“According to Douglas Southall Freeman, Lee was offered command of all of Virginia’s military forces by Governor Letcher on April 19, 1861 and he accepted.”
Really? He was the personal military advisor to Jefferson Davis prior to being given command of the Army of Northern Virginia. If he was given command of ALL of Virginia’s forces prior to that it must have been a paper army, because he commanded pretty much nothing, as there was pretty much nothing to command (but, as stated, he became the personal military advisor to Jefferson Davis; THEN he was given command of the ANV).
Beauregard was the first commander of the ANV, which was the principal military force of the Confederacy in the east (and he held that position for only a few weeks), and he was followed by Johnston (who commanded for about a year, until Lee replaced him). Hence, Lee’s first field command was on June 1, 1862.
Didn't Lee command the Virginia Militia force that tried unsuccessfully to keep Lincoln from prying loose West Virginia?
So you're saying that Lee really didn't 'take up arms' against the U.S. because since he wasn't actually shooting at anyone? Would you say that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs isn't in the military as well? Lee was given command of all Virginia's military forces. He was a general in a military that first planned hostile actions against the U.S. before it even voted for secession. Lee first took up arms in April 1861 by any possible definition of the term.