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Secretary of War

Was Ulysses S. Grant actually Secretary of War? He was appointed by Johnson and briefly served while Stanton was removed. Grant is not listed on the United States Secretary of War page? {Cmguy777 (talk) 02:53, 21 April 2010 (UTC)}

Suggested lead

This is just a suggestion. I have attempted to make the lead more of a summary. Comments are welcome.

Ulysses S. Grant, born (Hiram Ulysses Grant) (April 27, 1822– July 23, 1885), was the dominant military and political leader of the United States during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Grant began his life long career as a soldier after graduating from the United States Military Academy in 1843; followed by service in the Mexican American War. During the Civil War , rewarded for a series of Union victories in the West, Grant was give the rank General in Chief of the Army. In 1865, after he defeated Robert E. Lee at Appomatox, the Confederacy collapsed and the war was over. Enormously popular in the North after the Union's victory, he was elected to presidency in 1868. Reelected in 1872, he became the first president to serve two full terms since Andrew Jackson did so forty years earlier. As president, he led Reconstruction by signing and enforcing civil rights laws and fighting Ku Klux Clan violence. He helped rebuild the Republican Party in the South, an effort which resulted in the election of African Americans to Congress and state governments for the first time. However, his image as a great war hero was long besmirched by the corruption he tolerated during his presidency. In 1876, his reputation was severely damaged by the graft trials of the Whiskey Ring. He left office at the low point of his popularity. After leaving office, Grant embarked upon a two-year world tour that was received favorably with many royal receptions. In 1880 he made an unsuccessful bid for a third presidential term. In 1884, broke and dying of cancer, he wrote his enormously successful memoirs. Presidential historians have ranked his Administration poorly due to tolerance of corruption. His presidential reputation has improved among scholars impressed by the Administration's support for civil rights for freed slaves.

—Preceding unsigned comment added by Cmguy777 (talk • contribs) 03:02, 25 April 2010 (UTC)

Removing Grant quotes

I am removing the Grant quotes to reduce the size of the Article. The quotes belong in the Wikiquotes web page.

Add quotes of him cussing someone out. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lx270 (talk • contribs) 21:03, 13 May 2010 (UTC)

Cinema and media portrayals

Cinema and media portrayals

Add >> Jason Robards as Ulysses S. Grant in The Legend of the Lone Ranger —Preceding unsigned comment added by Durindaljb (talk • contribs) 09:41, 21 May 2010 (UTC)

ALSO

Jason Robards also voiced Ulysses S. Grant for The Civil War (TV series) created by Ken Burns

Add link for John Y. Simon in this section —Preceding unsigned comment added by Durindaljb (talk • contribs) 09:46, 21 May 2010 (UTC)

S. What does that mean?

I just want to mention that the article doesn't have any explanation to what "S." in the name means. I would like to see some.--Mashaunix (^words_deeds) 14:43, 23 May 2010 (UTC)

Ulysses_S._Grant#Early life and family Tedickey (talk) 15:05, 23 May 2010 (UTC)

William A. Richardson link needs fixing

It needs to be directed to William Adams Richardson. William A. Richardson is a California entrepreneur, not Grant's treasury secretary. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.239.45.4 (talk) 16:14, 1 June 2010 (UTC)

 Done — MrDolomite • Talk 16:33, 1 June 2010 (UTC)

Suggested article additions

To get USG to GA status I am suggesting two alternate articles. One would be Grant's military carreer. That would mean using the military segments currently in this article to a separate article called "Military service of Ulysses S. Grant". The other article would be titled, "World tour of Ulysses S. Grant". There is enough information on Grant's world tour to have a separate article. These new pages would enable the USG article to be trimmed down to get GA status. Right now, the article appears to be bulky and awkward. Any opinions on the matter would be extremely helpful. {Cmguy777 (talk) 01:59, 3 June 2010 (UTC)}

Is anybody against moving USG military carreer to a seperate article? I am going to attempt to fill in with a summary of his Civil War Record. Allot more could be added to his military carreer, especially the Mexican American War record. In addition, there is Grant's military carreer after the MAW. Grant continued his military carreer during the Andrew Johnson Administration, before he was elected President. This also could be expaned in a USG military carreer article. I believe an adequate summary is needed for the Civil War section. I plan on pasting the summary here and getting feedback. Thanks. I will not post unless there are any objections to be worked out. {Cmguy777 (talk) 02:12, 8 June 2010 (UTC)}

a separate article on Grant 1861-65 makes sense--but I suggest do NOT include the Mexican or postwar years. In Mexico Grant was an observer and in 1865-69 he was basically a political figure. Rjensen (talk) 02:22, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

Thanks Rjensen. That makes sense. With the USG Civil War section as a separate article, then the Mexican War; the Between Wars; and Post Civil War sections can be expanded in the original USG article. The catch now is to summarize the USG Civil War section. I am working on a rough draft and plan to post here for comments. {Cmguy777 (talk) 15:07, 8 June 2010 (UTC)}

Comments

If by "summary" you mean the contents of the lead section (the portion of the article before the table of contents), be aware that Wikipedia guidelines suggest three or four paragraphs for this. You have used five paragraphs and covered only to mid-1863. I am sorry to say that there are a number of errors in this text, but it would be easier for you to shorten it to the appropriate length in hopes that some of those errors are removed in that process. Hal Jespersen (talk) 22:30, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

this is the right track for the brief Civil War section of the main bio article. (It is not the lede for the separate article on Grant in the Civil War") There are small problems that can easily be corrected. (eg post-Shiloh) Rjensen (talk) 22:13, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

This is completely uncited and the writing is very stilted and informal. It needs shortening and rewritten in an encyclopedic and neutral tone, and also needs citations from reliable sources. I would also suggest dividing this article up into two, but not as suggested above; I would divide it into his military service, and then his Presidential period and life up until death. Skinny87 (talk) 15:53, 14 June 2010 (UTC)

Proposed Article Name and Front Photo

An article is to be made on Grant's Civil War military carreer. What should the article be called? Also, what photo should be used on the front summary? {Cmguy777 (talk) 16:00, 16 June 2010 (UTC)}

Suggested titles:

• American Civil War Career of Ulysses S. Grant
• Ulysses S. Grant and the American Civil War

{Cmguy777 (talk) 16:00, 16 June 2010 (UTC)}

Pending changes

This article is one of a number selected for the early stage of the trial of the Wikipedia:Pending Changes system on the English language Wikipedia. All the articles listed at Wikipedia:Pending changes/Queue are being considered for level 1 pending changes protection.

The following request appears on that page:

Comments on the suitability of theis page for "Pending changes" would be appreciated.

Please update the Queue page as appropriate.

Note that I am not involved in this project any much more than any other editor, just posting these notes since it is quite a big change, potentially

Regards, Rich Farmbrough, 00:28, 17 June 2010 (UTC).

Error on page

To Whom:

The picture titled "hardscrable" home of Grant is in error. That home it the home of Julia Dent Grant's parents and were the Grants lived for a brief period. The "Hardscrabble Farm" of Grant, which he built, is nearby on "Grant’s Farm" park and is preserved by the Anheuser-Busch Co. If you will Google Image "Grant's farm" there is a good picture under flickr. Having been to both on several occasions I am certain of my facts. I hope you will make the correction. You also have the wrong home for his "boyhood" home in Ohio. The house you show is the neighbor's across the street. Google "OhioPix: Ulysses S. Grant boyhood home." I have been peronally to see these homes, which I take it, the author has not. I have pictures of these homes but do not know how to send them to you or I would.

Cordially,
Dr. Paul D. Haynie
Professor of history — Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.133.129.3 (talk) 17:42, 18 June 2010 (UTC)

Hi! And welcome.

If you have pictures on your computer and the right to publish them, click on the "Upload file" link in the column at the top left, and follow the directions. Thanks.

—WWoods (talk) 18:03, 18 June 2010 (UTC)

Old Civil War Section

This section has been replaced by new Civil War summary section. (Cmguy777 (talk) 18:17, 20 June 2010 (UTC))

Western Theater: 1861–1863

On April 12 and 13, 1861, Union Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina, was attacked by Confederate forces and surrendered. Two days later, on April 15, President Lincoln put out a call for 75,000 volunteers. Grant helped recruit a company of volunteers and accompanied it to Springfield, the capital of Illinois. He accepted a position offered by Illinois Gov. Richard Yates to recruit and train volunteers. Grant was efficient and energetic in the training camps, but wanted a field command. Gov. Yates, with the support of Congressman Elihu B. Washburne, appointed him a colonel in the Illinois militia. He was given the command of an undisciplined and rebellious 21st Illinois Infantry on June 17. On July 31, 1861, he was appointed brigadier general of the federal Volunteers by Lincoln. On September 1, he was selected by Western Department Commander Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont to command the key District of Southeast Missouri. He soon located his headquarters at Cairo, Illinois.

Battles of Belmont, Henry and Donelson

Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant photographed at Cairo, Illinois on September 4, 1861.

On November 6, 1861, Grant took the lead in seizing the strategically located Ohio River town of Paducah, Kentucky, immediately after the Confederates violated Kentucky's neutrality by occupying Columbus. In his first attempt, he was defeated by Confederate Brig. Gen. Gideon J. Pillow, at Belmont, Missouri, on November 7, 1861. His army initially captured Fort Belmont, but then was repulsed to Cairo after Pillow had received reinforcements. Three months later, his forces in collaboration with Andrew H. Foote's Navy gunboats, two key Confederate fortresses were captured: Fort Henry, February 6, 1862, on the Tennessee River and Fort Donelson, February 15, 1862, on the Cumberland River.

On February 14, Admiral Foote unsuccessfully attacked Fort Donelson with Union gunboats and was injured in the battle. Fort Donelson was commanded by Brig Gen. John B. Floyd, Brig. Gen. Gideon J. Pillow, and Brig. Gen. Simon B. Buckner. The next day, General Pillow took the offensive and attacked one of Grant's divisions headed by Brig. Gen. John A. McClernand and forced a disorganized retreat eastward on the Nashville road. Having heard the battle noise four miles away in conference with Foote, Grant rode back to take charge. Later that day, with three other commanders, Lew Wallace, John A. McClernand, and Charles S. Smith, he engaged in a counterattack that broke the Confederate line, closed the Nashville road, and forced the enemy to fall back into the fort. Pillow and Floyd fled, leaving Buckner responsible for the surrender terms. Grant's terms were clear: "No terms except unconditional and immediate surrender." Buckner surrendered 12,392 men. General Grant's fame increased, and he became known as "Unconditional Surrender." Desperate for fighting generals, President Lincoln promoted Grant to major general of volunteers.

The victories at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson made the Confederacy appear vulnerable in the West and opened the doors for the Union invasion of central Tennessee. Then Brig. Gen. Don Carlos Buell soon took the state's capital, Nashville. Despite his significant victories (or perhaps because of them), Grant fell out of favor with his superior, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck. As a veteran Army officer, Halleck knew about Grant's reputation as a drunkard from the Fort Humbolt incident in 1854, and was biased against him from the beginning. After Grant visited Nashville, Tennessee, and met with Halleck's rival Buell, Halleck used the visit as an excuse to relieve Grant of field command of a newly launched expedition up the Tennessee River on March 4. However, Halleck soon restored him to field command of the expedition (personal intervention by President Lincoln may have been a factor), and on March 17, Grant joined his army at Savannah, Tennessee. His command was known as the Army of West Tennessee; soon, however, it would receive its more famous name as the Army of the Tennessee. While Grant was in field command, he smoked 18 to 20 cigars a day.

Shiloh and Corinth

Further information: Battle of Shiloh

The Battle of Shiloh

By Thure de Thulstrup 1888

By early April 1862, Grant had nearly 50,000 troops in the field for his Tennessee River expedition, one hundred river miles south of Fort Henry. He maintained his own headquarters at Savannah, Tennessee, on the east side of the river. However, five divisions of his army were bivouacked nine miles south at Pittsburg Landing on the western side of the Tennessee River. He blundered by not ordering defensive fortifications, assuming that the enemy, based at Corinth, Mississippi, would not attack in force. The informal commander at Pittsburg Landing was Brig. Gen. William T. Sherman. Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace had one division five miles farther north at Crump's Landing. Grant was unprepared and unaware when the Confederate army attacked at Pittsburg Landing with 44,699 troops early in the morning on April 6, 1862. The Army of Mississippi was led by Albert Sidney Johnston and P.G.T. Beauregard, who for the first time were commanding large formations in battle.

The violence of the surprise rebel attack sent the Union forces reeling towards the Tennessee River while Sherman, on the right front, struggled to keep his troops together. Grant, who was nine miles north in Savannah and recovering from an injury, did not respond until the battle noise grew louder and more consistent. Finally realizing the Confederates were attacking, Grant hastened to Pittsburg Landing and stabilized the Union line. The Union left, under Brig. Gens. Benjamin Prentiss, W.H.L. Wallace, and James M. Tuttle, withstood Confederate assaults on a sunken road, in a pocket known as the "Hornet's Nest", for seven crucial hours before being forced to yield ground towards the Tennessee River. That night Union reinforcements under Buell began arriving. Wallace's division finally arrived at Pittsburg Landing. During the battle Albert S. Johnston was killed and Beauregard assumed control of the Confederate army. Although his army had taken a beating during the day, Grant announced he would counterattack in the morning.

Beauregard, unaware that he was now outnumbered, planned to continue the attack and drive Grant into the river on April 7. Grant's counterattack that morning caught the Confederates surprised and unorganized, with many units mixed up and separated from the chain of command. Beauregard, realizing his peril, retreated back to Corinth. The Union Army reclaimed the grisly battlefield as the returning soldiers bivouacked among the dead. It was the first Civil War battle with a high casualty count: 13,047 for the Union army and 10,699 for the Confederate army. Shiloh's staggering toll of men killed, wounded, or missing brought a shocking realization North and South that the war would not soon end. As previously planned, Grant's superior Halleck arrived at Pittsburg Landing to take personal command in the field. Halleck proceeded to organize a 120,000-man army there, dividing it into three corps commands and a reserve for a campaign to capture Corinth, Mississippi. On April 30, perhaps in response to the surprise and the haphazard nature of the Shiloh fighting and the resulting criticism that followed, Halleck assigned Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas to the command of the right wing, initially meant for Grant. Halleck instead gave Grant a subordinate position of second-in-command of the entire 120,000-man force. With Grant being just a figurehead of the army with little responsibility, he requested that Halleck either restore him to active command or relieve him from duty. Halleck was able to assuage Grant's feelings and persuade him to continue with the campaign. With a slow plodding pace the 120,000-man Union Army took over Corinth without a fight in an empty victory, as the Confederates had deserted the city. Grant, perceiving he had no useful role after the campaign, was ready to depart Corinth and perhaps his command, when his friend Sherman had a private conversation with him and convinced him to stay. In July 1862, Halleck was promoted by Lincoln to general-in-chief of the Union Army and called to Washington. That fall, Grant had command of the Union forces for the battles of Iuka and Corinth, although the fighting in those battles fell largely to Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans.

Vicksburg

Further information: Vicksburg Campaign

During the summer of 1862, the honor of capturing the mighty Confederate garrison at Vicksburg, Mississippi was so enticing that Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand, a war Democratic politician, managed to convince President Lincoln that he could muster an army to take the fortress city. Lincoln approved his plan and wanted Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks to advance up river from New Orleans at the same time. In October, McClernand, under Lincoln's authority, began organizing regiments, sending the recruits to Memphis. By December, thousands of troops from the Union states were coming into Memphis, giving the Union Army in the west needed reinforcements to capture Vicksburg. However, Halleck, who considered McClernand vainglorious and unskilled, decided to give Grant control of all troops in his own department, which included the recruits in Memphis, and gave him permission to move as far south as possible. A personal rivalry began between Grant and McClernand that continued throughout the Mississippi campaign.

In a two-pronged approach to capture the Vicksburg fortress, Grant's army, starting from Grand Junction, Tennessee, moved into Mississippi as far south as Oxford, establishing a large supply depot in Holly Springs to the north. Grant was to approach the fortress from the northwest on the Mississippi Central Railroad while Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman would attack approaching from northeast on the Yazoo River. However, in December 1862, Grant's plans were thwarted by two Confederate generals, Earl Van Dorn and Nathan B. Forrest. Starting on December 10 Forrest cut off Grant's supply chain by destroying 60 miles of the Mobile & Ohio Railroad, captured supply and ammunition dumps and weapons. On December 20, Van Dorn captured $1,500,000 worth of food, ammunition and equipment at Holly Springs, Mississippi. These raids allowed Confederate Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton to reinforce Vicksburg, just in time to stop the Union assault by Sherman's corps at the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou on December 28. Sherman's frontal assault across swampy ground against well-fortified Confederate lines was repulsed, and he was forced to withdraw.

Grant's Operations against Vicksburg, April–July 1863.

Grant and Pemberton discuss surrender terms at Vicksburg on July 3, 1863, as drawn by a young newspaper correspondent who witnessed the event.

Sherman withdrew to Milliken's Bend, Louisiana, and Major General McClernand arrived there on January 4, 1863, and claimed to be in charge of the 30,000 Union soldiers Sherman had led at Chickasaw, defying Grant's earlier published orders assigning McClernand to command only one corps, the XIII. McClernand, at Sherman's suggestion, took his force, which he referred to as the Army of the Mississippi and captured Fort Hindman at Arkansas Post. This helped the Union open the Arkansas River as it met the Mississippi, protect Federal supply lines, and capture 4,800 prisoners at the cost of 1,000 Union casualties.

Grant remained determined to capture Vicksburg and in the first three months of 1863 conducted a series of operations to gain access to the city through the region's bayous, all of which ended in failure. One newspaper complained that, "the army was being ruined in mud-turtle expeditions, under the leadership of a drunkard, whose confidential adviser [Sherman] was a lunatic." These attempts to reach Vicksburg from different directions confused Pemberton, who did not know where the Union army was going to strike. He reported, "Enemy is constantly in motion in all directions".

Rear Adm. David D. Porter's ironclad fleet runs the guns at Vicksburg on April 16, 1863; allowing Grant's troops to cross the Mississippi River at Bruinsburg.

In the spring of 1863, Grant finally devised a strategy that would successfully capture Vicksburg. Starting from Milliken's Bend, the General marched his army, leading with the corps of McClernand and Brig. Gen. James B. McPherson, down the west bank of the Mississippi and crossed the river at Bruinsburg, nine miles south of Grand Gulf, by using United States Navy ships that had run the guns at Vicksburg. To keep Pemberton guessing, he ordered Col. Benjamin F. Grierson, a first rate cavalryman, to raid through central Mississippi. In addition, he had ordered Sherman on April 29 and May 1 to stage a diversionary attack on Pemberton's line at Snyder's Bluff. After crossing at Bruinsburg with 23,000 troops, the Army of the Tennessee moved inland, repulsing Confederate Brig. Gen. John S. Bowen at Port Gibson, a battle that left Grand Gulf open for Sherman's corps to meet up with Grant on May 7. Then, in a move that defied conventional military principles, Grant cut loose from his supply lines of food, feeding off the land in enemy territory. His troops drove northeastward and captured the city of Jackson, severing the rail line to Vicksburg. The General moved swiftly, never giving the Confederates, under the command of John C. Pemberton and Joseph E. Johnston, an opportunity to concentrate their forces against him. Knowing the Confederates could no longer send reinforcements to the Vicksburg garrison, Grant turned west and won the Battle of Champion Hill. The Confederates retreated within their fortifications, and Grant quickly surrounded the city. After two costly assaults against the impregnable breastworks had failed, he settled in for the six-week Siege of Vicksburg, during which Grant relieved McClernand from his command in favor of Edward O.C. Ord. Cut off and with no hope of relief, Pemberton surrendered to the Union General on July 4, 1863. It was a stinging defeat for the Southern cause, splitting the Confederacy in two, and, with the Union victory at Gettysburg the previous day, is widely considered the turning point of the war. For this victory, President Lincoln promoted Grant to the rank of major general in the regular army, effective July 4. This was the second time a full Confederate army surrendered; the first one was at Fort Donelson in 1862.

Historian Francis V. Greene wrote that, "We must go back to the campaigns of Napoleon to find equally brilliant results accomplished in the same space of time with such a small loss." Anticipating that Grant would soon capture Vicksburg, Abraham Lincoln declared that, "if Grant only does this thing down there ..., why, Grant is my man and I am his the rest of this war."

Chattanooga

Further information: [[:Battle of Missionary Ridge]]

Battle of Chattanooga

By Thure de Thulstrup 1880

After the Battle of Chickamauga, Union Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans and his Army of the Cumberland retreated to Chattanooga, Tennessee. Confederate Braxton Bragg followed to Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, surrounding the Federals on three sides and besieging them. On October 17, 1863 to deal with this crisis, he was placed in command of the sweeping, newly created Military Division of the Mississippi; this command placed Grant in charge of the formerly independent Departments of the Ohio, the Cumberland (embracing Chattanooga), and the Tennessee. In taking this new command, he chose a version of the War Department's order that relieved Rosecrans from command of the Department of the Cumberland and replaced him with Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas. Sherman succeeded Grant in charge of the Department of the Tennessee.

Grant went to Chattanooga personally to take charge. Devising a system known as the "Cracker Line," Thomas's chief engineer, William F. "Baldy" Smith opened a new supply route to Chattanooga, helping to feed the starving men and animals of the Union army. Upon reprovisioning and reinforcement by elements of Sherman's Army of the Tennessee and troops from the Army of the Potomac under Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, the morale of Union troops lifted. In late November, Grant went on the offensive.

The Battles for Chattanooga started out with Hooker's capture of Lookout Mountain on November 24 and with Sherman's failed attack on the Confederate right the following day. Sherman had occupied the wrong hill and then committed only a fraction of his force against the true objective, allowing them to be repulsed by one Confederate division. In response, Grant ordered Thomas to launch a demonstration on the center, which could draw defenders away from Sherman. Thomas's men made an unexpected but spectacular charge straight up Missionary Ridge and broke the fortified center of the Confederate line. He was initially angry with Thomas that his orders for a demonstration were exceeded, but the assaulting wave sent the Confederates into a head-long retreat, opening the door to a Union invasion of Atlanta, Georgia, and the heart of the Confederacy. According to Hooker, Grant said afterward, "Damn the battle! I had nothing to do with it." Casualties after the battle were 5,824 for the Union and 6,667 for Confederate armies, respectively.

Eastern Theater: 1864-1865

"General Ulysses S. Grant at City Point in 1864 with his wife and son Jesse."

President Abraham Lincoln, impressed by Grant's willingness to fight and ability to win, appointed him lieutenant general in the regular army—a rank not awarded since George Washington (or Winfield Scott's brevet appointment), recently re-authorized by the U.S. Congress on March 2, 1864. On March 12, he became general-in-chief of all the armies of the United States. Following this, Grant placed Major General William T. Sherman in immediate command of all forces in the West and moved his headquarters to Virginia, in the Eastern theater. Grant then turned his attention to the long-frustrated Union Army of the Potomac's effort to destroy Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

President Lincoln and Grant understood that in order save the Union, the Army of Northern Virginia under Robert E. Lee had to be defeated, and the vital Confederate railroad supply lines had to be destroyed or cut off. Following Lincoln's military suggestions, he devised a coordinated strategy that would strike at the heart of the Confederacy from multiple directions: Grant, George G. Meade, and Benjamin Franklin Butler against Lee near Richmond; Franz Sigel in the Shenandoah Valley; Sherman to invade Georgia, defeat Joseph E. Johnston, and capture Atlanta; George Crook and William W. Averell to operate against railroad supply lines in West Virginia; and Nathaniel Banks to capture Mobile, Alabama. With President Lincoln's valued support and guidance; Grant was the first American general to understand and undertake a coordinated total war strategy; where crippling an enemy's economy and infrastructure was just as valuable as winning on the battlefield.

Overland Campaign

Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant

The Overland Campaign was the military offensive needed by the Union to defeat the Confederacy; it pitted Grant against Robert E. Lee. It began on May 4, 1864, when the Army of the Potomac crossed the Rapidan River, marching into an area of scrubby vegetation and second growth trees known as the Wilderness. It was such difficult terrain that the Army of Northern Virginia was able to use it to prevent Grant from fully exploiting his numerical superiority.

The Battle of the Wilderness was a difficult, bloody, two-day fight, resulting in advantage to neither side, but with heavy casualties to both. After similar battles in Virginia against Lee, all of Grant's predecessors had retreated from the field. He ignored the setback and ordered an advance around Lee's flank to the southeast, which lifted the morale of his army. The Lincoln-Grant strategy was not just to win individual battles; it was to fight regular engagements to wear down and destroy Lee's army. Casualties for the battle were 17,666 for the Union and 11,125 for the Confederate armies, respectively. Sigel's Valley Campaigns and Butler's Bermuda Hundred Campaign failed. Lee was able to reinforce with troops used to defend against these assaults.

General Grant at Cold Harbor, photographed by Mathew Brady in 1864.

The campaign continued. Confederate troops beat the Union to Spotsylvania, Virginia, where the fighting resumed on May 8. The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House lasted 14 days. On May 11, Grant wrote a famous dispatch containing the line "I propose to fight it out along this line if it takes all summer". These words summed up his attitude about the fighting, and the next day, May 12, he ordered a massive assault by Hancock's 2nd Corps that broke and briefly captured Lee's second line of defense, and took approximately 3,000 prisoners. There were 12,000 Confederate casualties to the Union's 18,000. Despite mounting Union casualties, the contests ended increasingly in Grant's favor. Most of Lee's great victories in earlier years had been won on the offensive, employing surprise movements and fierce assaults. Now, he was forced to fight continuously, with no chance to regroup, against an enemy that was well supplied and had greater numbers.

The next major battle proved the power of a well-prepared defense. Cold Harbor was one of Grant's most controversial battles, in which he launched on June 3 a massive three-corps assault without enough reconnaissance on a well-fortified defensive line, resulting in horrific casualties, 12,737 for Union and 4,595 for the Confederate troops, respectively; the Union Army suffered a staggering three times higher casualty rate than the Confederate Army. Grant moved on and kept up the pressure. He stole a march on Lee when Union engineers stealthily constructed a pontoon bridge, allowing the Army of the Potomac to move southward across the James River on June 15, 1864.

During the Overland Campaign, Grant had a reputation as a determined fighter; Abraham Lincoln famously ordered, "Hold on with a bull-dog grip, and chew and choke as much as possible." The phrase accurately captures his tenacity, but it oversimplifies his considerable strategic and tactical abilities. Although Lincoln stayed behind the scenes, he kept a diligent watch on how the war was progressing.

Petersburg and Appomattox

After successfully crossing the James River, arriving at Petersburg, Virginia, Grant should have captured the rail junction city, but he failed because of the excessively cautious actions of his subordinate William F. Smith. Over the next three days, Union assaults to take the city were launched. All failed, however, and finally on June 18, Lee's veterans arrived. Lee was forced to put up defensive trenches around Petersburg to keep Grant and the Union Army from damaging the railways that fed Richmond, the Confederate capital. Unable to break through the solid Confederate front, Grant was left with no alternative but to settle down to the Siege of Petersburg.

As the summer drew on and with Grant's and William Sherman's armies stalled, respectively in Virginia and Georgia, politics took center stage. There was a presidential election in the fall, and the citizens of the North had difficulty seeing any progress in the war effort. To make matters worse for Abraham Lincoln, Lee detached a small army under the command of Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early, hoping it would force the Union army to send forces to pursue him. Early, with 15,000 seasoned troops, invaded north through the Shenandoah Valley, defeated Union Major General Lew Wallace at the Monocacy, and reached the outskirts of Washington, causing alarm. At Lincoln's urging, Grant dispatched the veteran Union VI Corps and parts of the XIX Corps, led by Major General Horatio Wright. With the Union XXII Corps in place in the Washington D.C. fortifications, Early was unable to take the city. The Confederate Army's mere presence close to the capitol was embarrassing simply by being so close to the capitol.

Portrait of Grant (1865, Ole Peter Hansen Balling)

In early September, the efforts of the Union coordinated strategy finally bore fruit. First, Sherman took Atlanta on September 2, 1864. Then, after Lincoln's immediate urging, Grant ordered Philip Sheridan to the Valley Campaigns of 1864 to destroy Early. Finally, on October 19, 1864, after three aggressive and costly battles Early's military force was defeated by "Little Phil" and the Army of the Shenandoah. It became clear to the people of the North that the war was being won, and Lincoln was re-elected by a wide margin. Later in November, Sherman began his March to the Sea. Sheridan and Sherman followed the Grant strategy of total war by destroying the economic infrastructures of the Valley and a large swath of Georgia and the Carolinas.

In March 1865, Grant invited Lincoln to visit his headquarters at City Point, Virginia. By coincidence, Sherman (then campaigning in North Carolina) happened to visit City Point at the same time. This allowed for the war's only three-way meeting of Lincoln, Grant, and Sherman, which was memorialized in G.P.A. Healy's famous painting The Peacemakers. At the beginning of April, Grant's relentless pressure finally forced Lee to evacuate Richmond, and after a nine-day retreat, Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. There, Grant offered generous terms that did much to ease the tensions between the armies and preserve some semblance of Southern pride, which would be needed to reunite the warring sides. Within a few weeks, the American Civil War was over; minor actions would continue until Kirby Smith surrendered his forces in the Trans-Mississippi Department on June 2, 1865.

Lincoln assassination

On April 14, 1865, tragedy struck the nation when Lincoln was shot at Ford's Theater, dying the next morning. Lincoln had been Grant's greatest champion, friend, and military advisor. Lincoln had said after the massive losses at Shiloh, "I can't spare this man. He fights." It was a two-sentence description that caught the essence of Ulysses S. Grant.

Final promotion

After the war, on July 25, 1866, Congress authorized the newly created rank of General of the Army of the United States, the equivalent of a full (four-star) general in the modern United States Army. Grant was appointed as such by President Andrew Johnson on the same day.

Old Military Criticism and Controversy section

This section has been replaced by new Civil War summary section. {Cmguy777 (talk) 18:23, 20 June 2010 (UTC)}

War by attrition

Grant was a rational tactician who realized the Union victory would only come after long and costly battles. Although a master of combat by outmaneuvering his opponent (such as at Vicksburg and in the Overland Campaign against Lee), he was not afraid to order direct assaults, often when the Confederates were launching offensives against him. These tactics often resulted in staggering casualties for his men, particularly at Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor, but they wore down the Confederate forces proportionately more and inflicted irreplaceable losses. Many in the North accused Grant as a "butcher", a charge made by Northern civilians appalled at the staggering number of casualties suffered by Union armies for what appeared to be negligible gains, and by Copperheads - Northern Democrats who either favored the Confederacy or simply wanted an end to the war, even at the cost of recognizing Southern independence. He persevered, refusing to withdraw as had his predecessors, and Lincoln, despite public outrage and pressure within the government, stuck by Grant, refusing to replace him, and both Lincoln and Grant designed the strategy to win the Civil War. Grant was more concerned with his own military plans rather than the enemies. In a concern for casualties, Grant usually would ask "How many prisoners have been taken?" after a battle. This was meant to signify that Grant would rather have living prisoners then horrific losses. At the Petersburg siege he resolved to keep casualties minimal.

Drunkeness

Allegations of Grant's drunkness were rampant during the Vicksburg Campaign. In March 1863, prior to capturing Vicksburg, Grant was accused of being drunk by his rival, Major-General John A. McClernand. McClernand had used information gathered by William J. Kounts that Grant was "gloriously drunk" on March 13. Even earlier, in February, Major-General Charles S. Hamilton had claimed "Grant is a drunkard" and that his wife Julia was always there to keep him from drinking. McClernand and Hamilton were seeking promotion in the army at the time of these allegations. Cincinnati Commercial editor, Murat Halstead, railed that, "Our whole Army of the Mississippi is being wasted by a foolish, drunken, stupid Grant". Lincoln sent Charles A. Dana to keep a watchful eye. Henry W. Halleck, became Grant's protector and kept Grant informed about things going on in Washington. Halleck told Grant that, "The eyes and hopes of the whole country are now directed toward your Army." To save Grant from dismissal, assistant Adjutant General John A. Rawlins, Grant's friend, got Grant to pledge not to touch alcohol.

General Order No. 11 and antisemitism

Allegations of antisemitism -- "a blot on Grant's reputation" -- arose in the wake of the infamous General Order No. 11, issued by Grant in Oxford, Mississippi, on December 17, 1862, during the Vicksburg Campaign. The order stated in part:

The Jews, as a class, violating every regulation of trade established by the Treasury Department, and also Department orders, are hereby expelled from the Department (comprising areas of Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky).

The New York Times denounced the order as "humiliating" and a "revival of the spirit of the medieval ages." Its editorial column called for the "utter reprobation" of Grant's order. After protest from Jewish leaders, the order was rescinded by President Lincoln on January 3, 1863. Though Grant initially maintained that a staff officer issued it in his name, it was suggested by Gen. James H. Wilson that Grant may have issued the order in order to strike indirectly at the "lot of relatives who were always trying to use him" (for example his father Jesse Grant who was in business with Jewish traders), and perhaps struck instead at what he maliciously saw as their counterpart — opportunistic traders who were Jewish. Bertram Korn suggests the order was part of a consistent pattern. "This was not the first discriminatory order [Grant] had signed [...] he was firmly convinced of the Jews' guilt and was eager to use any means of ridding himself of them." During the campaign of 1868, Grant admitted the order was his, but maintained, "It would never have been issued if it had not been telegraphed the moment it were penned, and without reflection."

The order, ostensibly in response to illegal Southern cotton smuggling, has been described by one modern historian as "the most blatant official episode of anti-Semitism in nineteenth-century American history."

Antisemitism became an issue during the 1868 presidential campaign. Though Jewish opinion was mixed, Grant's determination to "woo" Jewish voters ultimately resulted in his capturing the majority of that vote, though "Grant did lose some Jewish votes as a result of" the order. Grant appointed more Jewish persons to public office than any president before him. Although Grant's order was anti-Jewish, Grant had many Jewish friends. To one such friend Joseph Seligman, Grant offered the position of Secretary of the Treasury. Seligman, who had helped finance the Union war effort by obtaining European capital, declined the offer.

Sample USG Civil War segment summary

This is an incomplete sample of USG Civil War summary. Please make any comments or suggestions. Is this going on the right track? Narration and grammar improved. (06-09-2010) (06-14-2010) (06-18-2010) Links added. (06-16-2010)Citations added. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cmguy777 (talk • contribs) 18:36, 18 June 2010 (UTC)

Recruits Volunteers

Brig. Gen. of Volunteers Ulysses S. Grant

Appointed July 31, 1861

On April 15, 1861 President Abraham Lincoln put out a call for 75,000 volunteers, one day after Union Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina, was surrendered to Confederate forces after a two-day siege concluded. Following the presidential call for more troops, Grant helped recruit a company of volunteers and accompanied it to Springfield the capital of Illinois. He remembered with skill what the Mexican War had taught him, even knowing the men he had to fight with. There he accepted a position offered by Illinois Gov. Richard Yates to continue recruitment and train volunteers, where he was efficient and energetic in the training camps. Desiring a field command, Gov. Yates, with the support of Congressman Elihu B. Washburne, appointed him a colonel in the Illinois militia. He was then given the command of an undisciplined and rebellious 21st Illinois Infantry on June 17. Grant was unsuccessful at attempting to get a regular army position; having been ignored by Lorenzo Thomas and George B. McClellan. Grant was stationed in Mexico, Missouri gaurding the corner of the state from Confederate attack. On July 31, 1861 President Lincoln, appointed him brigadier general of the federal Volunteers. On September 1, he was selected by Western Department Commander Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont to command the key District of Southeast Missouri.

Battles of Belmont, Fort Henry, and Fort Donelson

Main articles: Battle of Belmont, Battle of Fort Henry, and Battle of Fort Donelson

Grant’s first battles during the Civil War took near Cairo, Illinois; where the Ohio River merges into the Mississippi River. The Confederate Army was stationed in Columbus, Kentucky under General Leonidas Polk. Grant, who was headquartered at Cairo, was given an open order by Union Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont to make demonstrations against the Confederate Army, but not to attack Polk. Grant, who wanted to attack Beltmont, obeyed the order not to fight until President Lincoln discharged Fremont from active duty. Grant could now go on the offensive; taking 3,000 Union troops by boat and attacked Camp Johnson at Belmont on November 7, 1861. Having initially pushed back the Confederate forces from Camp Johnson, Grant's undisciplined volunteers wildly celebrated rather then continuing the fight. Confederate General Gideon J. Pillow, who had been given reinforcements by Polk, forced the Union army to retreat. Although the battle was considered inconclusive and futile, Grant and the Union army gained the confidence needed to continue on the offensive. More importantly, President Lincoln took notice of Grant's willingness to fight.

On February 6, 1862, Fort Henry was bombarded and captured by Adm. Andrew H. Foote Union naval fleet consisting of ironclads and wooden ships. Grant's forces, two divisions of 15,000 troops, arrived after the fort had been surrenderd to Adm. Foote. The fall of Fort Henry opened up the Union war effort in Tennessee and Alabama. After the fall of Fort Henry, Grant moved his army overland 12 miles east to capture Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. Foote's naval fleet arrived, on February 14, and immediately started a series of bombardments; however Fort Donelson's water batteries effectively repulsed the naval fleet. Stealthily, on February 15, Confederate Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd ordered General Pillow to strike at Grant's Union forces encamped around the fort, in order to establish an escape route to Nashville, Tennessee. Pillow's attack pushed Grant's troops into a disorganized retreat eastward on the Nashville road. However, Grant was able to rally the Union troops to keep the Confederates from escaping. The Confederates forces finally surrendered Fort Donelson on February 16. Grant’s surrender terms were popular throughout the nation, “No terms except unconditional and immediate surrender.” and he would be known from then on as "Unconditional Surrender" Grant. President Abraham Lincoln promoted Grant to major general of volunteers.

Grant became a national hero to the Northern public after his victory at Fort Donelson.

Battle of Fort Donelson, by Kurz and Allison (1887).

The surrender of Fort Donelson was a tremendous victory for the Union war effort. 12,000 Confederate soldiers had been captured in addition to the bountiful weapon supplies at the fort. However, following the Donelson victory dissention was created between Grant and his superior in St. Louis, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck. After Donelson, Grant followed up the victory by taking Clarkville and was ready to take over Nashville, when Halleck stopped the campaign. Halleck, looking for his own promotion, had no desire for Grant to take Nashville. As a reprimand, Halleck spread rumors that Grant was drinking again, left his army demoralized, and had went to Nashville without authorization. Halleck replaced Grant as commanding officer with Maj. Gen. Charles F. Smith to restore order. Grant was about to resign when Lincoln, who wanted fighting generals, intervened demanding that Halleck produce evidence of such allegations. Halleck demurred, and on March 13 by telegram restored Grant to commanding officer even encouraging more successes for him in the field. Grant returned to his army that would be known as the Army of the Tennessee in Savannah. After the fall of Donelson, Grant became popularly known for smoking cigars, as many as 18-20 a day.

Shiloh

Main article: Battle of Shiloh

The Union advances under Grant, supported by naval ironclads, caused significant concern in the Confederate government in Richmond. On April 6, 1862, a determined full force attack from the Confederate Army took place at the Battle of Shiloh; the objective was to destroy Grant's Army of the Tennessee once for all, before Union Brig. Gen. Don Carlos Buell could reinforce him. Over 44,000 Confederate Army of the Mississippi troops led by Albert Sidney Johnston and P.G.T. Beauregard, vigorously attacked five divisions of Grant’s army bivouacked nine miles north from Savannah, Tennessee, at Pittsburgh Landing. Caught completely off guard without entrenchments the Union Army was repulsed towards the Tennessee River; however Grant was able to rally the troops and after receiving reinforcements from Buell had a total of 45,000 troops he launched a counter offensive the following day on April 6. Confederate General Johnson was killed in the battle on the first day of fighting, and the Confederate Army, now under Beauregard; outnumbered; was forced to retreat to Corinth.

After the carnage at Shiloh the Civil War was now a fight to the bitter end.

Battle of Shiloh by Thure de Thulstrup.

The 23,746 casualties at Shiloh shocked both the Union and Confederacy, whose combined totals exceeded casualties from all of the United States previous wars. The Battle of Shiloh caused heavy repercussions for Grant who was critized for leaving his army unprepared defensively and falsely accused of being drunk. President Lincoln, knowing that Grant was an aggressive general refused to dismiss him saying, "I can't spare this man; he fights." After Shiloh Union Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck personally took charge and reorganized the Army of the Tennessee, forming a 120,000-man army. Halleck relieved Grant from command of the army and put him in a powerless secondary position. Grant, who was upset over the situation, desired to be transferred, however, his friend and fellow officer, William T. Sherman, persuaded him to stay in Halleck's Army. After capturing Corinth, Mississippi the 120,000-man army was disbanded; Halleck was promoted to General in Chief of the Union Army and transferred east to Washington D.C. Grant resumed control of the Army of the Tennessee and would continue the Union war effort to capture the Confederate stronghold Vicksburg.

Vicksburg

Main articles: Vicksburg Campaign, Chickasaw Bayou, Arkansas Post, Battle of Jackson, and Battle of Champion Hill

Resolved to take control of the Mississippi River from the control of the Confederacy, President Lincoln, the Union Army and Navy, were determined to take the Confederate stronghold Vicksburg in 1862. Lincoln authorized Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand, a war Democrat politician, to recruit troops, the XIII corps, and organize an expedition against Vicksburg. A personal rivalry developed between Grant and McClernand on who would get credit for taking Vicksburg. The Vicksburg campaign started in December 1862 and would last 6 months before the Union Army finally took the fortress. The campaign combined many important naval operations, troop maneuvers, failed initiatives, and was divided into two stages. The prize of capturing Vicksburg would ensure either McClernand or Grant's success and would divide the Confederacy in two eastern and western parts. At the opening of the campaign, Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman was repulsed by the Confederate forces at the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou. Grant attempted to capture Vicksburg overland from the Northeast; however, Confederate Generals Nathan B. Forrest and Earl Van Dorn; who cut off and raided Union supply lines thwarted the Union Army advance.

In January 1863, McClernand and Sherman's combined XIII and XV corps successfully defeated the Confederates at Arkansas Post. Grant made five attempts to capture Vicksburg by water routes, however, all had failed. With the Union impatient for a victory, in March 1863, the second stage to capture Vicksburg began. Starting in March, 1863 Grant launched the final stage to capture Vicksburg; marched his troops down the west side of the Mississippi River and crossed over at Bruinsburg. Adm. David D. Porter’s navy ships had previously run the guns at Vicksburg on April 16, 1863, enabling Union troops to be transported to the east side of the Mississippi. The crossing was successful due to Grant's elaborate series of demonstrations and diversions that fooled the Confederates on what the Union army was going to do. After crossing the Mississippi river, Grant maneuvered his army inland and after a series of battles the state capital Jackson Mississippi was captured. Confederate general John C. Pemberton was defeated by Grant’s forces at the Battle of Champion Hill retreated to the Vicksburg fortress. After two unsuccessful assaults on Vicksburg, Grant settled for a 40-day siege. Pemberton, unable to combine forces with Joseph E. Johnson, finally surrendered Vicksburg on July 4, 1863.

Grant's victory at Champion Hill forced Pemberton into a 40-day siege at Vicksburg.

Battle of Champion Hill
Sketched by Theodore R. Davis.

The aftermath of Vicksburg was a turning point for Union war effort. The surrender of Vicksburg in combination with Confederate general Robert E. Lee's defeat at Gettysburg were stinging defeats for the Confederacy, now split in two across the Mississippi River. President Lincoln promoted Grant to Maj. Gen. of the Armed forces and it was the second time a Confederate army surrendered, the first done after Fort Donelson surrendered. During the Vicksburg siege Grant dismissed McClernand for publishing a congratulatory order to the press and the rivalry between to the two ended. The Union army had captured considerable Confederate artillery, small arms, and ammunition. Total casualties, killed or wounded, for the final operation against Vicksburg that started on March 29, 1863 were 10,142 for the Union and 9,091 for the Confederacy.

Although the victory at Vicksburg was a tremedous advance in the Union War effort, Grant's reputation did not escape criticism. During the initial campaign in December, 1862 Grant became upset and angry over speculators and traders who inundated his department and violated rules about trading cotton in a militarized zone. As a result, Grant issued his notorious General Order No. 11 on December 17, expelling all Jews whom he believed were engaged in trade in his department, including their families. When protests erupted from Jews and non-Jews alike, President Lincoln rescinded the order on January, 1863, however, the episode tarnished Grant's reputation. Grant also was accused by his rivals Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand and Maj. Gen. Charles S. Hamilton for being "gloriously drunk" in February and March, 1863. Both McClernand and Hamilton were seeking promotion in the army at the time of these allegations. Cincinnati Commercial editor, Murat Halstead, railed that, "Our whole Army of the Mississippi is being wasted by a foolish, drunken, stupid Grant". Lincoln sent Charles A. Dana to keep a watchful eye. To save Grant from dismissal, assistant Adjutant General John A. Rawlins, Grant's friend, got him to take a pledge not to touch alcohol.

Chattanooga

Main articles: Chattanooga Campaign, Battle of Lookout Mountain, and Battle of Missionary Ridge

When Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans was defeated at the Chickamauga in September 1863, the Confederates, led by Braxton Bragg, besieged the Union Army of the Cumberland in Chattanooga. In response, President Lincoln put Grant in charge of the created the new Military Division of the Mississippi in order to break the siege at Chattanooga, making Grant the commander of all Western Armies. Grant, who immediately relieved Rosecrans from duty, personally went to Chattanooga to take control of the situation taking 20,000 troops commanded by Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman, from the Army of the Tennessee. Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker was ordered to Chattanooga taking 15,000 troops from the Army of the Potomac. Rations were running severely low for the Cumberland army and supply relief was necessary for a Union counter offensive. When Grant arrived at Chattanooga at the Union camp he was informed of their plight and implemented a system known as the "Cracker Line,” devised by Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas's chief engineer, William F. "Baldy" Smith. After Union army seized Brown’s Ferry, Hooker's troops and supplies were sent into the city, helping to feed the starving men and animals and to prepare for an assault on the Confederate forces surrounding the city.

Union troops swarm Missionary Ridge and defeat Bragg's army.

Battle of Mission [i.e., Missionary] Ridge, Nov. 25th, 1863, Cosack & Co. lithograph from McCormick Harvesting Co., c1886.

On November 23, Grant launched his offensive on Missionary Ridge combining the forces of the Army of the Cumberland and the Army of the Tennessee. Maj. Gen. Thomas took a minor high ground known as Orchard Knob while Maj. Gen. Sherman took strategic positions for an attack Bragg’s right flank on Missionary Ridge. On November 24, Maj. Gen. Hooker with the Army of the Potomac captured Lookout Mountain and positioned his troops to attack Braggs left flank at Rossville. On November 25, Grant ordered Thomas’s Army of the Cumberland to make a diversionary attack only to take the “rifle pits” on Missionary Ridge. However, after the soldiers took the rifle pits, they proceeded on their own initiative without orders to make a successful frontal assault on Missionary Ridge. Bragg’s army, routed and defeated, was in complete disarray from the frontal assault and forced to retreat to South Chickamauga Creek. Although the valiant frontal assault was successful, Grant was initially upset because he did not give direct orders for the men to take Missionary Ridge, however, he was satisfied with their results. The victory at Missionary Ridge eliminated the last Confederate control of Tennessee and opened the door to an invasion of the Deep South, leading to Sherman's Atlanta Campaign of 1864. Casualties after the battle were 5,824 for the Union and 6,667 for Confederate armies, respectively.

Lieutenant General promotion

After the Confederate defeat at Chattanooga, President Lincoln promoted Grant to a special regular army rank, Lieutenant General, authorized by Congress on March 2, 1864. This rank had previously been awarded two other times, a full rank to George Washington and a Brevet rank to Winfield Scott. With the new rank, Grant moved his headquarters to the east and installed his friend Maj. Gen. Sherman as Commander of the Western Armies. President Lincoln and Grant met together in Washington and devised "total war" plans that would strike at the heart of the Confederacy including military, railroad, and economic infrastructures. The two primary objectives in the plans were to defeat Robert E. Lee's Army of Virginia and Joseph E. Johnson's Army of Tennessee. The Confederacy was to be attacked from multiple directions: the Union Army of the Potomac led George G. Meade would attack Lee's Army of Northern Virginia; Benjamin Butler was to attack south of Richmond from the James River; Sherman would attack Johnson's army in Georgia; George Crook and William W. Averell were to destroy railroad supply lines in West Virginia; and Nathaniel P. Banks was to capture Mobile, Alabama; Franz Sigel was to keep gaurd of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad and advance in the Shenandoah Valley. Grant would command all the Union army forces while in the field with Meade and the Army of the Potomac.

Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant

Overland Campaign

Main articles: Overland Campaign, Battle of Wilderness, Battle of Spotsylvania, Battle of North Anna, and Battle of Cold Harbor

On May 4, 1864 Grant would began a series of battles with Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia known as the Overland Campaign. The first battle between Lee and Grant took place after the Army of the Potomac crossed Rapidan River into an area of secondary growth trees and shrubs known as the Wilderness. Lee was able to use this protective undergrowth to counter Grant's superior troop strength. Union Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock's XVI corps were able to inflict heavy casualties and drive back the Confederate General A.P. Hill's corps two miles; however, Lee was able to drive back the Union advance with Confederate General James Longstreet's reserves. The difficult, bloody, and costly battles lasted two days, May 5 and 6, resulting in an advantage to neither side. Unlike Union generals who retreated after similar battles with Lee, Grant ignored any setbacks and continued to flank Lee's right moving southward. The tremendous casualties for the Battle of the Wilderness were 17,666 for the Union and 11,125 for the Confederate armies, respectively.

Once Grant broke away from Army of Northern Virginia at the Wilderness on May 8, he would be forced into yet an even more desperate 14-day battle at Spotsylvania. Anticipating Grant's right flank move southward, Lee was able to position his army at Spotsylvania Court House before Grant and his army could arrive, the battle started on May 10. Although Lee's Army of Virginia was located in an exposed rough arc known as the "Mule Shoe", his army resisted assault after assault from Grant's Army of the Potomac for the first 6 days of the battle. The fiercest fighting in the battle took place on a point known as "Bloody angle". Both Confederates and Union soldiers were slaughtered like cattle and men were piled on top of each other in their attempt to control the point. By May 21 the fighting had finally stopped; Grant had lost 18,000 men with 3,000 having been killed in the prolonged battle. Many talented Confederate officers were killed in the battle with Lee's Army significantly damaged having a total of 10-13,000 casualties. The popular Union Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick of the VI corps was killed in the battle by a sharpshooter and replaced by Maj. Gen. Horatio G. Wright. During the fighting at Spotsylvania Grant made the statement, "I will fight it on this line if it takes all summer."

A determined Lt. Gen. Grant standing alone in the field at Cold Harbor.
Photographed by Mathew Brady in 1864.

Finding he could not break Lee's line of defense at Spotsylvania, Grant turned southward and moved to the North Ana River a dozen miles closer to Richmond. An attempt was made by Grant to get Lee to fight out in the open by sending an individual II Corps on the west bank of the Mattatopi River. Rather then take the bait, Lee anticipated a second right flank movement by Grant and retreated to the North Anna River in response to the Union V and VI corps withdrawing from Spotsylvania. During this time many Confederate generals, including Lee, were incapacitated due to illness or injury. Lee, stricken with dysentery, was unable to take advantage of an opportunity to seize parts of the Army of the Potomac. After series of inconclusive minor battles at North Anna on May 23 and 24, the Army of the Potomac withdrew 20 miles southeast to important crossroads at Cold Harbor. From June 1 to 3 Grant and Lee fought each other at Cold Harbor with the heaviest Union casualties on the final day. Grant's ordered assault on June 3 was disastrous and lopsided with 6,000 Union casualties to Lee's 1,500. After twelve days of fighting at Cold Harbor total casualties were 12,000 for the Union and 2,500 for the Confederacy. On June 11, 1864 Grant's Army of the Potomac broke away completely from Robert E. Lee, and on June 12 secretly crossed the James River on a pontoon bridge, and attacked the railroad junction at Petersburg. For a time, Robert E. Lee, had no idea where the Army of the Potomac was.

Northern resentment

To many in the North after the utter defeat at Cold Harbor, Grant was castigated as the "Butcher" without a substantial victory over Robert E. Lee. Grant, himself, who regretted the assault on June 3 at Cold Harbor was determined to keep casualties minimal thereafter. President Lincoln needed a military victory to be elected in 1864 and carry on the war effort to save the Union. Maj. Gen. Sherman was bogged down chasing Confederate general Joseph E. Johnson into a conclusive battle. Benjamin Butler, who was supposed to attack Confederate railroads south of Richmond, was trapped in the Bermuda Hundred. Sigel had failed to secure the Shenendoah Valley from Confederate invasion and was relieved from duty. The entire Union war effort seemed to be stalling and the Northern public was growing increasingly impatient. The Copperheads, a northern democrat anti-war movement, advocated legal recognition of the Confederacy, immediate peace talks, and encouraged Union soldiers to desert the army. The Northern war effort was at this lowest ebb when Grant made a bold gamble to march deeper into Virginia at the risk of leaving the Washington capitol exposed to Confederate attack.

Petersburg and Appomattox

Main articles: Petersburg Campaign, Valley Campaigns of 1864, and Appomattox Campaign

Petersburg was the supply center for Northern Viginia with five railroads meeting at one junction whose capture would mean the immediate downfall of Richmond. In order to protect Richmond and fight Grant at the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor battles, Lee was forced to leave Petersburg with minimal troop protection. After crossing the James River the Army of the Potomac without any resistance marched towards Petersburg. After crossing the James Grant rescued Butler from the Bermuda Hundred and sent the XVIII corps led Brig. Gen. William F. "Baldy" Smith to capture the weakly protected Petersburg; guarded by Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard. Grant established his new headquarters at City Point for the rest of the Civil War. The Union forces quickly attacked and overtook the Petersburg's outlying trenches on June 15, however, Smith unexplainably stopped fighting and waited until the following day, June 16, to attack the city allowing Beauregard to concentrate reinforcement troops in secondary defenses. The second Union attack on Petersburg started on June 16 and would last until June 18, until Lee's veterans finally arrived to keep the Union army from taking the important railroad junction. Unable to break Lee's Petersburg defenses, Grant was forced to settle for a seige.

Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at City Point with his wife Julia and son Jesse.
Photo taken in 1864.

Realizing that Washington was left unprotected do to Grant's seige on Petersburg, Lee detached a small army under the command of Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early, hoping it would force the Union army to send forces to pursue him. If Early could capture Washington the Civil War would be over and the Confederates could claim victory. Early, with 15,000 seasoned troops, invaded north through the Shenandoah Valley, defeated Union Major General Lew Wallace at the Monocacy, and reached the outskirts of Washington, causing alarm. At Lincoln's urging, just in time, Grant dispatched the veteran Union VI Corps and parts of the XIX Corps, led by Major General Horatio Wright. With the Union XXII Corps in place in the Washington D.C. fortifications, Early was unable to take the city. The Confederate Army's mere presence close to the capitol was embarrassing simply by being so close to the capitol. At Petersburg Grant blew up Lee's trenchwork with explosives planted inside a tunnel causing a huge crater; however; the Union assault that followed was slow and chaotic allowing Lee to repulse the breakthrough.

With Grant having locked Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia into a seige at Petersburg, the Union war effort finally began to bear fruit of its own. Sherman took Atlanta on September 2, 1864 and would began his March to the Sea in November. With the victory in Atlanta, Lincoln was elected President and the war effort would continue. On October 19, after three battles, Phil Sheridan and the Army of the Shenandoah defeated Early's army. Sheridan and Sherman followed Lincoln and Grant's strategy of total war by destroying the economic infrastructures of the Shenendoah Valley and a large swath of Georgia and the Carolinas. On December 16, Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas had beaten Confederate general John B. Hood at Nashville. Grant continued to apply months of relentless military pressure at Petersburg on the Army of Northern Virginia, until Lee was forced to evacuate Richmond in April 1865. After a nine-day retreat, Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. Considered his greatest triumph, this would be the third time a Confederate Army surrended to Grant. There, Grant offered generous terms that did much to ease the tensions between the armies and preserve some semblance of Southern pride, which would be needed to reunite the warring sides. Within a few weeks, the American Civil War was over; minor actions would continue until Kirby Smith surrendered his forces in the Trans-Mississippi Department on June 2, 1865.

"Can't spare this man"

Grant expert Brooks D. Simpson has argued in several articles that Lincoln probably never made this remark, at least not after Shiloh. The only source for the remark is the memoirs of A.K. McClure. Simpson argues that the remark is inconsistent with the fact that Lincoln and Stanton raised questions about Grant's performance and allowed Halleck to remove him from direct command of his troops. Hartfelt (talk) 13:25, 21 June 2010 (UTC)

More should be done on the relationship between Lincoln and Grant, in my opinion. Lincoln three times saved Grant from dismissal (Donelson, Shiloh, and Vicksburg), calmed the storm of the General Order No. 11 blunder, was actively involved with planning the final stages of the Civil War, prodded Grant to send troops to protect Washington and clean out the Shenendoah Valley, and kept Grant from firing George H. Thomas at Nashville. This could be put in the "Lincoln Assassination" section. Any suggestions? {Cmguy777 (talk) 20:11, 22 June 2010 (UTC)}

Ulysses S. Grant Hotel

There is an interesting history associated with the Ulysses S. Grant Hotel, made to honor Ulysses S. Grant by his son Ulysses S. Grant Jr. The Hotel has was renovated in 2006 in a multimillion renovation project and is now owned by the Kumeyaay Indians. President Grant had granted the Kumeyaay tribe 640 acres of land in 1875 in the Dehesa Valley. This would be a good addition to the article. Any comments? {Cmguy777 (talk) 16:37, 23 June 2010 (UTC)}

Dab links fixed

You may remember me as the Guild of Copy Editors member who copy edited this article. I just wanted to let you know that there were a few disambiguation links in the article that I fixed. If there's anything else that I may have overlooked, just let me know. The Utahraptor ^Talk 18:41, 24 June 2010 (UTC)

Shiloh section

Recent edits have introduced errors. Sherman was a brig gen, not maj gen, at time of Shiloh. Grant did not make him commander at PL; at most, he was informal commander bec Grant relied on him. He could not be made commander there because John McClernand was senior to him. Halleck was not responsible for lack of entrenchments; he actually ordered entrenchment. The primary responsibility for lack of entrenchments was Grant's, not Sherman's. Grant was in charge; Halleck (from St. Louis) told Grant to see that the expedition was entrenched wherever it landed. Grant knew perfectly well that there were no entrenchments at PL; he was there frequently; his chief engineer (McPherson) surveyed for entrnechments and then dropped the matter because the camps were already beyond what he determined the proper entrenchment line to be. Hartfelt (talk) 13:19, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

I am in agreement that both Grant and Sherman bear the responsibility for not making entrenchments. According to Catton Halleck ordered Grant not to attack until reinforced from Buell's Army of Ohio. Was there an explicit order to entrench from Halleck or an inquiry into Grant's defenses? There was a break down in Command, in my opinion, not even Halleck knew the Confederates were going to attack at Shiloh; it was Peabody who gave the warning. Halleck was in St. Louis and could not accurately ascertain Grant's defenses. Thanks for all your edits, Harfelt! {Cmguy777 (talk) 15:57, 3 July 2010 (UTC)}

During the period that Smith was leading the expedition, Halleck ordered Grant to forward entrenching tools to him so that he could entrench wherever he landed. Halleck also later told Grant to "fortify." Hartfelt (talk) 16:05, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

It would be good to see the "fortify" order in the full context. The timing of the order to "fortify" and to attack the railroad junction at Corinth is crucial. I would need to see the orders and when the orders were made. I am trying to ascertain if there was any ambiguousness or inconsistency in Halleck's orders. Did Grant violate a direct order from Halleck to entrench or fortify? I am not trying to make any excuses for Grant's lack of defensive entrenchments or fortifications at Shiloh, just more clarity. {Cmguy777 (talk) 16:46, 3 July 2010 (UTC)}

I found Halleck's order to Grant, "Keep your forces together until you connect with Buell. Don't let the enemy draw you into an engagement now. Wait until you are properly reinforced and you receive orders." I can't find an explicit order from Halleck for Grant to entrench. Grant was going to attack the rail junction at Cornith until Halleck told him to wait for reinforcements from Buell. There were no orders from Halleck in St. Louis and Grant was unsure what to do. Catton claims that Sherman was in "immediate command" at Shiloh.{Cmguy777 (talk) 16:24, 3 July 2010 (UTC)}

Cmguy:

(1) Papers of US Grant, vol. 4, 332 (I believe): Halleck to Grant -- forward "intrenching tools . . . to Genl Smith to allow him to secure his position wherever he may land."

(2) OR, vol. 10, pt. 2, 51 -- Halleck to Grant -- "wait till you are properly fortified and receive orders."

(3) Catton is not technically correct. You will find no order by Grant putting Sherman in command at PL because that was not possible when the senior John McClernand was also on the scene. Sherman's troops arrived there before McClernand's did, Sherman basically set up the site, and as a result he sort of continued as the unofficial commander there. He was a West Pointer and Grant trusted him more than McClernand. Look at Daniel and/or Sword, and you will find the phrase "unofficial commander."

Hartfelt (talk) 19:10, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

I admit I do not have a copy of the Papers of Ulysses S. Grant. I have been trying to find orders in secondary sources. It would be valuable find out Halleck's direct orders. It is clear that the Buell was stalling, in my opinion, to send reinforcements to Pittsburgh Landing. However, it is unclear why Grant did not fortify or ignored Halleck's order to fortify the Union camp. Grant, it is known, wanted to attack Corinth before Buell's troops arrived, however, Halleck told him to wait for the prodding Buell. {Cmguy777 (talk) 19:47, 3 July 2010 (UTC)}

I found the order on Questia:

On March 7, 1862, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck telegraphed to USG. "Intrenching tools should be sent to Genl Smith to enable him to secure his position wherever he may land." ALS (telegram sent), ibid., District of West Tenn., Letters Received; copies, ibid., RG 94, Generals' Papers and Books, Telegrams Sent in Cipher by Gen. Halleck; ibid., RG 393, Dept. of the Mo., Telegrams Sent.

Appomattox section

I believe it would be good to have a separate Appomattox section, since it was Grant's finest hour. Any suggestions? Cmguy777 (talk) 01:55, 9 July 2010 (UTC)

A friendly reminder from the Guild of Copy Editors

Hi, just here to remind you that you shouldn't put a space in between a period and the beginning of a reference. See below for an example:

Correct:

This is a sentence.<ref>

Incorrect:

This is a sentence. <ref>

--The Raptor ^{Let's talk}/_{My mistakes; I mean, er, contributions} 22:13, 16 July 2010 (UTC)

Another USG presidencial scandal

This scandal has to do with the New York Customs House. Grant's appointment of Tom Murphy led to massive profiteering. There was even a congessional investigation in 1872. Any suggestions? Is this worthy of another scandal? I have information from Nevins and the New York Times.Cmguy777 (talk) 21:10, 20 July 2010 (UTC)

Black troops

The discussion about emancipation and black troops at footnote 22 seems awfully loose. I am not aware that there were any "corps" of black troops (a corps was a very large unit). Further, some black troops were not freed slaves (such as those in the 54th Massachusetts). Further, not all freed slaves became soldiers. I'm not expert at all on this subject, but wanted to observe that the text here seems very loose. Hartfelt (talk) 13:50, 31 July 2010 (UTC)

Just FYI, the XXV Corps of the Army of the James was entirely USCT, formed in December 1864. Hal Jespersen (talk) 17:43, 31 July 2010 (UTC)

The Confiscation Act of 1862 required that slaves from any Confederate masters would be freed if they remained fighting the Union over 60 days. Slaves were not freed in the North [since many states already outlawed slavery]. I put the "Refugee slave contraband" section mainly to show what Grant was doing between Halleck's take over of Corinth and the Vicksburg Campaign. It also ties in with Lincoln's overall plan to take the labor force away from the Confederate states. The Emanicaption Proclamation excluded a few border states, however, these slaves were under the second Confiscation Act. I guess freedom depends on your definition. Giving any person a weapon, such as a rifle, in a sense gives that person limited freedom or at least the right to self protection. Cmguy777 (talk) 19:16, 31 July 2010 (UTC)

Hal, thank you for the info about the XXV Corps; interesting. I have revised the sentence to try to make more accurate. USCT troops comprised both freed slaves and never-enslaved blacks. According to Wikipedia's article, nearly half of the USCT came from northern states, meaning that many or most of that group were never slaves. Further, the USCT apparantly embraced all branches, not just infantry. Finally, even with Hal's info, it appears that most USCT troops did not serve in black corps, but within smaller units that must sometimes have been embraced in integrated corps. (I am not at all sure how black regiments were slotted into larger units.) Anyway, I believe the edited version is more accurate than the prior version. Hartfelt (talk) 13:56, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

Thanks Hal and Hartfelt for both of your insights and modification in the section! Cmguy777 (talk) 17:26, 1 August 2010 (UTC)

The following are states who outlawed slavery before the Civil War. Any blacks recruited into the Union Army from these states could not have been slaves.

1780-Pennsylvania and Massachusetts

1784-Connecticut and Rhode Island

1792-New Hampshire

1793-Vermont

1799-New York

1804-New Jersey

Final promotion section

Although this bit of information is relevant to this article, I don't think it should be in its own section. Perhaps we could move it to a different section, or place it in a sub-section? The Raptor ^{You rang?}/_{My mistakes; I mean, er, contributions} 23:46, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

I agree. 74.42.182.5 (talk) 20:38, 30 September 2010 (UTC)

Ancestry

I believe Grant was of Scottish ancestry, could somebody please find a source supporting this and add it to his page. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Thesouthernhistorian45 (talk • contribs) 05:25, 5 October 2010 (UTC)

How about doing it yourself? It's the encyclopedia anyone can edit, after all. Coemgenus 14:47, 5 October 2010 (UTC)

Anyone can edit, but not necessarily everyone has sources. --OuroborosCobra (talk) 21:42, 5 October 2010 (UTC)

True, but did the user even try googling "president ulysses grant scottish ancestry"? Sholom (talk) 16:01, 6 October 2010 (UTC)