Lee Hill Trail

View from top of Lee Hill

 

Robert E. Lee's command post during the Battle of Fredericksburg was atop a hill then known as Telegraph Hill. As he watched the slaughter on the plains below, he made his famous statement, "It is good that war is so terrible, or we would come to love it." It was also here that Lee had two close calls with death. A nearby cannon exploded sending large pieces of iron in the air around much of the high Confederate command. Luckily, no one was injured. A second incident occurred when an incoming cannon explosive projectile landed near Lee, but failed to explode. During a 2nd Battle of Fredericksburg on May 3, 1863 (part of the Chancellorsville Campaign), the Confederate force on this hill was overrun by units of the Union VI Corps. This high ground would forever after be known as Lee Hill.

A steep 1/2 mile trail leads from the parking lot at tour stop 2 on the Fredericksburg driving tour to Lee's command post. There are two cannon that represent the Confederate battery position, a shelter of exhibits about the two battles pf Fredericksburg and a view that is especially nice when the fall colors are at a peak and during the winter when the leaves are off the trees.

 

Lee Hill Trail Map