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The General Who Saved a Nation
Ulysses S. Grant remains one of the most misunderstood figures in American history. While many remember him as the victorious Civil War general or the scandal-plagued president, Ron Chernow's monumental biography reveals a far more complex man-a brilliant military strategist, a champion of civil rights, and a deeply human figure who battled personal demons throughout his life. The book has earned widespread acclaim, with The New York Times calling it "a masterpiece" and former President Bill Clinton praising its scholarly depth. Even before Lin-Manuel Miranda transformed Chernow's Alexander Hamilton biography into a Broadway sensation, the author had established himself as America's preeminent chronicler of consequential lives. With Grant, Chernow delivers perhaps his most transformative work, elevating a man once dismissed as a crude butcher and failed president to his rightful place among America's most consequential leaders.
2장
From Country Boy to West Point Cadet
Young Ulysses S. Grant possessed a remarkable gift that would define his military career: an almost supernatural ability with horses. By age five, he stood one-legged on galloping horses, and by eight, he drove teams hauling enormous logs for his father's business. At twelve, when transporting two young women through a rain-swollen creek with water rising to their waists, he calmly assured them: "Don't speak-I will take you through safe."
Despite his equestrian talents, Grant struggled with money matters from childhood. When sent to negotiate for a colt at age eight, he immediately revealed his father's entire bargaining strategy to the seller. The resulting mockery taught him that "boys enjoy the misery of their companions" and that "all adults are not free from the peculiarity."
Though content with farm work, Grant detested his father's tannery business with its blood-slicked floors and swarming rats. "Father, this tanning is not the kind of work I like," he explained, agreeing to work until twenty-one but refusing to continue beyond that. This early revulsion manifested in his lifelong insistence on eating meat burned crisp and free of blood.
By adolescence, Grant attended several schools but remained unimpressive academically except in mathematics. When his father Jesse unilaterally applied for a West Point appointment without consulting him, Ulysses protested, "But I won't go," only to be overruled. Jesse requested the nomination from Congressman Thomas Hamer, with whom he had a political falling-out years earlier. Hamer graciously submitted Grant's name but mistakenly listed him as "Ulysses S. Grant" rather than Hiram Ulysses Grant-a name change that would follow him throughout his life.
At West Point, Grant struggled socially and academically, graduating twenty-first in a class of thirty-nine. However, his horsemanship reached legendary status when he performed a spectacular leap over a bar "higher than a man's head" that established an academy record lasting decades. One classmate prophetically noted, "if a great emergency arises in this country during our life-time, Sam Grant will be the man to meet it."
3장
The Reluctant Warrior
Grant's Mexican War experience provided the military education that would later prove invaluable during the Civil War. Serving under Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, he demonstrated remarkable courage under fire. At Molino del Rey, he dragged his wounded roommate Fred Dent to safety while maintaining exceptional composure, with future Confederate General James Longstreet noting his "superb courage and coolness."
At Chapultepec, Grant led about a dozen volunteers in clearing Mexican snipers from rooftops, commandeering a church and hoisting a dismantled howitzer into the belfry to fire on Mexican forces. This resourceful action helped American forces overrun the San Cosme gate, leaving Mexico City defenseless and earning Grant the honorary rank of brevet captain.
Despite his battlefield success, Grant harbored moral qualms about the conflict, later writing that the Mexican War was "one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation." He believed the Civil War was "largely the outgrowth of the Mexican war. Nations, like individuals, are punished for their transgressions."
After Mexico, Grant married Julia Dent, his former roommate's sister, beginning a devoted partnership that would sustain him through life's darkest moments. Their happiness was interrupted when Grant was posted to isolated Columbia Barracks in Oregon Territory, where he suffered from separation and the damp climate. His business ventures invariably failed-farming, chicken shipping, ice trading-leading his partner to observe, "He was the perfect soul of honor and truth, and believed everyone else as artless as himself."
Isolated from Julia and his sons, Grant's drinking problems emerged. Though he drank less frequently than other officers, his "sprees" were problematic because alcohol affected him dramatically. As Lieutenant Macfeely noted, "liquor seemed a virulent poison to him, and yet he had a fierce desire for it. One glass would show on him" and "two or three would make him stupid."
In 1854, facing mounting pressure from his commanding officer and desperate to reunite with his family, Grant resigned from the army. He returned to civilian life with no profession and few prospects, beginning a seven-year struggle that would test his resilience to its limits.
4장
The Crucible of Failure
The years between Grant's military resignation and the Civil War represented his life's nadir. He failed at farming, real estate, bill collecting, and selling firewood. At his lowest point, he peddled handmade leather goods on St. Louis streets. A neighbor recalled seeing Grant "standing on the street corners, with his coat on his arm, waiting for work." When seeking employment at the St. Louis County engineer's office, Grant was rejected for looking too shabby.
These hardships forged Grant's empathy for the downtrodden and his determination to succeed against overwhelming odds. Despite his struggles, he maintained his integrity, refusing to use slaves on his farm even though his father-in-law offered them. When a slave named William Jones helped Grant clear his land, Grant took him to the courthouse and signed manumission papers, freeing Jones despite his own desperate financial circumstances.
By 1860, Grant had exhausted his prospects in St. Louis and reluctantly accepted a position in his father's leather goods store in Galena, Illinois. Working under his younger brother Orvil and earning just $800 annually, Grant seemed destined for obscurity. Yet when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in April 1861, Grant's military background made him an instant leader in Galena. As he later wrote, "I never went into our leather store after the meeting which was held to raise volunteers... Civil life had no charms for me."
The war offered Grant redemption from his business failures. Though Julia remained sympathetic to the South as "a slaveholder at the beginning of the war, and a very pronounced Democrat," she recognized the opportunity for her husband's talents to shine. The transformation was immediate-the failed businessman became a decisive military leader who would ultimately save the Union.
5장
The Rise of an Unlikely Hero
Grant's Civil War career began modestly with a colonel's commission in an undisciplined Illinois regiment. Within months, however, President Lincoln promoted him to brigadier general based on recommendations from Congressman Elihu Washburne, who recognized Grant's potential. Unlike many Union generals who hesitated to engage the enemy, Grant demonstrated an aggressive fighting spirit that would define his leadership.
In February 1862, Grant orchestrated the war's first significant Union victories at Forts Henry and Donelson, forcing the surrender of 12,000 Confederate troops. When Confederate General Simon Buckner requested terms, Grant replied with words that electrified the North: "No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works." The press dubbed him "Unconditional Surrender Grant," and Lincoln, desperate for aggressive generals, promoted him to major general.
Grant's reputation suffered a temporary setback at Shiloh in April 1862, where Confederate forces launched a surprise attack on his unprepared army. Though Grant ultimately prevailed after horrific casualties on both sides, critics accused him of being drunk and unprepared. Lincoln defended him, saying, "I can't spare this man; he fights."
The relationship between Grant and his subordinate William Tecumseh Sherman would become the war's most consequential military friendship. Despite their different temperaments-Sherman being a restless intellectual who quoted Shakespeare and Dickens, while Grant was more taciturn-they shared a bold fighting spirit. Sherman candidly assessed their complementary strengths: "I am a damned sight smarter man than Grant; I know a great deal more about war, military history, strategy, and grand tactics than he does." Yet he acknowledged Grant's unique battlefield intuition: "He knows, he divines, when the supreme hour has come in a campaign of battle, and always boldly seizes it."
Grant's greatest achievement came at Vicksburg, Mississippi, where he executed one of history's most brilliant military campaigns. After several failed attempts to reach the Confederate stronghold, Grant made a bold decision to march his army down the western bank of the Mississippi, cross below Vicksburg, and attack from the east-cutting himself off from supply lines in the process. In eighteen days, Grant's forces marched 180 miles, fought and won five battles, and trapped the Confederate army inside Vicksburg's defenses. After a six-week siege, the city surrendered on July 4, 1863, giving the Union control of the Mississippi River and effectively splitting the Confederacy.
6장
The Architect of Victory
Following his Vicksburg triumph, Grant was summoned east to rescue the Army of the Cumberland, trapped in Chattanooga after a devastating defeat at Chickamauga. Within days of his arrival, Grant opened a supply line to the starving troops, earning it the nickname "the cracker line." He then orchestrated a remarkable victory, culminating in the dramatic storming of Missionary Ridge where Union soldiers spontaneously charged uphill against entrenched Confederate positions.
Impressed by these successes, Lincoln appointed Grant General-in-Chief of all Union armies in March 1864, reviving the rank of Lieutenant General specifically for him-a rank previously held only by George Washington. Grant developed a comprehensive strategy coordinating all Union armies toward capturing Lee's forces in Virginia and Johnston's in Georgia. "That we are now all to act in a Common plan, Converging on a Common Center looks like Enlightened War," Sherman wired approvingly.
Unlike previous Union commanders who focused on capturing Richmond, Grant understood that destroying Confederate armies was the path to victory. He told an aide who panicked about Lee's tactics: "I am heartily tired of hearing about what Lee is going to do... try to think what we are going to do ourselves." This shift in thinking transformed the war's nature.
The Overland Campaign of 1864 revealed both Grant's determination and the human cost of his strategy. In the Wilderness, at Spotsylvania Court House, and at Cold Harbor, Grant hammered Lee's army relentlessly, suffering enormous casualties but gradually wearing down Confederate forces. After Cold Harbor, where a frontal assault resulted in thousands of Union deaths, Grant executed a brilliant strategic pivot, secretly moving his entire army south of the James River to target Petersburg-a crucial railroad junction supplying Richmond.
Though initial attacks on Petersburg failed, Grant settled into a siege that would eventually strangle Lee's army. He extended his lines west and south of Petersburg, forcing Lee to stretch his thinning forces while targeting the railroads feeding Richmond. By April 1865, Grant's strategy succeeded-Petersburg fell, Richmond was abandoned, and Lee's army fled westward. Grant pursued relentlessly, cutting off escape routes until Lee requested terms at Appomattox Court House.
Grant's magnanimous surrender terms reflected his strategic wisdom and humanity. He allowed Confederate officers to keep their side arms and soldiers to take their horses home for spring planting. He ordered rations distributed to the starving Confederate troops and stopped Union celebrations, saying, "The war is over. The rebels are our countrymen again." These actions laid the groundwork for national reconciliation and earned him the respect of former enemies.
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The Reluctant Politician
After Lincoln's assassination, Grant found himself thrust into the center of one of the most contentious political periods in American history. The nation faced the monumental task of reunification, with President Andrew Johnson advocating a lenient approach to the defeated South that essentially allowed former Confederate states to return to the Union with few conditions. Meanwhile, the Radical Republicans in Congress demanded strict measures, including military occupation and guaranteed rights for freed slaves. Grant, still serving as General of the Army, initially supported Johnson's policies out of military deference to civilian leadership, but his perspective shifted dramatically as he witnessed escalating violence against freed slaves and white Republican supporters throughout the former Confederacy.
By 1868, Grant's relationship with Johnson had deteriorated beyond repair. The breaking point came when Johnson attempted to remove Secretary of War Edwin Stanton in violation of the Tenure of Office Act, leading to his impeachment. Johnson's increasingly erratic behavior and attempts to obstruct Congressional Reconstruction convinced Grant that stronger federal intervention was necessary. When Republicans nominated him for president, Grant accepted with his characteristically succinct style, delivering a brief statement that concluded with the memorable words: "Let us have peace." His campaign against Democrat Horatio Seymour resulted in a decisive electoral victory, making him the first president since Andrew Jackson to serve two complete terms, a distinction that would hold until Woodrow Wilson's presidency.
As president, Grant confronted challenges that would have tested even the most experienced politician. He had to manage the delicate balance of reintegrating eleven former Confederate states while protecting the rights of four million newly freed slaves. The rapidly industrializing post-war economy brought additional complications, including the Gold Panic of 1869, labor unrest, and the need to establish a more stable national currency. Grant also faced the deeply entrenched spoils system, which had corrupted federal appointments for decades.
His administration achieved remarkable diplomatic successes, particularly the 1871 Treaty of Washington with Great Britain. This agreement resolved multiple disputes, including the Alabama Claims from the Civil War, when British-built ships aided the Confederacy. The treaty's use of international arbitration to settle these claims established an important precedent for peaceful conflict resolution between nations.
Grant's most significant and historically undervalued achievement was his forceful defense of Black civil rights. When the Ku Klux Klan launched a campaign of terror against Black voters and white Republicans across the South, Grant responded with unprecedented federal action. He successfully pushed Congress to pass the Enforcement Acts of 1870 and 1871, which empowered him to suspend habeas corpus and deploy federal troops against Klan violence. Under Attorney General Amos Akerman's leadership, the newly established Department of Justice conducted thousands of prosecutions, effectively crippling the Klan's operations in many Southern states.
Frederick Douglass, the prominent abolitionist and civil rights leader, particularly praised Grant's groundbreaking appointments of African Americans to federal positions. The administration placed "249 in one Department at Washington" alone, an unprecedented level of Black representation in government. Grant's appointment of Ebenezer D. Bassett as minister to Haiti marked the first time an African American served as a U.S. diplomat. He further advanced this progress by appointing James Milton Turner as minister to Liberia, demonstrating his commitment to expanding opportunities for African Americans in federal service.
8장
The Tarnished Presidency
Despite these achievements, Grant's presidency was marred by scandals that damaged his reputation. Though personally honest, Grant's trusting nature and loyalty to friends made him vulnerable to unscrupulous men who exploited his administration. The Credit Mobilier scandal, the Whiskey Ring, and Secretary of War William Belknap's acceptance of bribes all occurred under Grant's watch, though he was not personally implicated.
Grant's brother Orvil embarrassed the president by testifying before a House committee that he had secured four profitable Indian trading posts through presidential influence. Orvil admitted receiving half the proceeds from these posts without doing any work, cheerfully confirming he had "influence with the President to manage these matters." Though Orvil claimed his brother knew nothing of the kickbacks, his testimony severely damaged Grant's reputation.
The most devastating cabinet scandal involved Secretary of War William Belknap, whose household had received $20,000 in kickbacks from an Indian trading post at Fort Sill. When a House committee prepared to release a report recommending his impeachment in March 1876, a panicked Belknap rushed to the White House to resign. Grant, distracted by other matters, accepted the resignation "with great regret" before understanding the scandal's magnitude.
As his presidency concluded, Grant faced a disputed election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel Tilden. With contested results in Louisiana, Florida, and South Carolina potentially determining the outcome, Grant remained remarkably fair-minded despite his Republican allegiance, declaring "the Country cannot afford to have the result tainted by the suspicion of illegal or false returns." His impartial handling prevented bloodshed and ensured a peaceful transition, though he was disappointed when Hayes effectively ended Reconstruction by removing federal troops from the South.
9장
The Final Battle
After leaving the White House in 1877, Grant embarked on a two-year world tour with Julia, receiving unprecedented honors from heads of state across Europe and Asia. Upon returning to America, he settled in New York City, where wealthy friends established a $250,000 fund to support him and purchased a brownstone for his residence.
In 1880, Grant made a fateful decision to enter into a business partnership with his son Buck and a young financier named Ferdinand Ward. The firm of Grant & Ward represented the first time Grant had allowed his name to be exploited by a business venture. Ward, known as the "Young Napoleon of Finance," operated a massive Ponzi scheme that collapsed in May 1884, leaving Grant penniless at age sixty-two.
Just weeks after this financial disaster, Grant learned he had terminal throat cancer. Facing death and destitution, he began writing his memoirs to provide for his family. Mark Twain, recognizing their potential value, offered Grant a generous publishing contract. Despite excruciating pain requiring cocaine sprays and hot compresses, Grant produced 336,000 words of masterful prose in a single year, working 4-6 hours daily and sometimes through sleepless nights.
On July 23, 1885, Grant completed his memoirs. He died five days later at Mount McGregor, New York. His Personal Memoirs, published posthumously, became a literary masterpiece and bestseller, earning his family nearly $450,000-the equivalent of millions today. Twain called them "the best of any general's since Caesar."
Grant's funeral procession in New York City drew over a million mourners. William Sherman and Philip Sheridan served as honorary pallbearers alongside Confederate generals Joseph Johnston and Simon Buckner, whom Julia had specifically requested to honor her husband's reconciliation efforts. The Stonewall Brigade marched in gray uniforms, a powerful symbol of national healing. Frederick Douglass wrote: "In him the Negro found a protector, the Indian a friend, a vanquished foe a brother, an imperiled nation a savior."
10장
The Man Behind the Myth
The enduring enigma of Ulysses S. Grant lies in the stark contrasts of his life: the brilliant general who struggled in peacetime; the man of simple tastes who was comfortable with world leaders; the honest president surrounded by corruption; the warrior who yearned for peace.
Grant's personal life revealed a man of deep feeling beneath his stoic exterior. His marriage to Julia Dent was a love story that sustained him through failure and triumph. Despite her strabismus (crossed eyes), which made her self-conscious, Grant found her irresistible. When she later mentioned feeling like "such a plain little wife" to a "great man," his response was deeply tender: "Did I not see you and fall in love with you with these same eyes? I like them just as they are...you had better not make any experiments, as I might not like you half so well with any other eyes."
As a father, Grant was exceptionally loving, delighting in playful moments with his children. He would knead bread into balls at meals to toss at Nellie and Jesse, kissing the "victim" afterward. When his daughter Nellie married an Englishman and moved abroad, Buck found his father sobbing, describing it as "the saddest I ever saw my father."
Grant's struggle with alcohol remained a complex aspect of his character. Though he conquered his addiction during critical periods, particularly during military campaigns, the specter of alcoholism haunted his reputation. His loyal aide John Rawlins served as his conscience keeper, extracting a pledge that Grant wouldn't touch alcohol during the war and vigilantly monitoring him.
Walt Whitman, who often passed Grant on his solitary walks around Washington, saw him as embodying "the typical Western man-the plainest, the most efficient...the least imposed upon by appearances." This unpretentious quality made Grant beloved by ordinary soldiers and citizens alike.
In his final battle with cancer, Grant displayed the same determination that had won the Civil War. When doctors told him to stop working on his memoirs, he replied, "There are already too many men in this world who have started to do something and got tired or discouraged and gave it up." His last written words were a note to his doctor: "I think I have made the last surrender."
Ron Chernow's masterful biography reveals the full measure of this remarkable American-a man who rose from obscurity to save the Union, championed equal rights when it was unpopular, and faced death with the same courage he had shown in battle. In Grant's story, we find the essence of America itself: resilience in the face of adversity, redemption after failure, and the quiet determination that ultimately changes the course of history.
