Lee, George Washington Custis, 1832–1913, Confederate general in the American Civil War, b. Fort Monroe, Va.; eldest son of Robert E. Lee. He served in the Corps of Engineers until May, 1861, when he resigned to fight for the Confederacy. Aide-de-camp to President Jefferson Davis through most of the Civil War, he was promoted to major general in 1864. In the last days of the war, Lee commanded a brigade and was captured in the fighting at Sailor's Creek (Apr., 1865). He was professor of civil and military engineering at the Virginia Military Institute (1865–71) and, succeeding his father, president of Washington and Lee Univ. (1871–97).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: U.S. History: Biographies
