The next meeting of the Knoxville Civil War Roundtable will be Tuesday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m. at the Bearden Banquet Hall. The speaker will be Frank O’Reilly, historian of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania national military park.
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Following the surrender at Appomattox Court House, General Robert E. Lee’s life was fraught with uncertainty.
The man of war who had had thousands of men marching with him for four years now was a man alone.
Robert E. Lee after the war
Without a job, without a home, and without a country, Lee faced indictment for treason and was betrayed by his own failing health. Despite these setbacks, Robert E. Lee felt a greater obligation to the United States than ever before. He dedicated the rest of his short life to restoring peace in his own way—through education and personal example.
Turning his back on his military past, the general made a point of “marching out of step” to follow a path of reconciliation. Only then did Robert E. Lee achieve true greatness as a man and as an American.
Come join us as Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania NMP historian Frank O’Reilly introduces us to “the lion in winter,” and we explore a Robert E. Lee few of us know.
Knoxville Civil War Roundtable 