[45semi]

'Marse' Robert: Did the most with what he had, moreso than many on the list.

[tanknetter]

'Marse' Robert: Did the most with what he had, moreso than many on the list.

Rather than being on the list as an original thinker, Lee was probably one of the best generals at studying past battles and campaigns and applying them to whatever his current situation.

I think there's a book - maybe "Lost Triumph"? - that examines this in detail, arguing that among other things his real plans on the third day at Gettysburg were a revisiting of what he and Winfield Scott had done several times during the Mexican War. Which themselves were based on what Lee had learned of previous battles.