Efforts to conciliate. Known as washington and lee university. What were gonna do today ladies and gentlemen as what we are going to do robert italy and the post war years. My coworker when we were upstairs before asked me if this was going to be a beatific asian did i get that were right . I guess it never hit me but i guess it might in a way. I am a big fan of robert e. Lee. What im hoping to do among others besides give you a timeline about what robert haley did in the post years, which i think is obviously one of the most overlooked portion of his life. Civil war is always going to be first and foremost. The other main theme of this lecture im going to try to get across tea. Park services is big on themes. The amount, i wouldnt say that he did a lot of work in theory, but through his own personal example is probably the best way, through his own personal example, robert e. Lee tries to reconcile the nation. What i think a lot of us as americans today have forgotten that how far apart this country was in 1865. I think it is the view of a lot of people that lisa renders and half a mattocks and then, well just forget about it. Okay, well just hold hands and will just reunite and just continue down that path again. It takes the country decades, some would say a century, some would say not even yet for the country to really reunite. I would probably put the country seriously coming back together in the same vein in the spanish american war when we had a common enemy instead of each other. That would be roughly 30 years after the end of the civil war. Robert e. Lee does not live that law. Hes only going to look for five years. When you think about who symbolized the confederacy coming out of the civil war and who these southerners were going to emulate as they were coming. It put yourself in the shoes of the man himself. Youre robert e. Lee. Everything you do is under a microscope, everything. You know he hated that. Crowds, everything else. All right, so half a maxes on april 9th, of 1860. Five he surrendered to general grant. I think robert e. Lee is greatly surprised by the turns that he gets from the u. S. Grant. Grant couldve imposed harsh terms i think that you less ulyssesesque grant magnanimous gesture there is often overlooked in a reconciliation of the cup she. I can do a whole lecture on, that maybe will do on the summer. The robert e. Lee has to stick around half a mattocks for a few days as an Army Commander and he has to do up paperwork. And then three days after he surrenders on april 12th, sets it for a fanatics riding his famous horse. Eventually three days later hes gonna make his way back to richmond virginia. When he gets to richmond, this is the site which he beholds. Now he did not see this personally because he was down in petersburg but the confederate set the town on fire when they were evacuating. When richmond failed. You look at all those char rules, thats the Virginia State capital obviously in the old capital of the confederacy right there in the middle. Three days later, on april 15th, robert e. Lee is gonna pull up up up at the james river for the look of the cross of the scene of desolation. As he crosses over hes not gonna have a big cavalcade within. Hes not gonna have a lot of people, you can have one staff officer, his son is with him, hes got a wagon its coming behind thats actually stabbed u. S. On the side. Its Services Headquarters wagon first personal lap baggage. Eventually that wagon and lean on horseback in the rest of it the party are gonna wind through the rubble streets of richmond, up main street and then turned on franklin street. They literally come up to the front of the house at 7 07 franklin street. Believe it or not ladies and gentlemen, that fire that engulfed richmond had come right up to the house next door. But that one had been saved. Now a crowd gathered and want to touch lee as if hes an icon. But can you imagine us tuna today . Well you know who died in 1977. Lee gets off his horse. He bow bravely to everyone and then he walks inside the front door. This is the scene which i dont have any record of and this is the one i always been curious about. When robert e. Lee amounts of steps right there leading those steps leading in the house, he bows to the crowd graciously in everything, and he walks back and he still got his uniform a. That will be the last time i suppose in his official capacity that he will put it back on for these pictures in a day or two. I will be in his last capacities a soldier. When he walked through that front door, went what went through his mouth . Never thought about that . What did he do . As wife, is children, they have four daughters, it children ranging from 19 to 32 years of age at the time. He came in and they were always kind of a close family,s what was someone he could turn to. I wonder what he said to marry . City expressing regrets . Did you say . In to decry . At some point, every soldier has to look back. Look back at what theyve done and you can do from privates to four generals to lieutenant to can but captains to major generals to lieutenant general. Everybody looks back at the decisions they made. I wonder when he came home that day what he thought . Now, as hes trying to get his thoughts back together, none other than the famous civil war photographer Matthew Brady is going to call upon him. I mean go through some of these pictures. Not to show you all of them but i initially some of these pictures in a sec. This picture right here which you seem cropped and blown up and call arise denied color eyes turn sideways, halfway and so forth. That picture is always chosen for a reason because that face right there sums up robert elite at this point in his life. While hes there he can only imagine, oil is in this franklin street houston right after for the next few weeks, you can only imagine the people that are coming by to call upon the. Some autograph seekers, some just want to see, im old friends, acquaintances, george mead came by, just reading about it up here, and leaders want to see all these people. Its the last thing he wants to do up here. So one day, costs to your left right up there, costas is gonna answer the door and is gonna be this ragged will confederate soldier standing. And the soldiers got his arm and sling and he says to hospice, id like to see generally. Costa says, while the general is not receiving at this time. He says well im from texas and id like to see the general that i followed and so many campaigns. Standing there it is, rises probably stick in a high havent, the truth be known. Customs looks him over and says all do see what i can do. He loughlin into his house. Lee is upstairs in that franklin house, and some bedroom office. So the show of a soldier in. He sits down, the texans sits down. A few minutes later, here comes this the steps of robert e. Lee. Most of mitigate as he came out is he recognized. At the soldier, the staff and officers start as the came around the corner. Lee comes around, he bows graciously to the people that are in a room then he extends his hand and he walks over that texan, this private. The texan extends his hand, and they embrace in handshake. Lee looks at him and the texan looks at him and the soldier cant say anything. He just cant say anything. Not one word comes out of his mouth and he eventually is Still Holding these hands he burst into tears this veteran of four years. He burst into tears in after a few moments he just walked out the door. Nobody said anything. I witnessed said ali bow graciously to the crown and walked back up the stairs. That is the type of emotion youre dealing with coming out of a half half a mattocks. Talking about people that have just lost their hope for a nation and who define . That man right there. Thats why the civil war ends folks. Robert ellis surrenders. Because he is the definition of the confederacy. He is the symbol of the confederacy. So Matthew Brady comes and he took this pictures the only reason that lee sits or stands for this picture right here, ladies and gentlemen, is because at first he rebuffed brady. He went to his wife. His wife and we told the generous general to go get. Dressed lee came down with his son, his staff officer. He came down the stairs and said well, mr. Brady, we are ready for you. He stood for this. If you look closely you could actually see the stand behind lee to hold his head in place. You cannot see the rest of it going up his back. It captured these right here. This is my favorite one. This is not the fm attics uniform, though. I used to think that. It must be one of his he looks in very good shape. laughter this is actually i actually forgot that picture was in the skew. I would have said it up better this is actually a previously unreleased photograph of my ancestor. laughter okay . My friend pat rich did that to me as a joke. Ive had it on my door ever since. Okay. What is the situation . On may 29, 1865, president andrew johnson, offers a general amnesty to our former confederates who signed an oath of allegiance. He excludes all who have held civil office under the confederate government and people with an estate valued over 20,000 dollars. On june 7th, 1865, lee is indicted for treason. June 13th lee and closes a letter to general his application for pardon. Lees position is quote, im ready do not wish to avoid trial. If im correct the protection granted my parole and not to be prosecuted and my desire to comply with the provision of the president s proclamation. Thats a lot of ps and therefore enclosed required application. Lee did not sign the oath because he worded his requirement had not reached virginia. What did grant do . Immediately requested that all indictments be squashed and the pardon be granted. What was the result . Prosecutors flatly halted proceedings against robert e. Lee. And not formally dismissed the charges. No pardon would be forthcoming from president johnson either. This is what we know now. But lead did not know that. So to add to lees woes day what is that word . Damocles over his head. He does not know if he will be invited anytime soon. It could be any moment. Lee for this pardon is probably in the southerners eyes the most controversial act of his life. He was in that pardon, admitting secession, the creation of the confederacy and fighting against the northern invasion were all wrong. Right there. By submitting that, to say the least, he is not making any friends. However, for tens of thousands as we applied for a pardon, what did we say the theme was . Personal example maybe they should also apply for a pardon. Those who did sign would restore the rights unlikely in a manner that the government would never give the general. Right there. Captain George Holding an oath in his hand asked, my parole covers. It i do not think it should be required of me. What would you advise . I would advise you take it, lee responded. General, i feel that this is an indignity every Street Corner i will seek another country where i can at least preserve myself respect. Do not leave virginia, lee said in a sad voice. The country needs her young men now. Young wives did take the oath. When he informed his father, the father explained, you have disgraced the family. The sun responded, general lee advised me to do it. Oh. That alters the case. Whatever generally says is all right. I dont care what it is. All right . I want you to think about something. As i start to read this part of it, most of you already are familiar with the civil war and what building this represents. This is actually Washington College in lexington, virginia, right here. I want you to think about something right now, though, as i get into it. If you are robert e. Lee. What would you do after the war . I dont know if there is a right or wrong answer. Im just plundering. If you are robert e. , what would you do . The state of the college itself is that it had been heavily damaged during the war. The library had been scattered. Federal soldiers were using some of the buildings for barracks. The college had been kept open as a prep school. At the time in 65, it only had four professors as faculty. The trustees were leading on the night of against four it, six, 1865 in order to elect a new president. Right before the voting, the members students that they had heard that miss lee, daughter of the general stated that the south had stood ready to give lee anything that what he really wanted, which was a way to make an honest living. The idea shown in the room a few minutes later, lee had been unanimously elected president. Quote, then there was a pause. Silence prevailed for some moments. The board seemed oppressed with the gravity of the situation and seemed to feel that they had acted rationally. And of quote. It seemed very presumptive to elect the quote, head of the broken down college. Nevertheless, a letter was drafted and judge rock and roll with senate urged the general to accept. The judge lifted his clothes. He realized he did not have any befitting to call upon generally. Do you know what he did . He borrowed a suit. So with borrowed money and a burrowed suit, they obtained transportation, and that is the way broken broke called upon generally who is living at the time, west of richmond in a house called darwin at the time, to call upon him to be the president of this college. Of course lee, after much urging from friends, its going to accept the presidency on august 31st. This is how we accepts it. Lee pointed out in his letter, taking the job that he had not been pardoned yet. It was also explicit in what his political views might be. I think it is the duty of every citizen in the present condition of the country to do all that is in its power to aid and the restoration of peace and in no way to oppose the state of general government directed to that object. It is particularly incumbent upon those charged with the instruction of the young to set them an example of submission to authority. And of quote. 20 weeks after a bomb attics, lee was urging quote, the healing of all dissensions. A tub or second, lee is inaugurated as president. Thats fast. Within a month of offering the job. The college opened with 40 students. Another hundred students drifted and by leafed fall. Once we meads the student though, he is able to remember their name. It is a wonderful gift. If you are a good student. laughter by the second year, there are over 400 students and residents. Some from outside the south. One of the things that i like to go off any tangent one of the neatest things i liked about robert elite was we dont write like he did or they did back then obviously today, but one of the things i really liked about lee is how he would put letters together to parents. If he had a student, a recalcitrant student acting up, lee were usually right three to four paragraphs. How he constructs it is this way. First paragraph, johnny is a fantastic kid. He is smart. He is intelligent. He can do anything. Second paragraph. Unfortunately, he is not living up to his abilities. laughter third paragraph. I am sure you understand. Sincerely, respectfully, robert e. Lee. You get the point. The confederate general used the favorite thing out of everything he did in the war was actually to show keep a lees letter to him, demoting him, removing him from commander. That is what you would see if you were in his office largest after the war. That is what he has got to deal with. Today, i would think it would be worth being flunked out of school just to get a letter from lee. That was just a joke. All right. So he starts. October 3rd. October 3rd, he signs the oath of allegiance to the United States. The oath was sent to washington where it landed on the desk of william. Apparently thinking that the document had already been recorded, sewer to give it to a friend for a souvenir. It was found in a bundle of papers. Lees amnesty oath, 105 years later. If i remember what happened during the 40 ministration . He got his pardon. General ford. He pardoned everybody else. Might as well laughter come on, that is kind of funny. Its a political joke. No ceviches fans here . Next day, le opened the letter from general pierre gustavo. In it, more guard asked quote, what position should i take in relation to defeat, and what did robert e. Lee thing border guard should do . Lee responded, im glad to see no indication in our letter of an intention to leave the country. I think the south requires the aids of hearse and now more than any period in her history. As you ask my i will state that i have no problem abandoning her and less compelled to do so. Lee reviewed his own humbled efforts to regain United States citizenship, and then concluded with this passage. Quoted by generations. I need not tell you that true patriotism sometimes requires men to act exactly contrary at one period to that which it does in another. The motive of which compels them the desire to do right as precisely the same. The circumstances that governor actions change in their conduct must conform to the new order of things. History is full of illustrations of this. Washington himself is an example of this. At one time, he falls in the service of the king of great britain, and another he fought with the french at your town under the orders of congress against him. He has not been branded by the war with reproach for this, but his course has been applauded. Here is your paradox. That is our robert illegal suffices actions of being in the United States, leaving the United States and coming back into the United States. We go into 1866, and by this time, ladies and gentlemen, there are race riots in new orleans. The nation was heating up with Congressional Elections that would turn into a northern referendum on how to treat the vanquished south. President johnson was at war, quote and quote with congress. He wished for lenient treatment which allowed the Southern States back and without gratifying them 14th amendment and congress wish for the south to be made to ratify. During all this turmoil, we he lee canceled everyone to stay calm. Mrs. Jefferson davis he wrote, i thought of the time this is station hostilities silent patient was the chief of the south was a true corset. I think so still. To do so early. You can say, he looked pretty all. The duke of early he wrote, ideology worse than i have ever done in my hatred is increasing every day. A battle of drew early. He replied we shall have to be patient and suffer for a while at least. All controversy will only supple prolong bitter feelings. Google early. The south was listening. Nothing youll see harris. Thats why you dont know him for the most part. Probably the most famous thing war wise one spots elena courthouse, he did the counterattacks in there. Least half the other spygate is there anger harris rewriting a great unwise jubal early example needs a government involved were all pursuing the following. All your feldman are here peacef