Colonel and Mary Lee’s Chamber

On April 19, 1861, in this room, Lee faced the grim choice of honoring six generations of family ties in Virginia or supporting the Union his family had helped create. Only the day before, he had been offered the command of the army being raised to invade the South. From his long night of solitude, he wrote his letter of resignation, ending a 32-year career of service to his country. The door leads into the dressing room where Mrs. Lee gave birth to six of their seven children. The mantle is the oldest in the house.
Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial