Wartime Washington
The Civil War Letters of Elizabeth Blair Lee
A fascinating and rare insight into the life and world of Civil War-time Washington from the woman’s perspective, this collection of letters is an invaluable perspective on life in the nation’s capital during an important period in American history.
Elizabeth Blair Lee was raised in Washington's political circles, and her husband, Samuel Phillips Lee, third cousin to Robert E. Lee, commanded the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron during the Civil War. When they married, Elizabeth promised to write every day they were apart. Of the hundreds of letters with which she kept her promise, Virginia Jeans Laas has edited a choice selection that illuminates the functioning of a nineteenth-century family and the Mrs. Lee's unique perspective on the political and military affairs of the nation's beleaguered capital.
