Carte de Visite – Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee, C.S.A., by G. W. Minnis, Richmond, Va.

Carte de Visite – Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee, C.S.A., by G. W. Minnis, Richmond, Va.
 
A sharp chest-up portrait of Fitzhugh Lee (1835–1905) in Confederate uniform, featuring a double-breasted frock coat with prominent collar insignia and a full, flowing beard. Exceptional clarity and rich contrast throughout; mount crisp and clean. Photographer’s imprint on verso: G. W. Minnis, Richmond, Virginia.  
 
Fitzhugh Lee, nephew of Gen. Robert E. Lee, graduated West Point in 1856 and served as a U.S. cavalry officer in Texas until resigning in 1861. He organized the 1st Virginia Cavalry, rising swiftly to brigadier general (July 1862) and major general (September 1863). Lee led cavalry with distinction in the Peninsula Campaign, at Sharpsburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and Spotsylvania. Severely wounded at Third Winchester (September 1864), he saw no further combat. Post-war, he served as Virginia’s 40th Governor, U.S. consul-general in Havana, and major general of Volunteers in the Spanish-American War, commanding the VII Corps and later serving as military governor of Havana and Pinar del Río. He retired a brigadier general, U.S. Army, in 1901.