Should Robert E. Lee be considered a war criminal?

[Brainwalter]

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Not when you're a sovereign State in a federal Union supposedly deriving its powers from the consent of the governed.

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Lol at federalism.

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Yeah, would it had never been tried. [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Jeffersonwasright.

[mmcd]

There was no such thing as "war crimes" until the 20th century, so regardless of what he did, no.

[mjkidd]

I just don't understand why you guys hate freedom so much...

[Thremp]

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The South sucks.

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How come we still got all the coloreds?


They loved slavery so much, they don't even wanna leave where it started.

[Brainwalter]

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I just don't understand why you guys hate freedom so much...

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Leveling?

[Oski]

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There was no such thing as "war crimes" until the 20th century, so regardless of what he did, no.

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I certainly understand that. However, it is not unusual to judge historical figures by modern standards. It is a question that still exists outside the black and white definition of war crimes.

[Oski]

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Again, if you don't accept the premise that Lee could not have stopped the war any sooner, then this question only exists as a hypothetical to be applied to a different situation.

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Lee was just serving his President. not sure why this is so hard to understand. He tried to resign, Davis wouldn't let him. and at the end of the war, many of his troops wanted to keep fighting, but it was Lee who stopped them.

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That's been understood the whole time. Nevertheless, many Nazi war criminals were merely serving their Fuhrer.

Lee was in a unique position where if he decided to shut it down, most of the army would comply immediately.

[Oski]

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Honest question, not flaming. Are Southerners still sensitive about this [censored]?

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Yes.

Now for a serious answer to the OP's question. Lee should be considered a "war criminal" for prolonging the war (and thus causing more deaths) at the same time that Grant, Sherman, Lincoln, etc... are considered "war criminals" for invading a sovereign nation, ruthlessly killing innocent women and children, etc...

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Well, if that is the standard you apply, then I suppose you are making an argument that Lee should be considered a war criminal.

Again, had the South won a military victory, many of these figures probably would have been tried as war criminals. IIRC, while the war was ongoing, there were some calling Lincoln a war criminal (or the accepted equivalent for those times).

Also, at no time was the CSA a sovereign nation.

[Brainwalter]

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Also, at no time was the CSA a sovereign nation.

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Glad that's settled.

[ShakeZula06]

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Do you think the Civil War was about slavery too?

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Do you not?

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I guess slavery had a little bit to do with it, but not much.