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FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT

32nd President of the United States: 1933 ‐ 1945

Remarks at the Unveiling of the Robert E. Lee Memorial Statue, Dallas, Texas.

June 12, 1936

I am very happy to take part in this unveiling of the statue of General Robert E. Lee.

All over the United States we recognize him as a great leader of men, as a great general. But, also, all over the United States I believe that we recognize him as something much more important than that. We recognize Robert E. Lee as one of our greatest American Christians and one of our greatest American gentlemen.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, Remarks at the Unveiling of the Robert E. Lee Memorial Statue, Dallas, Texas. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/208862

“As a soldier, Gen. Lee left his mark on military strategy, As a man, he stood as the symbol of valor and of duty. As an educator, he appealed to reason and learning to achieve understanding and to build a stronger nation. The course he chose after the war became a symbol to all those who had marched with him in the bitter years towards Appomattox.”

President Gerald Ford