On 31 January 1865, amid the waning days of the American Civil War, General Robert E Lee was appointed commander-in-chief of the Confederate armies, a desperate yet momentous decision by the Confederacy as it faced mounting losses against Union forces.
Revered for his tactical brilliance yet constrained by dwindling resources and manpower, Lee assumed the role with the arduous task of salvaging the Southern war effort against General Ulysses S Grant’s relentless campaigns.
However, his appointment came too late to alter the war’s trajectory, as the Confederacy’s fate was already sealed, culminating in Lee’s surrender at Appomattox just over two months later.
