John Esten Cooke's A Life of General Robert E. Lee is a biography of the venerable commander of the army of the Confederate States of America. Offered a commission in the Union army by President Lincoln in 1861, the distinguished career officer and combat engineer opted instead to follow his home state of Virginia out of the Union. Lee quickly developed a reputation as a gifted battlefield tactician, defeating larger Northern forces again and again, although this talent was not enough to overcome the industrial and financial strengths of the North. Today, Lee is a much admired military figure and continues to be as revered in the North as he was in the South. HarperTorch brings great works of non-fiction and the dramatic arts to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards in ebook production and celebrating reading in all its forms. Look for more titles in the HarperTorch collection to build your digital library.