His father was a lawyer and, unlike many of Lee's relatives, stayed out of public life.

[2] Lee attended the College of William and Mary for two years, 1851-1853 and then was a student Benjamin Hallowell's school for young men in Alexandria, Virginia.

He was taken across the Potomac to General McClellan's headquarters at Keedysville and was later exchanged for a Union officer of equivalent rank held by the Confederates.

He returned to Confederate service and was given command of the 33rd Virginia Infantry Regiment, part of the famed Stonewall Brigade.

He fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg, and, following health issues, was appointed Colonel on November 12, 1863 on the staff of Gen. Robert Ransom, Jr. in the Richmond defenses, and later in the Shenandoah Valley.