Lee won most of his battles - just as British Generals Howe and Cornwallis did in the RevWar - and lost the war. Anyways, Butler has a great new bio out by Elizabeth Leonard that you should check out. Really interesting dude

And Butler was indirectly responsible for the destruction of the James-Younger gang in Northfield MN. The raid on the bank was partly because they thought the bank was owned in part by Butler and his son in law, Mississippi carpetbag governor Adelbert Ames (it was not).

I would argue that Stonewall Jackson won most of Lee's battles, and that once Jackson was killed by his own troops, Lee's 'generalship' plummeted

I’m a “Butler” from my mom’s side of the family, will have to check out the family tree

Thanks for the thread and the biography recommendation! Moving from PA to SC as a kid was a shock to the system IRT Civil War history. I’m glad Grant’s reputation (and now Butler’s) is being restored.