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Blair Missouri for vice president. Grant played no overt role during the campaign and instead was joined by Sherman and Sheridan in a tour of the West that summer. Kansas, Georgia, and Louisiana. Grant's election was widely regarded as a triumph of principles that included restoration of Southern reconstructed states, efficient government, and sound money. Grant assumed the presidency with reluctance, which he expressed in an letter, after his nomination, to his close friend Sherman:. I have been forced into it in spite of myself. I could not back down without, as it seems to me, leaving the contest for power for the next four years between mere trading politicians, the elevation of whom, no matter which party won, would lose to us, largely, the results of the costly war which we have gone through.
Grant's presidency began unusually, as President Johnson, at the time angry with Grant, did not attend Grant's inauguration or ride with him as he departed the White House for the last time. Grant's cabinet appointments were made without senatorial approval and sparked both criticism and approval. Washburne for Secretary of State and John A.
Rawlins as Secretary of War. Stewart who was found ineligible and replaced by Representative George S. Boutwell , a Massachusetts Radical Republican. Borie was appointed Secretary of Navy, who was reluctant to accept, soon resigned due to poor health and was replaced by a relative unknown, George M. Robeson , a former brigadier general. Grant nominated Sherman his Army successor as general-in-chief and gave him control over war bureau chiefs.
Grant reluctantly revoked his own order, upsetting Sherman and damaging their wartime friendship. Grant also appointed four Justices to the Supreme Court: William Strong , Joseph P. Salomon Governor of the Washington Territory. When Grant took office in , Reconstruction took precedence, Republicans controlled most Southern states, propped up by Republican controlled Congress, northern money, and southern military occupation.
The Ku Klux Klan terrorist group, however, continued to undermine Reconstruction by violence and intimidation. Grant, in , signed legislation and created the Justice Department and immediately employed it to enforce the Reconstruction efforts in the South. Akerman , a former Confederate officer and now zealous civil rights attorney from Georgia, replaced Hoar. Bolstered by the Department of Justice and Solicitor General, he made hundreds of arrests while forcing 2, Klansmen to flee the state.
Akerman returned over 3, indictments of the Klan throughout the South and obtained convictions for the worst offenders. Lacking sufficient funding, the Justice Department stopped prosecutions of the Klan by June Civil rights prosecutions continued but with fewer yearly cases and convictions.
After the Klan's decline, a faction of southern conservatives called " Redeemers " formed armed groups, such as the Red Shirts and the White League , who openly used violence, intimidation, voter fraud, and racist appeals in an attempt to take control of state governments. The Panic of and the ensuing depression contributed to public fatigue, and the North grew less concerned with Reconstruction.
Cruikshank restricted federal enforcement of civil rights. That same year, he sent troops and warships under Major General William H. By , Redeemer Democrats had taken control of all but three Southern states. As violence against black Southerners escalated once more, Attorney General Edwards Pierrepont told Governor Adelbert Ames of Mississippi that the people were "tired of the autumnal outbreaks in the South", and declined to intervene directly, instead sending an emissary to negotiate a peaceful election. Hayes , abandoned the remaining three Republican governments in the South that were supported by the army after the Compromise of , which marked the end of Reconstruction.
In , Grant proposed measures to limit religious roles in public schools. Grant laid out his agenda for "good common school education. That amendment did not become federal law but many states adopted versions. Historian Tyler Anbinder says, "Grant was not an obsessive nativist.
He expressed his resentment of immigrants and animus toward Catholicism only rarely. But these sentiments reveal themselves frequently enough in his writings and major actions as general In the s he joined a Know Nothing lodge and irrationally blamed immigrants for setbacks in his career. When Grant took office in , the nation's policy towards Indians was in chaos, with more than , Indians being governed by treaties. Parker , a Seneca Indian, a member of his wartime staff, as Commissioner of Indian Affairs , the first Native American to serve in this position, surprising many around him.
On October 1, , General Oliver Otis Howard successfully negotiated peace with Apache leader, Cochise , who waged guerrilla war against the army and settlers, to move the tribe to a new reservation. After discovery of gold in the Black Hills , miners encroached on Sioux land guaranteed under the Fort Laramie treaty. Later, Grant castigated Custer in the press, saying "I regard Custer's massacre as a sacrifice of troops, brought on by Custer himself, that was wholly unnecessary — wholly unnecessary.
Congress ratified the agreement three days before Grant left office in Grant's settlement of the Alabama claims was undermined by his attempt to annex the Dominican Republic. Grant believed annexation would strengthen American strategic power in the Caribbean, increase natural resources, and serve as a safe haven for African Americans. In early January , Grant visited Senator Sumner's home to gain his support for annexation. When Grant left, he was confident he had Sumner's approval, but he was wrong; the episode led to hostility between the two men.
On January 20, Grant submitted the treaties to the Senate for ratification. After much stalling by Sumner, who strongly opposed annexation, the Foreign Relations Committee rejected the treaties by a 5 to 2 vote. Grant had to personally lobby Senators on his own.
In October , Grant's Caribbean neutrality policy was shaken when a Spanish cruiser captured a merchant ship, Virginius , flying the U. Grant and Fish secured a free trade treaty in with the Kingdom of Hawaii , incorporating the Pacific islands' sugar industry into the United States' economic sphere. Soon after taking office Grant took conservative steps to return the nation's currency to a more secure footing.
The " greenback " notes, as they were known, were necessary to pay the unprecedented war debts, but they also caused inflation and forced gold-backed money out of circulation; Grant was determined to return the national economy to pre-war monetary standards.
The act committed the government to the full return of the gold standard within ten years. In April , financial speculators Jay Gould and Jim Fisk , plotted to corner the gold market in New York, the nation's financial capital. Garfield cleared Grant of profiteering, but excoriated Gould and Fisk for their manipulation of the gold market and Corbin for exploiting his personal connection to Grant.
Despite his administration's scandals, Grant continued to be personally popular.
Ulysses S. Grant - Wikipedia
During the war, both factions' interests had aligned, and in both had supported Grant. As the wartime coalition began to fray, Grant's alignment with the party's pro-Reconstruction elements alienated party leaders who favored an end to federal intervention in Southern racial issues. Cox , Grant's former Secretary of Interior, one hundred Republicans in Cincinnati broke from the party and formed what became the Liberal Republican Party , supporting "civil service reform, sound money, low tariffs, and states' rights.
Gratz Brown , for vice president. Grant won reelection easily, as federal prosecution of the Klan, a strong economy, debt reduction, lowered tariffs, and tax reductions, helped Grant defeat Greeley. Chase on March 4, In his second inaugural address, he reiterated the problems still facing the nation and focused on what he considered the chief issues of the day: Grant concluded his address with the words, "My efforts in the future will be directed towards the restoration of good feelings between the different sections of our common community".
Grant continued to work for a strong dollar, signing into law the Coinage Act of , which effectively ended the legal basis for bimetallism the use of both silver and gold as money , establishing the gold standard in practice. Silverites, who wanted more money in circulation to raise the prices that farmers received, denounced the move as the "Crime of ", claiming the deflation made debts more burdensome for farmers. Economic turmoil renewed during Grant's second term. The collapse rippled through Wall Street, and other banks and brokerages that owned railroad stocks and bonds were also ruined.
The purchases curbed the panic on Wall Street, but an industrial depression, later called the Long Depression , nonetheless swept the nation. Congress hoped inflation would stimulate the economy and passed what became known as the "Inflation Bill" in Grant believed the bill would destroy the credit of the nation, and he vetoed it despite their objections.
Grant's veto placed him in the conservative faction of the Republican Party and was the beginning of the party's commitment to a strong gold-backed dollar. When the Democrats gained a majority in the House after the elections , the lame-duck Republican Congress did so before the Democrats took office. Grant's presidency took place during massive post-war industrial growth, speculation and lifestyle extravagance, that fueled criminal behavior in government offices.
Babcock , who indirectly controlled many cabinet departments and delayed federal investigations. Grant had limited success in civil service reform and his Civil Service Commission. Cox , who strongly supported civil service reform, fired unqualified clerks, implemented a merit testing system, and rebuffed mandatory party contributions.
The civil service reforms implemented by Grant, however, "were more honored in the breach than the observance. Murphy's men had created a corrupt profiteering ring at the New York Custom House. Grant appointed Chester A. Arthur , another Conkling man, to replace Murphy, and administration of the Customs House steadily improved. Pressured by an Congressional investigation, Grant ordered prosecutions of men involved in the bribery scandal and removed the ringleader.
Scandals escalated in Grant's second term, reaching into the President's inner circle. Richardson had hired John B. Sanborn to track down tax collectors and retain half of the collected taxes, known as a moiety. Grant appointed David Dyer , under Bristow's recommendation, federal attorney to prosecute the Ring in St. The Interior Department under Secretary Columbus Delano , whom Grant appointed to replace Cox, was rife with fraud and corrupt agents and Delano was forced to resign. Williams ' wife, Grant fired Williams and appointed Edwards Pierrepont in his place.
Grant's new cabinet appointments temporarily appeased reformers. When the Democrats took control of the House in , they launched a series of investigations into corruption in federal departments. Belknap taking quarterly kickbacks from the Fort Sill tradership , which led to his resignation in February Even as Grant drew cheers at the opening of the Centennial Exposition in May , the collected scandals of his presidency, the country's weak economy, and the Democratic gains in the House led many in the Republican party to repudiate him in June.
Hayes of Ohio, a reformer. Tilden of New York. Voting irregularities in three Southern states caused the election that year to remain undecided for several months. On January 29, , he signed legislation forming an Electoral Commission to decide the matter.
The Republicans had won, but Reconstruction was over. After leaving the White House, Grant and his family stayed with Fish in Washington for two months before setting out on a world tour that lasted approximately two and a half years. Grant was the first U. President to visit Jerusalem and the Holy Land. During the tour, the Hayes administration encouraged Grant to assume a diplomatic role to unofficially represent the United States and strengthen American interests abroad, while resolving issues for some countries in the process.
Stalwarts , led by Grant's old political ally, Roscoe Conkling , saw Grant's renewed popularity as an opportunity to regain power, and sought to nominate him for the presidency in Opponents called it a violation of the unofficial two-term rule in use since George Washington. Grant said nothing publicly but wanted the job and encouraged his men. Blaine to John Sherman. Even so, Conkling and John A. Logan began to organize delegates in Grant's favor. When the convention convened in Chicago in June, there were more delegates pledged to Grant than to any other candidate, but he was still short of a majority vote to get the nomination.
At the convention, Conkling nominated Grant with an elegant speech, the most famous line being: After thirty-six ballots, Blaine's delegates deserted him and combined with those of other candidates to nominate a compromise candidate: Grant gave Garfield his public support and pushed him to include Stalwarts in his administration. On learning of Garfield's death from a reporter, Grant wept bitterly. When Grant had returned to America from his costly world tour, he had depleted most of his savings and needed to earn money and find a new home.
Grant urged Chester A. Arthur , who had succeeded Garfield as president in , to negotiate a free trade treaty with Mexico. Arthur and the Mexican government agreed, but the United States Senate rejected the treaty in The railroad was similarly unsuccessful, falling into bankruptcy the following year. At the same time, Grant's son Ulysses Jr. Fish, kept secret from bank examiners , retrieved the firm's securities from the company's bank vault.
Historians agree that Grant was likely unaware of Ward's intentions, but it is unclear how much Buck Grant knew. In May , enough investments went bad to convince Ward that the firm would soon be bankrupt. Ward, who assumed Grant was "a child in business matters" [] told Grant of the impending failure, but assured Grant that this was a temporary shortfall.
Essentially penniless, but compelled by a sense of personal honor, he repaid what he could with his Civil War mementos and the sale or transfer of all other assets. The articles were well received by critics, and the editor, Robert Underwood Johnson , suggested that Grant write a book of memoirs, as Sherman and others had done. Grant's articles would serve as the basis for several chapters. In the summer of , Grant complained of a sore throat but put off seeing a doctor until late October, when he learned it was cancer, possibly caused by his frequent cigar smoking.
Grant was nearly broke and worried constantly about leaving his wife a suitable amount of money to live on. Century magazine offered Grant a book contract with a 10 percent royalty, but Grant's friend Mark Twain , understanding how bad Grant's financial condition was, made him an offer for his memoirs which paid an unheard-of 75 percent royalty.
His former staff member Adam Badeau assisted him with much of the research, while his son Frederick located documents and did much of the fact-checking. Grant finished his memoir and died only a few days later. Grant was a critical and commercial success. He candidly depicted his battles against both the Confederates and internal army foes.
After a year-long struggle with cancer, surrounded by his family, Grant died at 8 o'clock in the morning in the Mount McGregor cottage on July 23, , at the age of After private services, the honor guard placed Grant's body on a special funeral train , which traveled to West Point and New York City. A quarter of a million people viewed it in the two days before the funeral. Tens of thousands of men, many of them veterans from the Grand Army of the Republic , marched with Grant's casket drawn by two dozen black stallions [] to Riverside Park in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan.
Logan, the head of the GAR. Attendance at the New York funeral topped 1. Many historians and biographers have been intrigued and challenged by contradictions in Grant's life, and few presidential reputations have shifted as dramatically as his. McCormick said Grant's military triumphs were neglected due in part to the "malicious and deliberate design" of Lost Cause veterans and writers. Harry Williams began a reassessment of Grant's military career, shifting the analysis of Grant as victor by brute force to that of successful, skillful, modern strategist and commander.
McFeely won the Pulitzer Prize for his critical biography that credited Grant's initial presidential efforts on civil rights, but lamented his failure to carry out lasting progress. In the 21st century, Grant's reputation among historians has improved markedly. White continued this trend with a biography that historian T.
Stiles said, "solidifies the positive image amassed in recent decades, blotting out the caricature of a military butcher and political incompetent, promoted by Lost Cause and Jim Crow era historians. President Bill Clinton offered praise for "Grant's significant achievements at the end of the war and after. Calhoun noted Grant's presidential successes, he questioned whether Grant's revived reputation among scholars has been found in the "popular consciousness.
Several memorials honor Grant. Grant National Historic Site near St. Louis, and several other sites in Ohio and Illinois memorialize Grant's life. Named in his honor are Grant Park , as well as several counties in western and midwestern states. In May , the Ulysses S. Grant Foundation, on the institute's fiftieth anniversary, selected Mississippi State University as the permanent location for Ulysses S. Simon edited Grant's letters into a volume scholarly edition published by Southern Illinois University Press.
Grant has appeared on the front of the United States fifty-dollar bill since In , the Ulysses S. Grant Centenary Association was founded with the goal of coordinating special observances and erecting monuments in recognition of Grant's historical role. The venture was financed by the minting of 10, gold dollars depicted below and , half dollars. The coins were minted and issued in , commemorating the th anniversary of Grant's birth.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This article is about the 18th president of the United States. For others with the same name, see Ulysses S. For other uses, see General Grant disambiguation. Early life and career of Ulysses S. Mexican—American War and Mexican Cession.
Grant and the American Civil War. Kentucky in the American Civil War. Battle of Fort Donelson. Map showing Fort Donelson and surrounding area during capture. Battle of Shiloh Thulstrup Battle of Shiloh Map. Vicksburg Campaign and General Order No. Overland Campaign and Siege of Petersburg. Battle of the Wilderness. Assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Grant as commanding general, — United States presidential election, Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant presidential administration scandals , Ulysses S. Grant presidential administration reforms , and Gilded Age.
Post-presidency of Ulysses S. World tour of Ulysses S. Historical reputation of Ulysses S. Grant and Historical rankings of presidents of the United States.
Ulysses Grant’s Early Years
Commanding General Grant Constant Mayer 's portrait of Grant has appeared on the United States fifty-dollar bill since Grant on the one-dollar gold piece, issued on the th anniversary of his birth. Grant honored on currency and postage. Grant , that became his assumed name, but Grant attached no specific name to the middle initial. Longacre attributes Grant's parents' decision to their recognition of his hatred of music. Flood said that Longstreet was Grant's best man and the two other officers were Grant's groomsmen.
William Farina maintains Grant's devotion to family kept him from drinking to excess and sinking into debt. There are but two parties now, Traitors and Patriots Rowley , maintained that the allegation was a fabricated lie. Other witnesses claimed that Grant was sober on the morning of April 6. Start your free trial today. We strive for accuracy and fairness.
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But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. On this day in , future President Ulysses S. Grant marries Julia Boggs Dent. A devoted wife, Julia Grant often joined her husband at his military postings, including several trips to the Grant to the rank of lieutenant general of the U. Army, tasking the future president with the job of leading all Union troops against the Confederate On this day in , just after completing his memoirs, Civil War hero and former President Ulysses S. Grant dies of throat cancer.
Educated at West Point, George S. Patton began his military career leading cavalry troops against Mexican forces and became the first officer assigned to the new U. Promoted through the ranks over the next several decades, he His phantom middle initial is the result of an error from Ohio Congressman Thomas Hamer, who accidentally Andrew Johnson , the 17th U. Johnson, who served from to , was the first American president to be impeached. A tailor before he entered politics, Johnson grew up poor and Chester Arthur , the 21st U. As president from to , Arthur advocated for civil service reform.
A Vermont native, he became active in Republican politics in the s as a New This website uses cookies for analytics, personalization, and advertising. Click here to learn more or change your cookie settings. By continuing to browse, you agree to our use of cookies. Ulysses Grant in the White House Ulysses Grant entered the White House in the middle of the Reconstruction era, a tumultuous period in which the 11 Southern states that seceded before or at the start of the Civil War were brought back into the Union.
President Grant's Road to Success. Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson , the 17th U. Infantry, stationed near St. They became secretly engaged before Grant left to serve in the Mexican-American War —48 and married upon his return.
He was then transferred to Gen. Although his service in these posts gave him an invaluable knowledge of army supply, it did nothing to satiate his hunger for action. Grant subsequently distinguished himself in battle in September , earning brevet commissions as first lieutenant and captain, though his permanent rank was first lieutenant.
Despite his heroism, Grant wrote years later: I thought so at the time…only I had not moral courage enough to resign.
Command over Union armies
On July 5, , when the 4th Infantry sailed from New York for the Pacific coast, Grant left his growing family two sons had been born behind. Assigned to Fort Vancouver, Oregon Territory later Washington state , he attempted to supplement his army pay with ultimately unsuccessful business ventures and was unable to reunite his family.
A promotion to captain in August brought an assignment to Fort Humboldt, California, a dreary post with an unpleasant commanding officer. On April 11, , Grant resigned from the army. This farming venture was a failure, as was a real estate partnership in St. The next year Grant joined the leather goods business owned by his father and operated by his brothers in Galena , Illinois. At the outbreak of the Civil War in April , Grant helped recruit, equip, and drill troops in Galena, then accompanied them to the state capital, Springfield , where Gov. Yates appointed him colonel of an unruly regiment later named the 21st Illinois Volunteers in June Before he had even engaged the enemy, Grant was appointed brigadier general through the influence of Elihu B.
In January , dissatisfied with the use of his force for defensive and diversionary purposes, Grant received permission from Gen. Henry Wager Halleck to begin an offensive campaign. On February 16 he won the first major Union victory of the war, when Fort Donelson , on the Cumberland River in Tennessee, surrendered with about 15, troops. I propose to move immediately upon your works. However, when Halleck was called to Washington as general in chief in July, Grant regained command. Before the end of the year, he began his advance toward Vicksburg , Mississippi, the last major Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River.
When Port Hudson, Louisiana , the last post on the Mississippi, fell a few days later, the Confederacy was cut in half. Grant was appointed lieutenant general in March and was entrusted with command of all the U. His basic plan for the campaign was to immobilize the army of Gen. Lee near the Confederate capital at Richmond , Virginia, while Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman led the western Union army southward through Georgia.
Ulysses S. Grant
Philip Sheridan destroyed railroads and supplies in Virginia. This surrender, in effect, marked the end of the Civil War. Earlier, he had rebounded from initial defeat to triumph at Shiloh. His success as a commander was due in large measure to administrative ability, receptiveness to innovation , versatility, and the ability to learn from mistakes. In late Grant, by then immensely popular, toured the South at Pres. In he was appointed to the newly established rank of general of the armies of the United States.
Stanton and thereby tested the constitutionality of the Tenure of Office Act , which dictated that removals from office be at the assent of Congress, and in August appointed Grant interim secretary of war. The vote of the electoral college was more one-sided, with Grant garnering votes, compared with 80 for Seymour. Grant entered the White House on March 4, , politically inexperienced and, at age 46, the youngest man theretofore elected president. His appointments to office were uneven in quality but sometimes refreshing. Notably, Grant named Ely S.
Strong-willed and forthright, Julia Grant also later claimed credit for helping to persuade her husband to veto the Finance Bill, but she did not often involve herself in presidential decisions. Anthony to be a friend. As a result, it is said, Anthony supported Grant when he ran for reelection in , rather than the first woman candidate for the presidency, Victoria Claflin Woodhull of the Equal Rights Party, a splinter group that had bolted from the National Woman Suffrage Association convention.
Julia was not beautiful—she had a cast in her left eye and squinted—but Grant was attracted to her liveliness, and his devotion to her was unbounded. Photography was just becoming part of the political scene when Julia rose to prominence as first lady , and, self-conscious about her looks, she contemplated having surgery to correct her eyes.