Not all who fought for the North were good men; not all who fought for the South were villains. There were heroes on both sides. Certainly Lee was an outstanding strategist and Jackson a tactician of genius, while Stuart was an excellent commander as well. I don't use the term 'hero' lightly but these were great men and none of them deserve to be blackguarded for doing what they saw to be their duty. Lee in particular did not favor secession and the inevitable war that followed but felt it his duty to fight on the side off his beloved home, the State (Commonwealth, actually) of Virginia.

The motives of the North were not simply to end slavery: preservation of the Union was the primary objective. Lincoln put it bluntly:

"My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave, I would do it; if I could save it by freeing all the slaves, I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that."

That his acts could be as cynical as his words was proved by the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared freedom for slaves in rebel states only, not in the border states that remained part of the Union.

Both Lincoln and Grant strongly discouraged demonization of the Confederates once the war was over, understanding all too well the complex historical net America had fallen into and the need for understanding and reconciliation. I am surprised and disappointed at Ian's call for such demonization at this date.