as Washington had left the British Empire, to fight what the South called a second war of independence. Lee had great difficulty in deciding whether to stand by his native state or remain with the Union, even though Lincoln offered him the field command of the United States Army. He wrote to his sister,"...in my own person I had to meet the question whether I should take part Witt 5against my native state. With all my devotion to the Union, and the feeling of loyalty and duty of an American citizen, I had 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- I hope I may never be called upon to draw my sword." Lee grieved at parting from the friends whom he had served with in other wars. He served in Richmond, Virginia, as military adviser to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, and in May, 1861 was appointed a full general. In the fall, he succeeded in halting a threatened invasion from western Virginia. Later, he took charge of protecting the coast of South Carolina against invasion. When Lee returned to Richmond in 1862, he helped draw up plans for the Confederate forces in Virginia, then under the command of General Joseph E. Johnston. Johnston was wounded on May 31, 1862, in the Battle of Fair Oaks (Thomas 225).The next day, Lee took command of Johnston's army, which he called the Army of Northern Virginia. From his first day of command, Lee faced what looked like an impossible task. Union General George B. McClellan had approached within 7 miles of Richmond with 100,000 men. Three forces were closing in on the Confederate troops of General Stonewall Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. A fourth Union force was camped on the Rappahannock River, ready to aid McClellan. In the series of engagements, known as the Ba...
