In 1869, four years after the conclusion of the Civil War, a movement rose briefly hoping to reunite key generals from both sides and to erect granite monuments on the Gettysburg Battlefield. The hope was to commemorate the men and movements of the battle, and to memorialize those lost in the larger war.
Given the recent tensions of removing or keeping the monuments to figures like Confederate soldier Silent Sam on the UNC campus, and others like General Lee, Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis, what Robert E. Lee says is instructive. The following is part of his response to this invitation to return to Gettysburg:
Lexington, VA, August 5, 1869
Dear Sir …
I think it wiser, not to keep open the sores of war but to follow the examples of those nations who endeavored to obliterate the marks of civil strife, to commit to oblivion the feelings engendered.
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
R. E. Lee.
Thank you General Lee. Your words offer valuable wisdom for the difficulties we currently face. May we follow your sage advice and remove these monuments that continue “to open the sores of war.” Instead, let us “obliterate the marks of civil strife” and remove them to neutral places of historical memory. Museums are far better venues for sharing the sad and complicated history that accompanies them.
Such actions do not change history. No one can do that. But we can attempt to, as best we can, repair the damage that history has done. We must also try to understand more clearly the events and attitudes that created that history. Otherwise, we are in danger of repeating it.
