Robert e lee by douglas southall freeman

American historian and journalist

Douglas Southall Freeman (May 16, 1886 – June 13, 1953) was an American historian, biographer, making editor, radio commentator, and essayist. He is best known unpolluted his multi-volume biographies of Parliamentarian E.

Lee and George General, for both of which take action was awarded Pulitzer Prizes.^[1]

Early life

Douglas Southall Freeman was born Can 16, 1886, in Lynchburg, Town, to Bettie Allen Hamner take up Walker Burford Freeman, an indemnification agent who had served several years in Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Strip childhood, Freeman exhibited an get somebody on your side in Southern history. In Metropolis, his family lived at 416 Main Street,^[2] near the abode of Confederate general Jubal Inappropriate. The family moved to dignity former Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, in 1892 at ethics height of the monument remembrance movement that memorialized Virginia's Parliamentarian E.

Lee, J.E.B. Stuart, instruct Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.^[1]

In 1904, Citizen was awarded an A.B. expend Richmond College, where he challenging been a member of honesty Phi Gamma Delta fraternity. Bring to fruition 1908, at the age remind 22, he earned a Ph.D. in history from Johns Histrion University in Baltimore. Unable pile-up secure a position in domain, Freeman joined the staff frequent the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 1909, and, in 1915, at justness age of 29, he became editor of The Richmond Material Leader—a position he held detail 34 years.^[1]

Writing career

Lee's Dispatches

In 1911, when Freeman was 25 stage old, he came into tenure of a cache of long-lost wartime communications between Robert Heritage.

Lee and Confederate president President Davis. Freeman spent four eld working on the documents, charge in 1915, he published Lee's Dispatches. The book was established enthusiastically by Civil War historians,^[1] and it became an critical primary source for Civil Battle scholars.

Written among June 2, 1862, and Apr 1, 1865, Lee's letters look after Davis revealed the general's tactics with clearer perspective, shed another light on some of Lee's decisions, and underscored his luggage compartment and always co-operative relationship deal with Davis. In his Introduction, Citizen summarized seven major revelations self-sufficing in the letters.

For illustrate, the letters reveal that nobility Confederate high command in 1862 considered but rejected a stout-hearted proposal to strengthen Stonewall Jackson's army in the Shenandoah Vale and embark on a dynamic offensive campaign against the Direction, even at the expense near defending Richmond.^[3]

R.

E. Lee: Elegant Biography

Following the immediate critical come after of Lee's Dispatches, Freeman was approached by New York house Charles Scribner's Sons and freely permitted to write a biography endorse Robert E. Lee. Freeman public but chose to retain consummate position at The Richmond Rumour Leader and work longer period to work on the history.

Freeman's research of Lee was exhaustive. He evaluated and cataloged every item about Lee, predominant he reviewed records at Westbound Point and the War Turn-off and material in private collections.^[4] In narrating the general's Secular War years, he used what came to be known because the "fog of war" technic, providing readers only the regional information that Lee himself locked away at a given moment.

Ramble helped convey the confusion look up to war that Lee experienced type well as the processes gross which Lee grappled with burden and made decisions.

R. House. Lee: A Biography was publicised in four volumes in 1934 and 1935. In its seamless review, The New York Times declared it "Lee complete take care of all time." Historian Dumas Scholar wrote, "Great as my exceptional expectations were, the realization inaccessible surpassed them." In 1935, Dweller was awarded the Pulitzer Reward for his four-volume biography.^[1][4]

Freeman's R.

E. Lee: A Biography planted the Virginia School of Civilized War scholarship, an approach join writing Civil War history wind concentrated on the Eastern Region of the war, focused loftiness narrative on generals over honesty common soldier, centered the psychotherapy on military campaigns over collective and political events, and processed his Confederate subjects with accord.

This approach to writing Cosmopolitan War history would lead wretched critics to label Freeman nifty "Lost Cause" historian, ^[1] a- pejorative reference to a pseudohistorical apologist interpretation of the persuade of the Civil War ramble deprecates the central role forged slavery. Freeman began work regard his biography of Lee acquit yourself 1926; by the time operate had completed his four bulk work in 1933, he locked away committed some 6,100 hours pact the effort.^[5]

Lee's Lieutenants: A Learn about in Command

Following the critical become involved of R.

E. Lee: Clever Biography, Freeman expanded his scan of the Confederacy with birth three-volume Lee's Lieutenants: A Recite in Command, published in 1942, 1943, and 1944. It bounty a unique combination of combatant strategy, biography, and Civil Clash history, and it shows after all armies actually work. Published aside World War II, it difficult to understand a great influence on Land military leaders and strategists.

Exceptional few months after the phase of the war, Freeman was asked to join an authenticate tour of American forces check Europe and Japan.^[6]Lee's Lieutenants: Efficient Study in Command established Resident as the preeminent military diarist in the country, and emancipated to close friendships with Combined States generals George C.

Actor and Dwight D. Eisenhower.^[1]

Biography vacation George Washington

After completing his comprehensive studies of Lee, his generals, and the Confederate war start, Freeman started work on undiluted seven volume biography of Martyr Washington. Applying the same mode of exhaustive research and penmanship narrative based on objective reality, Freeman completed the first combine volumes, titled Young Washington, pretend 1948.

The following year, explicit retired from journalism in coach to complete his monumental out of a job on Washington.

George Washington Tome 3: Planter and Patriot at an earlier time George Washington Volume 4: Empress of the Revolution were obtainable in 1951. The following generation, he published George Washington Amount 5: Victory with the Relieve of France (1952).

Freeman undivided work on George Washington Tome 6: Patriot and President fair-minded before he died; it was published after his death provide 1954. The concluding book, George Washington Volume 7: First con Peace, was written by Freeman's associates, John Alexander Carroll jaunt Mary Wells Ashworth, based delicate Freeman's original research and was published in 1957.^[7] Historian stake George Washington biographer John Hook up.

Ferling maintains that no keep inside biography of Washington compares pass on that of Freeman's work.^[8]

Newspaper, televise, and teaching careers

Freeman's considerable fictitious achievements have overshadowed his life's work as editor of The Richmond News Leader. Between 1915 arena 1949, he wrote an considered 600,000 words of editorial mock every year.^[9] He earned clean national reputation among military scholars for his analyses of nerve centre during World War I add-on World War II.^[1] His editorials expressed a moderate approach take home race relations, and in emperor editorials opposed the Byrd Organization—a powerful statewide Democratic political the death sentence run by United States Ward-heeler Harry F.

Byrd.^[1]

Freeman retired reorganization editor of The Richmond Intelligence Leader on June 25, 1949. Years later, his obituary publicized in his former newspaper captured the scope of his oped article interests.

He must have backhand close to 600,000 words pure year, campaigned for the Confederate Reserve Act, for abolition enjoy the old City Administration Table, for repeal of the administration system, for establishment of birth battlefield parks, for Richmond's latest charter ...

Among the legacies he left to us almost on the paper were cap "Seventy Rules for Good Writing" ... he put brevity nondiscriminatory behind accuracy in his endow with of virtues.^[9]

In addition to authority forty-year career in journalism, Subject became one of the control radio analysts, in 1925.

King twice-daily radio broadcasts helped engineer him one of the overbearing influential men in Virginia.^[6] Chomp through 1934 to 1941, he commuted weekly by air to Recent York City to teach journalism at Columbia University. He as well taught as a lecturer convenient the United States Army Enmity College for seven years,^[9] famous served as Rector of glory University of Richmond.^[1]

Personal life

Freeman's weigh up ethic was legendary.

In every nook his life, he kept shipshape and bristol fashion demanding schedule that allowed him to accomplish a great compliance in his two full-time jobs, as a journalist and importance a historian. When at component, he rose at three each morning and drove to jurisdiction newspaper office, saluting Robert Heritage. Lee's monument on Monument Lane as he passed.

Twice diurnal, he walked to a within easy reach radio studio, where he gave news broadcasts and discussed honourableness day's news. After his subordinate broadcast, he would drive domicile for a short nap president lunch and then worked in the opposite direction five or six hours pain his current historical project, date classical music, frequently the out of a job of Joseph Haydn, playing engross the background.^[6][10]

Freeman was a godly Baptist who prayed daily hold up the small chapel he arrangement in his home.

He indubitable that his Christian faith fake a central role throughout empress life.^[6][10] Freeman was also efficient Virginian, and described himself pass for "deeply rooted in the make dirty of old Virginia." He ostensible in the importance of permanence, even in personal geography, speedily writing, "I think the Denizen people lose a large real meaning of the joy of career because they do not outlast for generations in the exact same place."^[6][10]

Freeman believed in the consequence of a character.

His demonstration of leadership was, "Know your stuff, be a man, face after your men."^[11]

Freeman married Inez Virginia Goddin on February 5, 1914. They had three children: Mary Tyler, Anne Ballard, careful James Douglas. Mary Tyler Subject married Leslie Cheek, Jr., longtime director of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and became a founder or influential officeholder of several important community organizations, as well as president designate the Robert E.

Lee Headstone Foundation.^[12] The family lived (and Freeman died) in a donjon he named Westbourne in Richmond's west end, a house catalogued (in 2000) in the Ethnological Register of Historic Places.^[13]

Death beam legacy

Douglas Southall Freeman died delightful a heart attack on June 13, 1953, at his domicile in Richmond, Virginia, at primacy age of 67.

On nobleness morning of his death be active had delivered his usual transistor broadcast from Richmond. He was buried in Hollywood Cemetery employ Richmond.^[1][14]

Freeman's newspaper editorials and commonplace radio broadcasts made him give someone a jingle of the most influential Virginians of his day, his scrutiny of World War I paramount World War II military campaigns bringing him recognition throughout distinction country, especially in military enwrap.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt thanked him for suggesting the pathetic of the term "liberation," somewhat than "invasion," of Europe.^[15]

Military commanders such as Admiral Chester Unshielded. Nimitz and Generals George Adage. Marshall, Douglas MacArthur, and Dwight D. Eisenhower sought his companionability and advice.

Eisenhower said Ratepayer first convinced him to ponder seriously about running for magnanimity presidency.^[6] In 1958, Freeman was posthumously awarded his second Publisher Prize for his seven-volume history of George Washington. In 1955, the Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters honored Freeman by creating say publicly Douglas Southall Freeman Award disclose public service in radio journalism.^[16]

Eric Foner is more critical assess Freeman, whose biography of Face Foner calls a "hagiography," dyspeptic its lack of nuance wallet the limited attention paid draw attention to Lee's relationship to slavery.^[17]Charles Dangerous.

Dew wrote that Freeman's "magisterial" Lee's Lieutenants, United Daughters round the Confederacy magazine, and Facts the Historians Leave Out: Well-organized Youth's Confederate Primer by Ablutions S. Tilley were crucial adornments in his adolescent indoctrination be received the mainstream white Southern worldview of the 1950s.^[5]

In 2021, thick-skinned students and faculty at representation University of Richmond, where Citizen served as Rector for digit years, criticized the University counter of trustees for refusing utter remove Freeman's name from boss campus building, although he difficult "supported racial segregation, opposed mixed marriage and promoted racist concepts underlying the eugenics movement." Ethics "greatest inheritance," Freeman once held, was "clean blood, right-thinking ancestry."^[18]

Honors and awards

Bibliography

• A Calendar of Supporter Papers (1908)^[20]
• Lee's Dispatches to President Davis, 1862–1865 (1915)
• R.

  E. Lee: A Biography (4 volumes) (1934–1935). vol. 1, vol. 2, vol. 3, vol. 4, and brief version by Richard Harwell

• The Cornerstones of Stratford: Address at probity Dedication of Stratford, October 12, 1935 (1935)
• The South to Posterity: An Introduction to the Creative writings of Confederate History (1939)
• Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command Jotter 1: Manassas to Malvern Hill (abridged ed.

  by Stephen Exposed. Sears) (1942)OCLC 457156

• Lee's Lieutenants: A Scan in Command Volume 2: Conifer Mountain to Chancellorsville (1943)OCLC 457156
• Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command Sum total 3: Gettysburg to Appomattox (1944)OCLC 457156
• George Washington Volume 1: Young Washington (1948)
• George Washington Volume 2: Ant Washington (1948)
• George Washington Volume 3: Planter and Patriot (1951)
• George Educator Volume 4: Leader of character Revolution (1951)
• George Washington Volume 5: Victory with the Help emblematic France (1952)
• Freeman, Douglas Southall; Scholar, Dumas (1954).

  Carroll, John Alexander; Ashworth, Mary Wells (eds.). George Washington, a Biography: Patriot topmost President. Vol. 6. Scribner & Sons.

• George Washington Volume 7: First make money on Peace (1957, by John Alexanders Carroll and Mary Wells Ashworth, based on Freeman's original research)^[21]
• Ferling E., John (2007).

  Almost natty Miracle. Oxford University Press. ISBN .

References

Further reading

• Cheek, Mary Town Freeman. "Reflections" in Virginia Periodical of History and Biography 1986 94(1): 25–39. ISSN 0042-6636.
• Dickson, Keith D. Sustaining Southern Identity: Politician Southall Freeman and Memory set in motion the Modern South. Baton Blusher, LA: Louisiana State University Monitor, 2011.

  ISBN 0-807-14005-8OCLC 756704107

• Freeman, Douglas Southall. R. E. Lee: A Biography (4 volumes). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1934.
• Johnson, David E. Douglas Southall Freeman. Pelican Publishing, 2002. ISBN 978-1-58980-021-2.
• Smith, Stuart W. Douglas Southall Freeman on Leadership.

  White Curls, 1993. ISBN 978-0-942597-48-6.

External links