Army of Northern Virginia
Lee wanted to inspire his troops telling them "every man has resolved to maintain the ancient fame of the Army of Northern Virginia and the reputation of its general and to conquer or die in the approaching contest." There was no ancient history, it was a newly formed army. But Lee got the idea across. The first first series of battles under Lee, called Seven Days Battles, defined Lee's army. His soldiers were tough, dedicated men willing to inflict and suffer great casualties in order to win battles. Between 1861 and 1865, the Army of Northern Virginia fought in dozens of battles. Some of the better known are the Battle of Antietam, the Battle of Chancellorsville and the Battle of Gettysburg. In the Battle of Fredericksburg his army managed to inflict 12,653 casualties on the Union army while losing only 5,377 men. In December 1861, Lee corrected one of his officers after a fight saying "you allow these people to get away". "Go after them, and damage them all you can!" In the months following Lee's takeover of the Army of Northern Virginia, as they drove the Union army away from Richmond, Virginia, and out of Virginia, he became a hero to his soldiers and the people of Virginia.