Later, Light Horse Harry served heroically under General Nathanael Greene, commander-in-chief of the Southern army, and the two men became close friends. Harry's tactics -- surprise, hit, run, and attack again -- were an important and valuable complement to Greene's strategy of harassment to wear down Cornwallis' forces in the South. Resigning his commission after the British surrender at Yorktown, Harry returned to Virginia to marry his cousin, the "divine Matilda" sister of Richard, Francis, William and Arthur. The wedding took place at Stratford, and it is said that General Washington contributed several pipes of his best Madeira to the festive occasion. Matilda had inherited Stratford (mansion and some land) in the division of her father's estate (the brothers received land) and lived there with her new husband. The dashing young cavalryman, however, was no farmer. His interests in the livelier arena of politics led to his election to the new Virginia House of Delegates. But sadly, after only eight years of marriage, Matilda died in 1790, leaving three young children and a husband desperate with grief.
Two years later, Light Horse Harry was elected Governor of Virginia, serving three one-year terms. While living in Richmond, he fell in love with Ann Hill Carter of nearby Shirley Plantation. In 1793 they were married and with his governorship behind him, he took his bride to Stratford. But family life was soon interrupted by his appointment to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Upon the death of President George Washington in 1799, Harry was asked by Congress to deliver a tribute to his beloved general, describing him for posterity:
"First in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen...
second to none in the humble and endearing scenes of private life."
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In the spring of 1776, Richard, now joined by his brother Francis, took his seat in the Second Continental Congress. Sensing what lay ahead, he wrote confidently to his brother William, "There never appeared more perfect unanimity among any set of men, than among the delegates."
During the next three months, delegate Richard served on 18 different committees. On June 7, 1776, he introduced a bill before Congress which contained the following:
"...That these united Colonies are, and ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance from the British crown, and that all political connection between America and State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved..."
He introduced the bill with a brilliant speech, saying in part:
"...why do we longer delay? Why still deliberate? Let this happy day give birth to an American republic."
However, Congress did not adopt the bill that day. Instead it appointed a committee to prepare a declaration. Because it was his bill, and according to congressional custom, Richard Henry Lee was to be chairman of the committee but he was summoned home due to serious family illness and Thomas Jefferson was appointed to take his place. The bill was adopted on July 2 -- the formal act that dissolved the ties with England. Two days later, on July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence was ratified -- the American Revolution became a reality.
Most members of the Continental Congress had pledged to sign the Declaration of Independence, including the two brothers from Virginia. When the final document was ready for signature, Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Lee, joined 54 other delegates to lay down their lives for freedom. The signatures of Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Lee was, in fact, a commitment of the lives and fortunes of the entire Lee family, including William Lee, Arthur Lee, and cousin Henry "Light Horse" Harry Lee, III. It is certain that if any of them had been captured by the British they would have been charged with treason.
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From 1778 through 1786 Richard Henry Lee's health deteriorated and he reluctantly declined national office but he participated, on and off, as a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. Nevertheless, from 1778 till the end of the war, he proudly monitored the exploits of his cousin, Henry "Light Horse" Harry Lee, III, including Harry's service under General Greene in the Carolinas. In September 1787, the proposed new Constitution was submitted to Congress and its lack of specificity to exclude from federal control all matters not spelled out in the Constitution provoked him to vigorously oppose its adoption without clarifying amendments. The tendency of the proposed Constitution, he feared, was toward consolidation. His opposition was not successful but under the new Constitution he was appointed as Virginia's first U.S. Senator and in this capacity he immediately offered several amendments which he hoped would lessen the dangers to the states from the central government. But, lacking the vigor of good health, he was unable to gain approvals.
Richard Henry Lee and his family's efforts were unsuccessful in adding states rights amendments for several reasons. Congress believed that amendments for individual rights (the Bill of Rights) were a higher priority. Congress believed that the federal government could never usurp states rights because U.S. Senators were appointed by state legislators and, therefore, their first allegiance was to those legislatures. The Constitution contained no provision for federal encroachment into unspecified state matters. The Constitution made no provisions for federal encroachment into the lives of citizens -- until the income tax Amendment of 1913.
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On January 19, 1807, in the large upstairs room at Stratford where so many Lees had come into the world, Ann Hill Carter Lee gave birth to Robert Edward Lee, the fifth son of Henry "Light Horse" Harry Lee, III.
Robert E. Lee was named after two of his mother's favorite brothers.
Philosophos Historia
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