Robert E. Lee Quotes

“A land without memories is a people without liberty.”

“A nation which does not remember what it was yesterday does not know where it is today.”

“A true man of honor feels humbled himself when he cannot help humbling others.”

“Cadets can neither be treated as schoolboys or soldiers.”

“I can only say that I am nothing but a poor sinner, trusting in Christ alone for salvation.”

“I cannot trust a man to control others if he cannot control himself.”

“I like whiskey. I always did, and that is why I never drink it.”

“I was too weak to defend, so I attacked.”

“I would rather die a thousand deaths than surrender.”

“In all my perplexities and distresses, the Bible has never failed to give me light and strength.”

“It is easier to make our wishes conform to our means than to make our means conform to our wishes.”

“It is good that war is so horrible, or we might grow to like it.”

“It's the loneliest feeling in the world - to find yourself standing up when everybody else is sitting down. To have everybody look at you and say, 'What's the matter with him?'

I know. I know what it feels like. Walking down an empty street, listening to the sound of your own footsteps. Shutters closed, blinds drawn, doors locked against you. And you aren't sure whether you're walking toward something, or if you're just walking away.”

“Let us pray for ourselves, that we may not lose the word “concern” out of our Christian vocabulary. Let us pray for our nation. Let us pray for those who have never known Jesus Christ and redeeming love, for moral forces everywhere, for our national leaders. Let prayer be our passion. Let prayer be our practice.”

“My experiences of men has neither disposed me to think worse of them nor be indisposed to serve them: nor, in spite of failures which I lament, of errors which I now see and acknowledge, or the present aspect of affairs, do I despair of the future.

The truth is this: The march of Providence is so slow and our desires so impatient; the work of progress so immense and our means of aiding it so feeble; the life of humanity is so long, that of the individual so brief, that we often see only the ebb of the advancing wave and are thus discouraged. It is history that teaches us to hope. ”

“My trust is in the mercy and wisdom of a kind Providence, who ordereth all things for our good.”

“Never do a wrong thing to make a friend – or to keep one.”

“Obedience to lawful authority is the foundation of manly character.”

“Shake off those gloomy feelings. Drive them away. Fix your mind and pleasures upon what is before you.

All is bright if you will think it so. All is happy if you will make it so. Do not dream. It is too ideal, too imaginary. Dreaming by day, I mean.

Live in the world you inhabit. Look upon things as they are. Take them as you find them. Make the best of them. Turn them to your advantage.”

“So far from engaging in a war to perpetuate slavery, I am rejoiced that Slavery is abolished. I believe it will be greatly for the interest of the South.

So fully am I satisfied of this that I would have cheerfully lost all that I have lost by the war, and have suffered all that I have suffered to have this object attained.”

“The consolidation of the states into one vast empire, sure to be aggressive abroad and despotic at home, will be the certain precursor of ruin which has overwhelmed all that preceded it.”

“The education of a man is never completed until he dies.”

“The forbearing use of power does not only form a touchstone, but the manner in which an individual enjoys certain advantages over others is a test of a true gentleman.

The power which the strong have over the weak, the employer over the employed, the educated over the unlettered, the experienced over the confiding, even the clever over the silly – the forbearing or inoffensive use of all this power or authority, or a total abstinence from it when the case admits it, will show the men in a plain light.

The gentleman does not needlessly and unnecessarily remind an offender of a wrong he may have committed against him. He cannot only forgive, he can forget; and he strives for that nobleness of self and mildness of character which impart sufficient strength to let the past be but the past. A true man of honor feels humbled when he cannot help humbling others.”

“The time is not come for impartial history. If the truth were told just now, it would not be credited.”

“There are few, I believe, in this enlightened age, who will not acknowledge that slavery as an institution is a moral and political evil.”

“There is a true glory and a true honor: the glory of duty done – the honor of the integrity of principle.”

“They do not know what they say. If it came to a conflict of arms, the war will last at least four years. Northern politicians will not appreciate the determination and pluck of the South, and Southern politicians do not appreciate the numbers, resources, and patient perseverance of the North.

Both sides forget that we are all Americans. I foresee that our country will pass through a terrible ordeal, a necessary expiation, perhaps, for our national sins.”

“True patriotism sometimes requires of men to act exactly contrary, at one period, to that which it does at another, and the motive which impels them the desire to do right is precisely the same.”

“We all thought Richmond, protected as it was by our splendid fortifications and defended by our army of veterans, could not be taken. Yet Grant turned his face to our Capital, and never turned it away until we had surrendered.

Now, I have carefully searched the military records of both ancient and modern history, and have never found Grant's superior as a general. I doubt that his superior can be found in all history.”

“We failed, but in the good providence of God apparent failure often proves a blessing.”