AUGUST 2007
An Interview With Mrs. Robert E. Lee
Through the Courtesy of Peggy (formerly known as AntietamCW)
| PAS | Welcome Mrs. Lee |
| Mrs. Lee | Thank you |
| PAS | Mrs. Lee, when did you first meet, your future husband? |
| MRS. LEE | His family, visited Arlington, quite often, when I was a young child. We became playmates, as well as friends |
| PAS | Mrs. Lee, was Robert, your only suitor? |
| MRS. LEE | Goodness no. I do remember one young man, who was very ardent in his suit for my hand |
| PAS | Mrs. Lee, might I ask who the other young suitor was? |
| MRS. LEE |
My other
suitor made his name also fighting for independence, in Texas. You
might know the name, Sam Houston. But it was Robert for me, only
|
| PAS | When did you and Robert marry, Mrs. Lee? |
| MRS. LEE | Oh my, long ago. It was on an early summer day, June 30, 1831 |
| PAS | You married at Arlington, and had 6 of your 7 children there, right?? |
| MRS. LEE |
Yes, we were
married in the front parlor. He was so handsome<still is> The
children were born in a room, beside our master bedroom.
|
| PAS | Mrs. Lee, what is something, that people might know about you?? |
| MRS. LEE |
I loved to
paint. I painted landscapes. Robert always told me I was very good
at painting.
|
| PAS | Did anyone else in your family paint, ma'am? |
| MRS. LEE | Yes, my father painted. He was George Washington's adopted son, you know. |
| PAS | Ma'am, besides painting, was there any other outside interests? |
| MRS. LEE | Oh my beautiful rose garden. Did you know I planted 11 different varieties in my rose garden at Arlington |
| PAS | Ma'am, I must ask a sensitive question, how did you feel about slavery? |
| MRS. LEE |
It was
something, that I had grown up with and around. My own way as adult
is that I taught my slaves to read and write.
|
| PAS | Mrs. Lee, teaching slaves to read and write, was against most southern laws. Why did you risk doing it? |
| MRS. LEE | It was traumatic for one thing. I was driven from the only home I had known, Arlington. That was a hard day for me. My daughters and I lived a nomadic existence until we settled in Richmond. |
| PAS | Ma'am, were not your daughters and yourself, at one time, caught behind enemy lines. |
| MRS. LEE | Yes we were. We were at out home at White House Landing, when General McClellan, arrived. He saw us across the lines safely, and we then came to Richmond. |
| PAS |
Mrs. Lee, you suffered greatly
during the war, from an illness that was not treated well at the
time. Would be able to tell what the illness was?
|
| MRS. LEE |
I suffered
from Rheumatoid Arthritis. By the time my beloved Robert came home
from the war, I was wheel chair bound.
|
| PAS |
MRS. LEE, I thank you for spending
this time with us, and for sharing your life with us
|
| MRS. LEE |
I was greatly
honored. as, we wives were always overshadowed by our husbands. You
understand, though I would not have had any other way.
|
<General Lee smiles and nods. He gently pushes his wife's wheelchair out of the room>
