Explore the Unveiling about the History of this artwork, Robert E. Lee on Traveller.

The statue was unveiled on June 12, 1936, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to honor Confederate veterans. On that day, President Roosevelt gave a speech praising the general, saying: 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.
Robert E. Lee IV handed President Roosevelt a ribbon to pull, unveiling the statue. When the president saw the statue, Proctor heard him call it "magnificent!". Then W. H. Wells, one of the remaining soldiers who fought in Lee's army, was escorted to see the president through the crowd of people attending the unveiling ceremony. American flags, Confederate flags, and Lone Star flags were flown during the ceremony. The unveiling of Robert E. Lee on Traveller caused no controversy. Yoni Appelbaum of The Atlantic contextualized Roosevelt's comments as part of a trend of American presidents praising Lee. He noted that Woodrow Wilson, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Donald Trump all complimented General Lee, thought he felt Trump's praise was relatively meager.
Confederate flags Robert E. Lee Donald Trump American flags Woodrow Wilson The Atlantic Yoni Appelbaum John F. Kennedy Jimmy Carter Dwight D. Eisenhower Lyndon B. Johnson Ronald Reagan Lone Star flags Franklin D. Roosevelt George W. Bush Traveller Gerald Ford