Gen. Robert E. Lee Statue In Richmond Can Come Down, Court Rules

RICHMOND, VA — The Virginia Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state of Virginia has the authority to remove an enormous Robert E. Lee statue from a traffic circle on Monument Avenue in Richmond.

The ruling in the Taylor v. Northam and Gregory v. Northam court cases allows the Virginia Department of General Services to begin developing a plan to remove the statue. The statue removal will require street closures for the safe removal of the 12-ton statue.

Removal of the statue is expected to be a multi-day process, according to Gov. Ralph Northam’s office, which said it does not expect any action this week on removal of the statue.

“Today it is clear — the largest Confederate monument in the South is coming down,” Northam said in a statement Thursday. “This ruling is an important step towards moving the Commonwealth of Virginia and the City of Richmond forward into a more inclusive, just future.”

In June 2020, Northam announced plans to remove the Robert E. Lee statue. At the time, he directed the Department of General Services to remove the statue as soon as possible.

But two lawsuits were quickly filed challenging Northam's plan to remove the bronze equestrian statue of Lee. The Supreme Court of Virginia heard oral argument in the cases in June on the 131-year-old statue, which is now widely seen as a symbol of white supremacy and Black oppression.

SEE ALSO: Time Capsule In Pedestal Of Robert E. Lee Statue To Be Replaced

Lawyers for Virginia argued that a 19th century agreement to “affectionately protect” the statue was nullified when the General Assembly in 2020 repealed the 1889 act and directed the Department of General Services to remove the statue. The state also argued that the private citizens who filed the lawsuits to try to prevent the statue’s removal cannot force the state to maintain a monument that no longer reflects its values or current public policy.

One of the lawsuits was filed by a group of five Richmond residents who own property near the statue and the other lawsuit was filed by William Gregory, a descendant of signatories to the 1890 deed that transferred the statue, pedestal and land they sit on to the state.

A lower court judge sided with the governor in both cases, finding that the 19th century deed would violate “current public policy.”

In June, Northam announced plans to replace a 134-year-old time capsule embedded in the pedestal foundation of the Lee statue in Richmond.

A copper time capsule was placed in the cornerstone of the pedestal on Oct. 27, 1887. Records from the Library of Virginia suggest that 37 Richmond residents, organizations and business contributed about 60 objects to the capsule, many of which are believed to be related to the Confederacy.

Northam invited Virginians to suggest new artifacts that represent the state today for a new capsule that will be installed at the site when the statue is removed.

In July, the city of Charlottesville removed the statues of Confederate Gens. Robert E. Lee and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson from their pedestals in city parks. The statues were lifted by cranes and carted off to storage.

Earlier attempts to remove the Lee statue from the Charlottesville park where it had stood since the 1920s were halted by lawsuits. White supremacist and neo-Nazi groups also used the city's efforts to remove the Lee statue to organize white nationalists across the country.

RELATED: Northam Orders Removal Of Gen. Robert E. Lee Statue In Richmond