Mary Custis Lee

Mary Custis Lee was born on July 12, 1835, at Arlington Plantation in Arlington County, Virginia. She was the second child and first daughter of Robert E. Lee, a Confederate States Army general, and Mary Anna Custis Lee. She was one of seven children in the Lee family, which was part of the prominent Lee family of Virginia. Her paternal lineage traces back to Richard Lee I, an American colonist. Through her mother, she was a descendant of Martha Washington through her first marriage to Daniel Parke Custis, as well as of Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore, and King Charles II of England.

Her childhood nickname was "Mee," given by her father, and later she was called "Daughter" by her family after the age of thirteen. Her childhood residence at Arlington was previously used by Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, during his visit in 1824. When she was five years old, her parents and brothers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, leaving her in the care of her grandparents, George Washington Parke Custis and Mary Lee Fitzhugh Custis. During her youth, she traveled extensively, visiting relatives and family friends, and did not spend much time at Arlington.

During the American Civil War, Lee remained behind Union lines and was unable to attend her sister's funeral in 1862. Her former fiancé, J.E.B. Stuart, attempted to have her rescued, but she refused to leave. After the war, she stayed in Virginia, attending a party in Staunton in 1865 where she met Colonel Bolivar Christian, a trustee of Washington College. She informed him of her father's desire for employment at the college, leading to her father being offered the position of president.

Lee did not attend her father's funeral in 1870 or her mother’s and sister Agnes’s funerals in 1873. Her relationship with her youngest sister, Mildred, remained strained due to Lee's absence during the family’s times of need. She participated in public events such as the unveiling of statues of her father in New Orleans in 1884 and Richmond in 1890.

Following the sale of Arlington House by her brother, George Washington Custis Lee, with her share of the profits, Lee funded her extensive travels abroad, which spanned over twenty-six countries. Her trips included visits to the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Russia, Monaco, the Ottoman Empire, Ceylon, the Dutch East Indies, Palestine, Egypt, Sudan, Australia, China, India, Japan, Mexico, and Venezuela. She met various notable figures, including Queen Victoria, Pope Leo XIII, and an Indian maharaja. Her social status as Robert E. Lee’s daughter facilitated these interactions.

In 1902, in Alexandria, Virginia, Lee was arrested for refusing to move from the whites-only section of a streetcar, instead choosing to sit with her Black maid. Her arrest drew controversy and became a subject of historical debate regarding her motives. Afterward, she traveled to France, where she resided until the outbreak of World War I. She returned to the United States in 1914 due to the war.

Mary Custis Lee died on November 22, 1918, in Hot Springs, Virginia. Her remains were cremated, and her ashes were placed in the Lee family crypt at University Chapel.