GENERAL LEE AND THE ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA

Virginija je leta 1861 razglasila neodvisnost in se odcepila od ZDA. Lee je prevzel virginijsko milico, ki jo je spremenil v vojsko. S pomočjo Konfederacije držav Amerike, kateri se je pridružila Virginija, so premagali vojsko ZDA pri Manassasu. Leta 1862 je Lee prevzel vojsko severne Virginije in jo popeljal na zmagovalno pot po polotoku Peninsula, kjer je premagal superiorne sile generala Georgea McClellana v sedmih dneh bitk. Zvezno poveljstvo je sprožilo napad na severu, kjer je prišlo do druge bitke pri Manassasu, kjer so zvezne sile izgubile. Lee je sprožil prvo invazijo na sever še istega leta. Napotil se je v Maryland, kjer je skušal prenesti vojno na sovražno ozemlje – ni mu uspelo. V bitki pri Sharpsburgu se je obranil, ampak moral se je vrniti nazaj v severno Virginijo. Pot ga je spet vodila v severno Virginijo, kjer se je spopadel z zveznimi silami pri Fredericksburgu in Chancellorsvilleu – tokrat v duhu zmage. Potem je sprožil drugo ofenzivo na sever, ki je povzročila bitko pri Gettysburgu. To je bila odločilna bitka, katero je Lee izgubil. Po tej bitki se vojska severne Virginije ni več opomogla. Zvezna vlada je leta 1864 imenovala generala Granta za vrhovnega poveljnika vseh vojsk ZDA. Ta je sprožil operacijo »Overland«, ki ga je popeljala skozi divjino Wilderness do reke James. Lee mu je sledil in se mu upiral, kolikor so mu sredstva dopuščala. Ampak ni bil kos superiornosti vojske Potomaca. Lee se je nazadnje znašel pred mestom Petersburg. To mesto je skušal obdržati, zaradi oskrbovalnih poti. Po padcu Petersburga se je umaknil in predal 9. aprila 1865 pri Appomattox Courthouseu. Tako se je Lee nahajal v središču dogajanjaod začetka vojne kot poveljnik Virginijske milice in vzpostavitev vojaškega aparata, pa vse do krvavega konca kot poveljnik vojske severne Virginije. Vlogo je opravil vestno in po svojih najboljših sposobnostih.Virginia declared independence in 1861 and succeeded from the Union. Lee became the supreme commander of the Virginian militia, which he transformed in to a fighting army. With the help of the Confederate States of America, Virginia defeated the supreme Union army at Manassas. In 1862 general Lee took command of the Army of Northern Virginia and went on a rampage through the Peninsula, where the defeated superior Union forces of General McClellan were pushed back to the river James in just seven days. The Union command launched an expedition to the north. The second battle at Manassas was fought. The Union army lost yet again. Lee therefore launched an invasion to the north in the same year. He attacked Maryland trying to bring the war to the enemy. He failed. Battle of Sharpsburg brought an end to a dream and he barely got his army out in one piece. He retreated back to Northern Virginia, where he fought numerous battles like Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. Union army was shamefully defeated. Yet another invasion followed. This time it was Pennsylvania. It eventually came to Gettysburg. A decisive battle that was lost. The Army of Northern Virginia never recovered. In 1864 the Union government declared that General Grant would lead their armies. Grant launched an offensive called the Overland Campaign, which brought him through the Wilderness to the river James. Lee followed and resisted as much as his means of war allowed him. He was no match for the Army of the Potomac. He lacked numbers and arms. Lee eventually placed himself in front of the town called Petersburgan important transit depot. In 1865 he was forced to abandon Petersburg and surrendered on the 9th of April 1865 at Appomattox Courthouse. Lee was always in the centre of Virginian and Confederate decision-makingfrom the beginning of the war as the supreme commander of the Virginian militia till the very end as the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. A role that he did with professionalism and dedication