Robert Lincoln and the military

[loetar44]

(11-05-2014 03:15 PM)Eva Elisabeth Wrote:  Herb's post made me wonder about the following:

Robert desired to enlist because he wanted to see something of the war before it was over, and to save his face and standing towards his fellow students.

Actually he only got the jam of it, and this as he liked it. He wanted to see Richmond fall and, of course, was able to. He was at Appomattox. He was, of course, allowed to leave for the inauguration, and at all, was far away from any danger and "real war". He was still privileged overall. (Had he "deserted" - what punishment would he have received?)

Was his service appropriate to match these intentions? Was Robert fine with his "alibi position"? How serious were his ambitions - how anxious was he to actually fight on the battlefield and experience the inconvenient, dirty side of the war?

What are your thoughts on this? (Just to clarify: I do understand one doesn't want to enter the battlefield!)

Eva, this is a difficult question, because you have to look in the brain of both, Lincoln and Robert. It is documented that Robert and his father did not always get along. I think this father-son-relationship is important and must be seen as the "root cause" of Robert's enlisting. There was certainly a difference in the relationship Lincoln had with his two "surviving" sons: Tad and Robert. Tad seemed to have a closer relationship with his father. Lincoln was also struggling with the grief in having lost two sons already, especially the loss of Willie. Although Robert “was feeling” that all, Lincoln and Robert loved each other and Lincoln was certainly proud of Robert. He was also attempting to protect Robert. And don’t forget that Lincoln also had to deal with the emotional pain of Mary. Robert vehemently confronted his father about his need to serve the Union Army, I think in the first place (unconsciously) to get more attention from his father, because Lincoln tried to do what he could to stop Robert from enlisting, also for fear that he would be killed, causing more pain to Mary. Maybe this (unconscious) struggle for attention of Robert against the fear of his parents was the main reason that Robert finally was serving as an adjutant to General Grant in a relatively safe and privileged position, at the front when the war was effectively over.