Lee's Headquarters
The hill in front of you, once called Telegraph Hill but now known as Lee's Hill, served as General Robert E. Lee's headquarters during the Battle of Fredericksburg. Throughout the afternoon of December 13, 1862, Lee and his generals watched uneasily as the Union army repeatedly attacked Southern troops in the Sunken Road. The Federal infantry became easy targets for Confederate artillery atop this hill and Howison Hill (a quarter mile to your left). The Union attacks failed.
The grandeur of the struggle stirred Lee, and here he uttered one of his most famous quotes, "It is well that war is so terrible, or we would grow too fond of it." Still, the victory at Fredericksburg little satisfied Lee - the Union army escaped damaged but intact. The enemy "suffered heavily," he later wrote his wife, "...but it did not go far enough." Lee's relentless efforts to destroy the Union army would continue.
This trail leads to Lee's command post. Although only about .25 mile long, the trail is steep. Allow 45 minutes for the roundtrip hike.
Marker is on Lee Drive, on the right when traveling south.
Courtesy hmdb.org
