Michael kordas short biography of ulysses grant is the best book on the persona of grant that has been my pleasure to read. Grant april 27, 1822july 23, 1885, born hiram ulysses grant, was the general who helped the union army of the united states win the american civil war. Memoir in america is an atrocity arms race, calvin trillin writes. The best and most interesting part of the book is grants recollection of the civil war. He later became the 18th president of the united states 1869 1877. He wrote to his old civil war colleagues generals william t. One president that wrote about his wartime experiences was ulysses s. The book does touch on his earlier life, his time as a central civil war figure, and more and more on his later presidency and business failings.
Grant was accepted on july 1, although he doubted his academic abilities. This book was written shortly before he died with the help of mark twain. He was raised in georgetown, ohio, and eventually passed on an opportunity to follow his. Ulysses grant was born in point pleasant, ohio, on april 27, 1822, to parents jesse and hannah grant. Grant from the questia online library, including fulltext online books, academic. Discover librarianselected research resources on ulysses s. Poker games were the primary reason that grant headed to connecticut, though he also wrote part of his memoirs there, said ronald marcus, librarian at the stamford historical society. In 1982, william mcfeely won a pulitzer prize for his biography of grant, in which he paid tribute to simons splendid work. Millions of readers around the world are coming to the guardian in. To sustain a narrative of hundreds of pages, over two large. The book is entitled the personal memoirs of ulysses s. Grant with the help of his friend mark twain, grant finished his memoirsand saved his wife from an impoverished widowhoodjust days before he died.
William tecumseh sherman led the western union army southward through. Grant, the 18th president of the united states, written. He and his wife, julia, took an extended worldwide vacation which left them financially taxed. His life and character by hamlin garland garland was a popular 19th century writer who wrote a onevolume account of grants life. Youngs account of their travels, eventually collected into two volumes, reads like a gossipy travelog.
Grant indulged his wanderlust, embarking on a twoyear aroundthe world. The former president had retired to a quiet business life, but he still had political connections. It is a style of american misery familiar from mark. As a graduate of west point and 38 year veteran of the army and army reserve, i have been a longtime admirer of grants military skills. After the assassination of abraham lincoln, ulysses s. The ghost that haunts grants memoirs the new york times. General grants book is almost never boring, in fact, i dont recall a boring portion or paragraph. The fact that grant wrote a memoir of such eloquence while dying from. However, when he was nominated for west point, the congressman who nominated him, wrote his name as ulysses s. After all, in the mid1880s, the united states was still populated by people who had experienced the war. Written as grant was dying of cancer in 1885, the twovolume set was published by mark twain shortly after grant s death. Grants preface alludes to the fact that he wrote as he was dying cruelly of throat cancer. He symbolized the federal victory, the destruction of slavery, and the.
There is no doubt that it is the greatest book ever written by a former u. He was later elected president in the first election after the civil war. For grants take on things, you have to go to his letters. Before his presidency, grant led the union army as commanding general of the united states army in winning the american civil war. What drove ulysses grant to write about the civil war.
Lee near the confederate capital at richmond, virginia, while gen. In 1968, neh made its first grant to support the papers of ulysses s. Grant agreed, understanding the value of keeping his name in the press. As a civil war general he led the north to victory, keeping the nation united and abolishing slavery. We are all well, he wrote his daughter, nellie, at the end of november 1883. Alle kategorien, alexa skills, amazon gerate, amazon global store, amazon. White that means to correct what used to be the conventional wisdom about grant. The story of grants final years, mainly the last year in which he wrote his memoirs while facing death from cancer. A summary of beyond the white house in s ulysses s. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading personal memoirs of ulysses s.
April 27, 1822 july 23, 1885 was an american soldier and politician who served as the 18th president of the united states from 1869 to 1877. What drove ulysses grant to write about the civil war national. On an early march afternoon in 1882, novelist mark twain paid a visit to the wall street office of his old friend, ulysses s. The civil war general turned president was a reluctant author, but set. Grant 18221885, born hiram ulysses grant, was the general who helped the union army of the united states win the american civil war. As the primary firstperson narrative of the civil war, it has been scrutinized, celebrated and praised, but never damned. Hiram ulysses grant was born on april 27, 1822, in point pleasant, ohio. In december of that year, he briefly met grant, then still in the u. Grant, the 18th president of the united states, focused mainly on his military career during the mexicanamerican war and the american civil war. Grant, civil war hero and twoterm president, had always declined offers. It is typical of the man that he struggled on and finished the book even though he.
This unabridged edition features all the material that was originally published in. Grant for young children was excerpted from mary stoyell stimpsons book, a childs book of american biography 1915. It was under his command that the civil war was brought to an end with a union victory. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Stranger still, he barely acknowledged in his book that he had served two terms as. The first pages of the book tell of grants rise from a hardscrabble life in point pleasant, ohio. This book chronicles grants development as a military leader and follows him from his initial enlistment in june of 1861 to the fall of vicksburg in july of 1863. Jan 09, 2018 thoughts on the greatness of ulysses s. The contemporary readers of grants memoirs had no problem understanding what he was saying and recognized the names mentioned in the book.
Stimpsons time reference when you read it with your children. The focus of the book is grants military careerhis service in the. Grant, american general, union army commander during the late years of the american civil war, and 18th president of the united states. Grant indulged his wanderlust, embarking on a twoyear aroundtheworld. Published in 1960, this book by bruce catton is part one of a twopart biography of ulysses s. He was the oldest of six children born to jesse and. Grant was the commander of the union force during the american civil war. The american civil war from the point of view of one of the most important generals.
Grant left the white house in 1877, he went into an investment partnership with ferdinand ward, who owned a getaway in glenbrook. Grant and his wife, julia, took a trip around the world in 1877, after his second term in. Oct 10, 2017 pulitzer prize winner ron chernow returns with a sweeping and dramatic portrait of one of our most compelling generals and presidents, ulysses s. As 18th president of the united states he worked to guarantee justice for all. Despite political differences with jesse root grant, hamer, a democrat, nominated his 17yearold son to west point in spring 1839. His life and character by hamlin garland garland was a popular 19th century writer who wrote a onevolume account of grant s life. Which was not a result of the baby boom that followed world war ii answers apex. The son of an appalachian ohio tanner, grant entered the united states military academy at age 17. His first book had recently been published, but he was not yet a. Grant s defenders, then and now, noted that he hadnt personally benefitted from any of these crimes and maintained that he was an honest man surrounded by scoundrelsa line of argument that. He later became the 18th president of the united states 18691877. Simon, who remained the executive director of grants papers for another four decades.
He symbolized the federal victory, the destruction of slavery, and the preservation of the union. His basic plan for the 1864 campaign was to immobilize the army of gen. George meades chief of staff wrote that there is one striking feature of grants orders. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of ulysses s. He was raised in georgetown, ohio, and eventually passed on an opportunity to. Grant, civil war hero and twoterm president, had always declined. The unlikely friendship of mark twain and ulysses s. In ron chernow s grant, an american giant s makeover. Grant, the 18th president of the united states, focused mainly on his military career during the mexicanamerican war and the american civil war, and completed as he was dying of throat cancer in 1885. He was the most complete and masculine person i ever knew, and his book is the most complete book i have ever read. Living off book royalties made for precarious finances, which is why clemens worked. Grant was appointed lieutenant general in march 1864 and was entrusted with command of all the u.
I was not aware of ulysses grant i am a limey after all. But in the united states army, his remarkable talents as a soldier and leader saved his country from falling apart. The twovolume set was published by mark twain shortly after grants death. Twain created a unique marketing system designed to reach millions of veterans with a patriotic appeal just as grants death was being. Ulysses simpson grant born hiram ulysses grant was generalinchief of the union army from 1864 to 1869 during the american civil war and the 18th president of the united states from 1869 to 1877. Sep 25, 2014 grants orders, by contrast, were clear and concise. Hamer requesting that he nominate ulysses to the united states military academy usma at west point, new york. Grants personal memoirs 1885 are considered a classic of american literature.
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