Life, military career, and presidency of Ulysses S. Grant
Life, military career, and presidency of Ulysses S. Grant
An overview of Ulysses S. Grant.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Transcript
Ulysses S. Grant won election as the 18th president of the United States in 1868, largely because of his military career. As a general, Grant had led the Union to victory during the American Civil War. But as president, he struggled to steer the country through a period of financial panic and political corruption.
Hiram Ulysses Grant was born near Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1822. He grew up on his family’s farm, where he became a skilled horseman. During the Civil War, two of Grant’s horses gained national fame. One was named Cincinnati and the other Jeff Davis, named after the president of the Confederacy. The horse had been captured from the Davis family during the war.
At age 17 Grant entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. His name was incorrectly recorded as Ulysses S. Grant, which he eventually adopted. His new initials “U.S.” led the other cadets to call him “Uncle Sam.” During the Civil War, his admirers came up with still another meaning for his initials—“Unconditional Surrender.”
Grant graduated from West Point in 1843 and was assigned to Jefferson Barracks, near St. Louis, Missouri. There he met his future wife, Julia Dent.
Grant spent about ten years in the Army, serving in nearly every battle of the Mexican-American War. He resigned in 1854 and returned to Missouri, where he tried and failed to find success in farming and real estate. In 1860 he moved to Galena, Illinois, to work in his family’s leather store.
Grant’s prospects changed dramatically the next year. In April 1861 the American Civil War broke out, and President Abraham Lincoln issued a call to arms. Grant recruited and drilled volunteers, soon earning the rank of brigadier general. In February 1862, at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, he led his men to the first major Union victory of the war.
Promoted to major general, Grant commanded troops in several major battles and supported the inclusion of black soldiers in the Union armies. He was sharply criticized for the great loss of life at the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862. But he was later celebrated for laying siege to the city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, in May 1863 and capturing it in July.
In March 1864 President Lincoln appointed Grant lieutenant general and gave him command of all the Union armies. Grant decided to confront the army of Confederate General Robert E. Lee himself while sending other Union generals against Confederate armies and supplies in Georgia and Virginia. In April 1865 Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war.
Grant was celebrated as a national hero. In 1866 he was named full general, making him the first person to hold the rank since George Washington. In 1868 the Republican party unanimously chose Grant as its presidential nominee, and he won the election. At age 46, he was the youngest man elected president to that time. He took office in March 1869 and won reelection in 1872.
With no prior political experience, President Grant was ill-equipped to help the damaged country recover from the Civil War. The South struggled with poverty, while corruption spread throughout politics and business, even within Grant’s own administration. Scandals involving bribery and fraud plagued his presidency, and by the end of his second term, his popularity declined greatly.
In 1870 Grant supported the 15th Amendment, which granted African-American men the right to vote. The amendment sparked an increase in activity from racist terrorist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan.
In 1873 the country slid into a financial panic that had spread to the United States from Europe. The Panic of 1873 triggered a depression marked by failing banks, farm losses, and rising unemployment. The depression lasted beyond the end of Grant’s presidency.
Grant left office in 1877. He toured Europe and Asia before settling in New York City. Shortly after, Grant fell into poverty following an unwise investment. Mark Twain, the acclaimed author and a friend of Grant’s, offered to publish his memoirs. Grant died on July 23, 1885, about a week after finishing his book.
Hiram Ulysses Grant was born near Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1822. He grew up on his family’s farm, where he became a skilled horseman. During the Civil War, two of Grant’s horses gained national fame. One was named Cincinnati and the other Jeff Davis, named after the president of the Confederacy. The horse had been captured from the Davis family during the war.
At age 17 Grant entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. His name was incorrectly recorded as Ulysses S. Grant, which he eventually adopted. His new initials “U.S.” led the other cadets to call him “Uncle Sam.” During the Civil War, his admirers came up with still another meaning for his initials—“Unconditional Surrender.”
Grant graduated from West Point in 1843 and was assigned to Jefferson Barracks, near St. Louis, Missouri. There he met his future wife, Julia Dent.
Grant spent about ten years in the Army, serving in nearly every battle of the Mexican-American War. He resigned in 1854 and returned to Missouri, where he tried and failed to find success in farming and real estate. In 1860 he moved to Galena, Illinois, to work in his family’s leather store.
Grant’s prospects changed dramatically the next year. In April 1861 the American Civil War broke out, and President Abraham Lincoln issued a call to arms. Grant recruited and drilled volunteers, soon earning the rank of brigadier general. In February 1862, at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, he led his men to the first major Union victory of the war.
Promoted to major general, Grant commanded troops in several major battles and supported the inclusion of black soldiers in the Union armies. He was sharply criticized for the great loss of life at the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862. But he was later celebrated for laying siege to the city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, in May 1863 and capturing it in July.
In March 1864 President Lincoln appointed Grant lieutenant general and gave him command of all the Union armies. Grant decided to confront the army of Confederate General Robert E. Lee himself while sending other Union generals against Confederate armies and supplies in Georgia and Virginia. In April 1865 Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war.
Grant was celebrated as a national hero. In 1866 he was named full general, making him the first person to hold the rank since George Washington. In 1868 the Republican party unanimously chose Grant as its presidential nominee, and he won the election. At age 46, he was the youngest man elected president to that time. He took office in March 1869 and won reelection in 1872.
With no prior political experience, President Grant was ill-equipped to help the damaged country recover from the Civil War. The South struggled with poverty, while corruption spread throughout politics and business, even within Grant’s own administration. Scandals involving bribery and fraud plagued his presidency, and by the end of his second term, his popularity declined greatly.
In 1870 Grant supported the 15th Amendment, which granted African-American men the right to vote. The amendment sparked an increase in activity from racist terrorist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan.
In 1873 the country slid into a financial panic that had spread to the United States from Europe. The Panic of 1873 triggered a depression marked by failing banks, farm losses, and rising unemployment. The depression lasted beyond the end of Grant’s presidency.
Grant left office in 1877. He toured Europe and Asia before settling in New York City. Shortly after, Grant fell into poverty following an unwise investment. Mark Twain, the acclaimed author and a friend of Grant’s, offered to publish his memoirs. Grant died on July 23, 1885, about a week after finishing his book.