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Born: January 29, 1756; Leesylvania, Virginia
Died: March 25, 1818; Cumberland Island, Georgia
Henry Lee was born on January 29, 1756 in Leesylvania, Virginia. In June 1776, he was commissioned a Captain in the Virginia Light Cavalry. In January 1778, he was promoted to Major. Lee next received commendation for his actions at Paulus Hook, New Jersey in August 1779. In the Fall of 1780, he was promoted to Lt. Colonel, 'Lee's Legion' was formed and ordered to South Carolina. Lee's Legion was effective at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in March, 1781. In a series of detached actions, Lee captured Fort Watson, Fort Motte, Fort Granby and Fort Galphin. He next supported sieges at Augusta and Ninety-Six. Lee again distinguished himself at Eutaw Springs on September 8, 1781. Lee was present at Yorktown, Virginia in October, 1781. He then returned south.
In February 1782, Lee was granted a leave of absence and never returned to duty. He married his cousin Matilda Lee and entered politics being elected to Congress in 1785. In 1788 he led the fight in Virginia for ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In 1790, his wife died. From 1791-1794, he was governor of Virginia. On June 13, 1793, he married Ann Carter Hill. In 1794, He was in command of troops during the Whiskey Rebellion. He returned to Congress from 1799 to 1801. In 1812, Lee was severely injured when a mob stormed a jail where he, Alexander Hanson and others had gone for protection after Hanson's Federalist newspaper had denounced President Madison. Henry Lee ended up in debtor's prison in 1812 and in 1813, went to the West Indies. When his health continued to grow worse, he set sail for home. However, he only made it to Cumberland Island, Georgia, where passed away on March 25, 1818 and was buried there.
1.
Henry Lee: 1756-1781
Early Life: 1756-1776 Revolutionary War: 1776-1781 Southern Campaign: 1781
2.
Henry Lee: 1781-1807
Southern Campaign: 1781 After the Revolutionary War: 1782-1807
3.
Henry Lee: 1807-1818/Bibliography
: After the Revolutionary War
4.
Henry Lee: 1756-1785 Timeline
5.
Henry Lee: 1786-1818 Timeline
Early Life: 1756-1776 Henry Lee was born on January 29, 1756 in Leesylvania, Prince William County, Virginia. At seventeen years old, he graduated from Princeton. He was preparing to leave for England when the Revolutionary War broke out.
Revolutionary War: 1776-1781 Thanks to Patrick Henry's nomination, Henry Lee was commissioned a Captain in Bland's Regiment of Virginia Light Cavalry on June 18, 1776. In April 1777, his company joined
General George Washington's main army. On January 20, 1778, he brilliantly avoided capture by
Captain Banastre Tarleton at the Spread Eagle Tavern about five miles south of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. His actions resulted in promotion to Major with the addition of two more troops of horse to his present corps.
Lee next received one of only eight medals awarded by the
Continental Congress with his actions at Paulus Hook (now in Jersey City), New Jersey on August 19, 1779. He captured the fort and 400 men with only one casualty. On October 21, 1780, 'Lee's Legion' was formed with the addition of three infantry companies to support his three troops of horse. On November 6, 1780, he was promoted to Lt. Colonel and he was still shy of his twenty-fifth birthday. He was almost immediately ordered south to join the new
Southern Department Commander Maj. General Nathanael Greene, who desperately needed cavalry. Lee arrived in South Carolina on January 13, 1781.
Southern Campaign: 1781 On January 24, 1781, Lee's cavalry supported
Francis Marion in actions at Georgetown, South Carolina. He next led his legion in screening maneuvers against
Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton's cavalry during Greene's retreat to the Dan River. Lee recrossed the Dan back into North Carolina with
Andrew Pickens and defeated a band of Tory cavalry at Haw River, North Carolina on February 25, 1781. Able to use deception by masquerading as Tarleton because of the similarity in uniforms between his and Tarleton's unit. he was able to gain close quarters to the Tories. The Tories under the command of Colonel Pyle were caught completely by surprise and easily subdued. Some consider the action to be a massacre and is also referred to as Pyle's Hacking Match.
Lee's Legion was effective in supporting
Maj. General Nathanael Greene at the
Battle of Guilford Courthouse, North Carolina on March 15, 1781. Greene again detached Lee's Legion. Lee joined
Francis Marion in laying siege to Fort Watson, South Carolina on April 15, 1781. The garrison was under the command of Lt. McKay and manned by eighty British regulars and forty Tories. The rebels built a tower from which riflemen were able to fire into the garrison, which finally surrendered on April 23rd. On May 8, 1781, Marion and Lee arrived at Fort Motte, South Carolina which was a strategically located mansion that had been fortified and held by British Lt. McPherson with over 150 men. After three days of regular approaches and time running out because of the approach of Lord Rawdon from Camden, Lee decided to fire flaming arrows onto the mansion's roof and burn them out. On the morning of May 12th, two arrows were fired and surrender quickly followed. Southern Campaign: 1781 Following the victory at Fort Motte, Lt. Colonel Henry Lee made his way to Fort Granby, South Carolina again with little time because of the approaching British force. On May 15, 1781, Lee secured the position by negotiating a surrender from the garrison commander Tory Major Andrew Maxwell. He did so by agreeing to allow Maxwell to retain his personal plunder as well as allow the men of the garrison to withdraw to Charleston, South Carolina to await being exchanged as prisoners of war. On May 21, 1781, Lee captured Fort Galphin, South Carolina where he mainly secured supplies that would have been of use to the British forces in Augusta, Georgia.
On May 23, 1781, Lee arrived at Augusta, Georgia to support the ongoing siege by
Elijah Clarke and
Andrew Pickens. Lee was influential in the strategies that allowed the Patriots to finally secure the surrender of Augusta from Colonel Thomas Brown on June 4, 1781. Escorting prisoners, Lee then left for Ninety-Six, South Carolina to reinforce
Maj. General Nathanael Greene's ongoing siege there. He arrived on June 8, 1781. Lee began operations to the north to cut off the water supply. On June 18th, his Legion fought well in an attack against the fort, but the overall attack was repelled and Greene was forced to withdraw before Lord Rawdon arrived with reinforcements.
In the last major battle of Greene's
Southern Campaign, Lee's Legion again distinguished itself at Eutaw Springs, South Carolina on September 8, 1781. Lee was present at
Yorktown, Virginia in October, 1781 while
General George Washington carried out the final siege operations against
Lt. General Charles Cornwallis. He then returned south to his command under Greene and saw action on December 1, 1781 at Dorchester, South Carolina. He also planned the aborted operations against Johns Island, South Carolina on December 28-29, 1781.
After the Revolutionary War: 1782-1807 In February 1782, Lee was granted a leave of absence and never returned to duty. Even though he and
Maj. General Nathanael Greene would remain good friends, Greene could sense a discontentment in Lee which may have been depression caused by battle fatigue. Soon after returning to Virginia, Lee married his cousin Matilda Lee and inherited Stratford Hall. He entered politics as a Federalist and was elected to Congress in 1785. In 1788 he led the fight for Virginia to ratify the
United States Constitution. In 1790, his wife, Matilda, died, leaving Henry with three children.
From 1791-1794, he was governor of Virginia. On June 13, 1793, he married Ann Carter Hill at Shirley Plantation, Virginia. In 1794,
President George Washington gave Lee command of 15,000 troops to put down the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania, which Lee accomplished without any loss of life. He served in Congress from 1799 to 1801. On September 2, 1802, Henry's first son by his second wife, Sydney Smith Lee, was born at Camden, New Jersey. On January 19, 1807, his son Robert Edward Lee was born at the family home Stratford Hall in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Robert E. Lee would go on to eclipse his father's notoriety when he commanded the Confederate forces in the Civil War.
After the Revolutionary War: 1807-1818 In 1812, Henry Lee, who was a strong Federalist, was severely injured when a mob stormed a jail where he, Alexander Hanson and others had gone for protection after Hanson's Federalist newspaper had denounced President Madison and the War of 1812. Because of bad business decisions, Henry Lee ended up in debtor's prison in 1812, where he wrote his Memoirs of the War in the Southern Department. He was in constant pain, because of internal injuries inflicted during the beating.
In 1813, Lee went to the warmer climate of the West Indies for recuperation, although some said it was to flee his creditors. When his health continued to grow worse and it was clear that he was dying, he set sail for home. However, he was put ashore at Cumberland Island, Georgia, where he was nursed by the daughter of
Maj. General Nathanael Greene, his old commander. He passed away there on March 25, 1818 and was buried there.
1756
- Henry Lee is born in Leesylvania, Prince William County, Virginia.
1773
- Henry Lee graduates from Princeton.
1776
June 18 - Henry Lee is commissioned a Captain in Bland's Regiment of Virginia Light Cavalry.
1777
April - Henry Lee's company joins
General George Washington's main army.
1778
January 20 - Henry Lee skirmishes with
Captain Banastre Tarleton at the Spread Eagle Tavern near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
1779
August 19 - Henry Lee captures the fort at Paulus Hook (Jersey City), New Jersey.
October 21 - Lee's Legion is formed with the addition of three companies of infantry to his cavalry.
November 6 - Henry Lee is promoted to Lieutenant Colonel.
1781
January 13 - Henry Lee arrives in South Carolina.
January 24 - Henry Lee joins
Francis Marion in actions at Georgetown, South Carolina.
February 25 - Henry Lee defeats Tory forces at Haw River, North Carolina.
March 15 - Henry Lee is present at the
Battle of Guilford Courthouse, North Carolina.
April 15-23 - Henry Lee and
Francis Marion successfully lay siege to Fort Watson, South Carolina.
May 12 - Henry Lee and
Francis Marion secure the surrender of Fort Motte, South Carolina.
May 15 - Henry Lee secures the surrender of Fort Granby, South Carolina.
May 21 - Henry Lee captures Fort Galphin, South Carolina.
May 23-June 4 - Henry Lee supports the Siege of Augusta, Georgia.
June 8-June 19 - Henry Lee supports
Maj. General Nathanael Greene's failed siege of Ninety-Six, South Carolina.
September 7 - Henry Lee is present at the Battle of Eutaw Springs, South Carolina.
October - Henry Lee is present at
General George Washington's siege at
Yorktown, Virginia.
December 1 - Henry Lee sees action at Dorchester, South Carolina.
1782
February - Henry Lee is granted a leave of absence.
- Henry Lee marries Matilda Lee.
1785
- Henry Lee is elected to Congress, serving until 1788. 1790
- Henry Lee's wife, Matilda, dies.
1791
- Henry Lee is elected governor of Virginia, serving until 1794.
1793
June 13 - Henry Lee marries Ann Carter Hill at Shirley Plantation, Virginia.
1794
- Henry Lee commands troops that put down the Whiskey Rebellion.
1799
- Henry Lee is elected to Congress, serving until 1801.
1802
September 2 - Henry Lee's son, Sydney Smith Lee, is born at Camden, New Jersey.
1807
January 19 - Henry Lee's son, Robert Edward Lee, is born at Stratford Hall, Virginia..
1812
- Henry Lee is severely injured during a riot against his Federalist friends.
- Henry Lee spends time in debtor's prison.
- Henry Lee writes Memoirs of the War in the Southern Department.
1813
- Henry Lee sails to the West Indies to recuperate.
1818
March 25 - Henry Lee dies on Cumberland Island, Georgia. Henry Lee b. Stratford, Westmoreland, Virginia, 29 January 1756
d. Cumberland Island, Camden, Georgia, 25 March 1818
Friday, 24 September 1779
Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to his Excellency General Washington, for ordering, with so much wisdom, the late attack on the enemy's fort and works at Powles Hook.
Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to Major General Lord Stirling, for the judicious measures taken by him to forward the enterprize and to secure the retreat of the party.
Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to Major Lee, for the remarkable prudence, address and bravery displayed by him on the occasion; and that they approve the humanity shewn in circumstances prompting to severity, as honourable to the arms of the United States, and correspondent to the noble principles on which they were assumed.
Resolved, That Congress entertain a high sense of the discipline, fortitude and spirit manifested by the officers and soldiers under the command of Major Lee, in the march, action and retreat; and while with singular satisfaction they acknowledge the merit of these gallant men, they feel an additional pleasure by considering them as part of an army, in which very many brave officers and soldiers have proved, by their cheerful performance of every duty under every difficulty, that they ardently wish to give the truly glorious examples they now receive.[...]
Resolved, That the sum of two one hundred dollars for every prisoner be put into the hands of Major Lee, to be by him distributed among the Sergeants, Drums Rank File non-commissioned officers and soldiers &c. of his Detachment, in such manner as the Commander in Chief shall direct.[...]
Resolved, That a medal of gold, emblematical of this affair, be struck, under the direction of the Board of Treasury, and presented to Major Lee.[...]
Resolved, That the sum of fifteen thousand dollars be put into the hands of Major Lee, to be by him distributed among the non-commissioned officers and soldiers of the detachment he commanded at the attack and surprise of Powles Hook, in such manner as the Commander in Chief shall direct. Journals of the Continental Congress v. 15 p. 1099-1102
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