What did Robert E. Lee do after the Civil War?

Following the American Civil War, Robert E. Lee transitioned from his role as a Confederate general to academia. In August 1865, he became the president of Washington College in Lexington, Virginia, an institution later renamed Washington and Lee University in his honor.123

During his five-year tenure, Lee oversaw significant improvements to the college, including an increase in student enrollment, faculty growth, and the modernization of the curriculum to include science and engineering courses.2

Regarding his political stance, Lee adopted the role of a "situational reconciliationist." While he privately harbored animosity toward the Radical Republican agenda during Reconstruction, he publicly refrained from criticizing the victors, advocating instead for the acceptance of the war's outcome to facilitate national reunion. Lee suffered from various health issues during these years and died on October 12, 1870.24