether they want to live free or not--and if they do, to seriously
consider relocating to states that yet have a heartbeat for liberty.
I will say it straight out: any State that will not protect your right to
keep and bear arms is a tyrannical State! And if it is obvious that the
freedom-loving citizens of that State are powerless to change it via the
ballot box, they should leave the State to its slaves and seek a land of
liberty.
I, for one, am thankful for the example and legacy of men such as Robert E.
Lee and Stonewall Jackson. They were the spiritual soul mates of George
Washington and Thomas Jefferson. They were men that loved freedom; they were
men that loved federalism and constitutional government; and they were men
of courage and understanding. They understood that, sometimes, political
separation is the only way that freedom can survive. Long live the spirit of
Washington, Jefferson, Lee, and Jackson!
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