Robert E. Lee’s Famed Letter to J.E.B. Stuart, Post-Gettysburg, Praising Stuart’s Bravery and Effectiveness, Urging Him on to New Victories, and Bringing Him Back into the Fold

At the start of the war Stuart joined the Confederate service, and in May 1861 was commissioned a lieutenant colonel. Lee then commanded the armed forces of Virginia, and ordered Stuart to report to Gen. Thomas J. (Stonewall) Jackson, who assigned him to command all the cavalry companies in his army. Before long the 29-year old Stuart was given command of the cavalry brigade for his army and was promoted to general. In 1862, when Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia during the Peninsula Campaign, he requested that Stuart perform reconnaissance to determine whether the right flank of the Union Army of the Potomac was vulnerable. Stuart set out with 1,200 troopers on the morning of June 12 and, having determined that the flank was indeed vulnerable, took his men on a 150 mile complete circumnavigation of the Union army. He returned to Lee on July 15 with important information, 165 captured Union soldiers, 260 horses and mules, and various quartermaster and ordnance supplies. The maneuver was a sensation and Stuart was greeted with flower petals thrown in his path at Richmond. In fact, this ride and another around Union forces in October 1862 were particularly popular, as the exploits seemed to vividly demonstrate the enemy's ineptness. Stuart was promoted to major general on July 25, 1862, and his command was upgraded to the Cavalry Division.

Stuart was the scout Lee always felt he could depend upon, the only cavalry commander about which he would say, "He never brought me false information." Stuart's energy, his ceaseless activity, and his eye for enemy movements and intentions were remarkable. He scouted, skirmished, and fought tirelessly, accepting hardships in the field as a matter of course and expecting his men to do the same. He was always pressing the enemy to find out where they were and what they were doing, while at the same time screening the movements of his own army from enemy scouts. Moreover, he stayed in constant touch with Lee and his staff.

He was a key element in the successes of the Army of Northern Virginia, and there were many all the way up to June 1863. To name them is to feel again the emotion of the rising tide of the Confederacy: Second Bull Run (where Stuart managed to overrun Union army commander Maj. Gen. John Pope's headquarters, and not only captured Pope's full uniform, but also intercepted orders that provided Lee with valuable intelligence); Fredericksburg (about which Lee noted, "To the vigilance, baldness and energy of Gen. Stuart and his cavalry is due chiefly the early valuable information of the movements of the enemy"); and Chancellorsville (where Stuart discovered that Union General Hooker was across the river, and later that Hooker's right flank was "in the air", which intelligence led Lee to make his famous turning movement). Lee paid him the highest possible accolade by saying of him, "He was second to none in valor, in zeal, in unflinching devotion to his country…To military capacity of a high order, and all the virtues of the soldier, he added the brighter graces of a pure life…"

"With inferior numbers you concentrated your troops, and successfully opposed his progress, and obliged him to relinquish his purpose. His next attempt will be on our right"

Under Stuart, the Confederate cavalry came to own the territory between the two armies, wherever that might be. Lee always seemed to know what the Union forces were up to, and where they were, while Union commanders were constantly guessing about Lee's whereabouts and intentions.  Lee came to rely on, and maybe even take for granted, this informational advantage, perhaps analogous to modern-day air superiority. In fact and in romance, it seemed that Stuart was the gallant knight of the Confederacy and his cavalry was invincible. And the personal relationship between Lee and Stuart, which at the time and now is considered virtually that of father to son, was paying enormous dividends for their cause.

On June 25, 1863, Lee's part of the Army of Northern Virginia was nearing Pennsylvania, while the rest of the Confederate infantry under Longstreet and Hill were filing into Maryland at Shepherdstown and Williamsport, with the goal of meeting up with their van in Pennsylvania. The Union forces were starting to cross the Potomac in pursuit. Stuart was still in Virginia, readying to ride north to meet up with Lee's army. Stuart had the option of either moving to the southeast before heading north, so as to go around the Union army (as he had on his famous raids), or heading west to fall in behind Longstreet and the infantry. Lee had issued Stuart orders on June 22 and 23 that, as always, gave his cavalry commander his trust and considerable discretion about timing and route of travel. But Lee mentioned the western route, and later confirmed in a report his understanding that Stuart was to move west. Lee clearly needed to have intelligence and to have his army screened, not for Stuart to embark on a raid. But Stuart went east instead, suggesting that the orders were ambiguous in his mind, or he had determined that circumstances justified the alternative. What Stuart proposed to do was later related by one of his staff officers, who wrote that Stuart was "ardently in favor" of sweeping around Meade's army, getting between him and Washington, cutting his communications, breaking up the railroads, and doing all the damage possible before joining Lee. In fact, the raid failed to accomplish what he'd hoped and had no impact on the imminent Battle of Gettysburg, and his decision took him out of contact with Lee's army for eight critical days. So Lee lost the valuable intelligence he would have gained if Stuart had been there, with little to show for what Stuart accomplished.  

The first shots at Gettysburg were fired by a group of Confederate infantry who were probing for Union troops -i.e. performing a reconnaissance mission that more correctly belonged to Stuart's cavalry. Lee initially thought he was facing Pennsylvania militia, only to have General Heth's men see their Union enemy wearing the black hats that distinguished the Iron Brigade (which was an experienced combat unit in the Army of the Potomac itself). During the early phases of the battle, Lee simply did not know how much of the Federal army he was facing, nor where they were located. That uncertainty had an impact on Lee's decision-making, and thus possibly the result of the battle. On the evening of July 2, when the Battle of Gettysburg was 2/3 over, Stuart arrived at Lee's headquarters. Although there are two versions of what took place at that meeting, the more reliable one relates that Lee "reddened at the sight of Stuart and raised his arm as if he would strike him", reportedly saying "General Stuart, where have you been? I have not heard a word from you for days and you are the eyes and ears of my army." Stuart's attempt to explain himself was waived off. In the end, of course, Gettysburg was a defeat that, in retrospect, revealed it as the high water mark of the Confederate cause. Had Lee instead scored a great victory, it is probable that it would have resulted in Confederate independence.

"I hope you may be able to deal him a damaging blow before he gets out of your reach. I congratulate you on defeating his plans and arresting his advance."

As for Lee, he took sole responsibility for the loss at Gettysburg, but he expressed his true feelings in his official report, issuing a rather strong rebuke to Stuart: “The Army was much embarrassed by the absence of the cavalry.” The first draft of the report more severely criticized Stuart, but he edited this out, explaining that were he to be so officially critical to Stuart he would be obliged to relieve him of command and to bring him up on charges, so that he would have the opportunity to defend himself. This he did not wish to do.

Despite this, during August and into September 1863, Stuart was hoping for an appointment as lieutenant general, but he learned on September 9 that Lee was not going to make it. Stuart was surprised and disappointed, as he sought to be the senior general officer in the Confederate cavalry, and now he was simply in rank the equal of Fitzhugh Lee and Wade Hampton. Even as Lee used the non-promotion to chasten Stuart, he seemed increasingly to assume a tone in correspondence with Stuart that may be seen as either fatherly or patronizing, or a combination of both. Then on September 13, two divisions of Union infantry, cavalry and artillery crossed the Rappahannock River. Gen. Meade made this move because he had learned that Longstreet's corps had left Lee's army to fight in the western theater. Seeing a numerical superiority, he moved to exploit this advantage. On September 22, divisions of Union cavalry under Buford and Kilpatrick advanced to the Rapidan River. Stuart's men rode out to meet them. On a road, near a place called Jack's Shop, the two mounted forces clashed. The Southerners were able to drive Union forces off the road, and with some infantry support, they repulsed Union troops and kept them north of the Rapidan. It was a victory, if a small one, and Lee used the occasion to encourage, and to bring Stuart back into his good graces. Lee also showed the affection with which he held the Confederate soldier.

"I hope your loss has been small, and that your troops are in good condition. Cherish and refresh them all you can."

Autograph Letter Signed, Hdqtrs. Army of Northern Virginia, September 23, 1863-2 p.m., to "General Stuart, Commanding, &c.", classifying the action as a success and issuing his congratulations, praising Stuart's bravery and effectiveness in high terms, warning him of new potential enemy movements, and ending with a remark illustrating the feelings of tenderness he had for his men. "I have just received your note of to-day, reporting the retirement of the enemy's cavalry. I hope you may be able to deal him a damaging blow before he gets out of your reach. I congratulate you on defeating his plans and arresting his advance. The energy and promptness of yourself and command elicits my high admiration. With inferior numbers you concentrated your troops, and successfully opposed his progress, and obliged him to relinquish his purpose. His next attempt will be on our right. We must either be prepared for him there or prostrate him by a movement on his rear. I hope your loss has been small, and that your troops are in good condition. Cherish and refresh them all you can. Very respectfully, your obt. servt., R. E. Lee, Genl."  The letter is contained in the Official Records of the Civil War and mentioned in the book "Bold Dragoon: The Life of J.E.B. Stuart." When it came on the market a great many years ago, it was obtained by a woman related to Stuart. It remained in the family of her descendants until we secured it recently.   Though it has faded, it is completely legible.

This emotion-laden letter between the two most revered heroes of the Confederacy is perhaps the most significant and enlightening one Lee ever wrote that pertains to both their personal and war-time relationship, and illuminates how Lee saw Stuart (and in fact how Lee wanted to see Stuart), how Lee encouraged Stuart and wanted him to perceive himself, and the direction Lee sought to take with their relationship after Gettysburg and into the future.  Its tone is characteristic of Lee and also demonstrates the care with which he treated his fighting men.