Virginia’s Lee statue has been removed from the U.S. Capitol

WASHINGTON — A statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that has represented Virginia in the U.S. Capitol for 111 years has been removed.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said in a statement that workers removed the statue from the National Statuary Hall Collection early Monday morning.

Northam had requested the removal and a state commission decided that Lee was not a fitting symbol for the state.

Lee’s statue had stood with George Washington’s statue since 1909 as Virginia’s representatives in the Capitol. Every state gets two statues.