- Lee family
.
Members of the family include Thomas Lee (
1690 –1750 ), a founder of the Ohio Company and a member of the VirginiaHouse of Burgesses ;Francis Lightfoot Lee (1734–1797) andRichard Henry Lee (1732–1794), signers of theUnited States Declaration of Independence ;Thomas Sim Lee (1745–1819), Governor ofMaryland and, most famously,General Robert E. Lee (1807–1870)Confederate States of America commander in theUnited States Civil War . PresidentZachary Taylor and Chief JusticeEdward Douglass White were also descendants ofRichard Lee I . Confederate PresidentJefferson Davis marriedSarah Knox Taylor , daughter ofZachary Taylor .Most recently, family members have marked over two hundred years of political service in the United States, as
Blair Lee III , a descendant of Richard Henry Lee, served asLieutenant Governor of Maryland from 1971-1979 and Acting Governor of Maryland from 1977–1979.History
They are widely believed to have descended from the Lees of
Shropshire ; however, there is no conclusive proof. In fact, genealogist William Thorndale wrote an article for the National Genealogical Society Quarterly [December 1988 issue] which showed that Richard Lee I was actually the son of John Lee, a clothier, and Jane Hancock, that he had been born in Worcester (some ways down theRiver Severn ) and "not" at Coton Hall, and that several of their immediate relatives had been apprenticed as vintners.On the other hand, in the book "Old Virginia and Her Neighbors" [Published in 1897 by Houghton, Mifflin, and Co.] , by John Fiske, the following can be found:
:"In the seventeenth century, when the migrations to America were beginning, it was customary for members of noble families to enter these guilds as apprentices in the crafts of the draper, the tailor, the vintner, or the mason, etc. Many important consequences have flowed from this. Let it suffice here to note that this fact of the rural aristocracy keeping in touch with the tradesmen and artisans has been one of the safeguards of English liberty; it has been one source of the power of the Commons, one check upon the undue aspirations of the Crown."
In any event, the Lees of Shropshire did have a substantial estate near Alveley for hundreds of years. Coton Hall itself dates back to 1348. Their name may have been originally "de la Lee"; alternatively, a "Delee" was listed in the
Battle Abbey Roll as having accompaniedWilliam the Conqueror .Colonial Virginia
In the U.S., the family began when
Richard Lee I emigrated toVirginia and made his fortune intobacco . They first gained wider significance with Thomas Lee (1690–1750). He became a member of theHouse of Burgesses and later went on to found theOhio Company .Revolutionary War era
Thomas Lee [ [http://www.stratfordhall.org/thomaslee.html? HISTORY STRATFORD Thomas Lee 1690-1750] ] (1690–1750) married Hannah Harrison [Her first cousin twice removed was
Benjamin Harrison V ] Ludwell: their children, like the descendants of Thomas Lee's brotherHenry Lee I , included a number of prominent Revolutionary War and pre-Revolution political figures.Thomas and Hannah Lee's two eldest children were
Philip Ludwell Lee (1726–1775) and Hannah Lee (1728–1782).Thomas Ludwell Lee (1730-1778) was a member of the Virginia Delegates and a major editor ofGeorge Mason 'sVirginia Declaration of Rights (1776), a precursor to theUnited States Declaration of Independence , which was signed by his brothersRichard Henry Lee (1732–1794) andFrancis Lightfoot Lee (1734-1797).
right|thumb|General_Henry Lee III , "Light Horse Harry," also served as Governor of Virginia, and was the father ofRobert E. Lee . (portrait by William Edward West)]Richard Henry Lee was a delegate to
Continental Congress from Virginia and president of that body, 1774, later serving asPresident of the United States in Congress assembled under theArticles of Confederation , andUnited States Senator from Virginia (1789–1792) under the newUnited States Constitution .Younger siblings included Alice Lee (1736-1818), who married American Chief Physician William Shippen, Jr. [Shippen's father,
Continental Congressman William Shippen , was a cousin ofPeggy Shippen wife ofBenedict Arnold ] anddiplomat s William Lee (b. 1739, d. 1795) and Arthur Lee (b. 1740, d. 1792).Henry Lee's grandson,
Henry Lee III (1756 - 1818), known as "Light Horse Harry," was a Princeton graduate who served with great distinction under GeneralGeorge Washington in theAmerican Revolutionary War , and was the only officer below the rank of General to receive the "Gold Medal," awarded for his leadership at theBattle of Paulus Hook inNew Jersey , onAugust 19 ,1779 . He was Governor of Virginia from 1791-1794. Among his six children was Robert Edward Lee, later the famed Confederate general during theAmerican Civil War .Henry Lee III's brothers were the noted
Richard Bland Lee , a two-term U.S. Congressman from Virginia, and Charles Lee (1758–1815),Attorney General of the United States from 1795–1801.Thomas Sim Lee , a second cousin of Henry Lee III, was elected Governor of Maryland in 1779 and 1792 and declined a third term in 1798. He played an important part in the birth ofMaryland as state and in the birth of theUnited States of America as a nation.Civil War Era
Robert E. Lee (1807–1870), was the son of Henry Lee III, and probably the most famous member of the Lee family. He served as Confederate general in theUnited States Civil War .He was married to Mary Anna Randolph Custis [http://www.nps.gov/frsp/fitzchm.htm] , who was a great-granddaughter of
Martha Washington and also was Lee's third cousin once removed throughRichard Lee II , fourth cousin throughWilliam Randolph , and third cousin throughRobert Carter I .R. E. Lee's children included
George Washington Custis Lee andWilliam H. Fitzhugh Lee .Other Lee relations who were General Officers during the Civil War wereFitzhugh Lee (Confederate Army),Samuel Phillips Lee (US Navy);Richard Lucian Page (Confederate Army and Navy);Edwin Gray Lee (Confederate Army). Indirect relations of R.E.Lee who were C.S General Officers wereWilliam N. Pendleton andVirginia Military Institute graduateWilliam H. F. Payne .Later Generations
Francis Preston Blair Lee (1857-1944) was a Democratic member of theUnited States Senate , representing the State of Maryland from 1914-1917. He was also the great-grandson of American patriotRichard Henry Lee , and grandfather ofBlair Lee III ,Lieutenant Governor of Maryland from 1971-1979 and Acting Governor of Maryland from 1977–1979.Notes
ee also
*
Zachary Taylor Further reading
* Nagel, Paul C., "The Lees of Virginia: Seven Generations of an American Family", Oxford University Press, reprinted 1992, ISBN 0-19-507478-5.
* Lee, Edmund Jennings (editor), "Lee of Virginia", Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore, Maryland. reprinted 1983, ISBN 0-8063-0604-1External links
* [http://www.stratfordhall.org/history.html?PRESERVE The Lees of Virginia]
* [http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0829234.html Profile of Richard Lee]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/content/articles/2005/04/08/history_lee_house_feature.shtml BBC on Shropshire Lees]
* [http://www.leearchive.info/index.html Lee Family Digital Archive]
* [http://thesocietyoftheleesofva.org/ Society of the Lees of Virginia]
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