There is no doubt Robert E. Lee is a fascinating figure, as much for his faults as for his virtues.
One confederate leader I found of interest was Major General Patrick Cleburne.
Cleburne's strategic use of terrain, his ability to hold ground where others failed, and his talent in foiling the movements of the enemy earned him fame, and gained him the nickname "Stonewall of the West." Federal troops were quoted as dreading to see the blue flag of Cleburne's Division across the battlefield. General Robert E. Lee referred to him as "a meteor shining from a clouded sky".
Surprisingly he proposed emancipating the entire population of slaves with the goal of recruiting soldiers from the freedmen, in 1864. The idea that they would fight for the confederate states was remarkably ambitious.
In the wake of Cleburne's proposal his commanding General, Braxton Bragg, was persuaded that he was
politically unreliable. Whereas before Patrick Cleburne, who was a remarkably successful leader, had risen in rank with great speed afterward he did not receive even one further promotion.
He died in battle on the 30th of November 1864.
