Richard Lee was an early immigrant to the colony of Virginia and the founder of a politically, militarily, and socially prominent Virginia family. Born in England to a family of middling-class clothiers, Lee was provided with at least some education and trained in the family business. His father died fairly young, and then when his mother later died, the Lee children came into a modest inheritance.

Richard maybe  was displeased that he received less than he felt he deserved. It was at this time that he decided to invest his inheritance in immigrating to Virginia. He arrived in 1639. Because he arrived as a free man with the ability to read and write, his chances of prospering in the new colony were significantly increased. Due to his literacy he was hired as a clerk at the Jamestown court, which was part of the Secretary of State's office.

Lee was married to a woman whose surname is unknown, but her given name was Anne. Scholars remain uncertain as to whether the Lees married in England, or only met after both were in Virginia. Regardless, the two were of ambitious and sturdy stock, apparently physically able to endure the hardships of living not only in Jamestown, which was still mostly a rude village, but in the wilds of the Northern Neck of Virginia, where they eventually settled.

The couple had at least ten children, several of whom survived to adulthood. Lee's purchase of land in the Northern Neck, or, Fairfax Proprietary, was a clever move, since the owners of the proprietary were all close associates of the exiled King Charles II, or, in the case of Fairfax, of the nobility. By positioning himself near to the lands of the powerful, Lee was able to eventually affect the image of a gentleman.

During his lifetime he acquired many thousands of acres of land, became a member of the House of Burgesses, and later was appointed a member of the King's Council, as well as a justice of the court. In 1651 he became Colonial Secretary of State. Like many colonials, Lee and his wife dreamed of returning to England in social and financial glory. Certainly on the colonial side they had done well for themselves.

Lee purchased a home in what is now the East End of London, but was then a quiet mix of suburbia and rural, as well as known for a place that foreigners lived and settled. Their eldest son enrolled in Oxford and completed a medical degree. A younger son married an English woman and remained in the country the rest of his life, working as an agent for his family's shipping trade. It is unknown how the Lee family found living in England after so many years in Virginia. However, it is fair to assume that their experience was not unlike many other colonials who returned to England far more prosperous than when they departed. Colonials were looked upon not with admiration, but with disdain, and not permitted to enter the gentry and noble social circles. Perhaps that was why, upon his 1664 return to Virginia to inspect his properties, Richard, in failing health, made out his will, demanding that his entire family return home to Virginia upon his death.

He died shortly afterwards. When word of his death and the stipulations of his will reached Anne Lee in England, she and the children followed Lee's directions, sold the house and property in England, and returned to Virginia. Lee left property to each of his eight children, most of who continued to prosper and remain in the land of their birth. A number of Richard Lee's descendants are well-known to American history, including Richard Henry Lee, Francis Lightfoot Lee, Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee, and most famously, Confederate General Robert Edward Lee.