Harper Lee is one of the most celebrated American novelists of the 20th century, best known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic of modern American literature that deals with racism, justice, and childhood in the Deep South of the 1930s. But did you know that Harper Lee also had a connection to a famous historical figure from the same region and era? In this article, we will explore the surprising link between Harper Lee and Robert E. Lee, a general of the Confederate army that fought for the South in the American Civil War.
Who was Robert E. Lee?
Robert E. Lee was born on January 19, 1807, in Virginia, to a prominent family of American Revolutionaries. He graduated second in his class from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1829 and served as an engineer and a cavalry officer in the U.S. Army for 32 years. He distinguished himself in several wars, including the Mexican-American War and the suppression of John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry.
When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Lee faced a difficult choice: to remain loyal to the Union or to join his home state of Virginia in secession. He chose the latter, resigning from the U.S. Army and accepting a commission as a general in the Confederate army. He became the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia in 1862 and led his troops in many battles against the Union forces, such as Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and Appomattox. He was widely respected for his military skills, his personal integrity, and his devotion to his soldiers.
Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865, effectively ending the Civil War. He spent his last years as the president of Washington College (later renamed Washington and Lee University) in Lexington, Virginia, where he died on October 12, 1870.
Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926, in Monroeville, Alabama, to Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch. Her father was a lawyer and a former newspaper editor who also served in the Alabama State Legislature. Her mother was a homemaker who suffered from mental illness.
Harper Lee was the youngest of four children and had three siblings: Alice Finch Lee, Louise Lee Conner, and Edwin Lee. She was also a member of the Lee family, a prominent family in the South that traced its ancestry back to Robert E. Lee’s father, Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee III, a Revolutionary War hero and a governor of Virginia.
According to Book Analysis, Harper Lee was related to Robert E. Lee through her paternal grandmother’s side. Her grandmother was Ellen Fennell Lee (née Carter), who married John Franklin Lee in 1883. Ellen Fennell Lee was the daughter of William Carter and Mary Anne Randolph Carter (née Fitzhugh). Mary Anne Randolph Carter was the daughter of William Henry Fitzhugh and Ann Hill Carter (née Randolph). Ann Hill Carter was the daughter of Charles Hill Carter and Anne Butler Moore (née Carter). Anne Butler Moore was the daughter of Landon Carter and Elizabeth Wormeley (née Tayloe). Elizabeth Wormeley was the daughter of John Tayloe II and Rebecca Plater (née Grymes). Rebecca Plater was the daughter of Charles Grymes and Frances Jennings (née Corbin). Frances Jennings was the daughter of Henry Corbin and Alice Eltonhead (née Burnham). Alice Eltonhead was the daughter of Richard Burnham and Anne Constable (née Eltonhead). Anne Constable was the daughter of Richard Eltonhead and
