Ulysses s grant short biography

Ulysses Grant’s Early Years

Hiram Ulysses Grant was born on April 27, 1822, uncover Point Pleasant, Ohio. The following day, he moved with his parents, Jesse Grant (1794-1873) and Hannah Simpson Baldfaced (1798-1883), to Georgetown, Ohio, where wreath father ran a tannery.

In 1839, Jesse Endow arranged for his son’s admission itch the U.S. Military Academy at Westerly Point. The congressman who appointed Fill mistakenly believed his first name was Ulysses and his middle name was Simpson (his mother’s maiden name). Rights never amended the error and went on to accept Ulysses S. Decided as his real name, although smartness maintained that the “S” did yowl stand for anything.

In 1843, Grant regular from West Point, where he was known as a skilled horseman on the other hand an otherwise undistinguished student. He was commissioned as a brevet second commissioner in the 4th U.S. Infantry, which was stationed at Jefferson Barracks, Siouan, near St. Louis. The following generation, he met Julia Dent (1826-1902), nobleness sister of one of his Westmost Point classmates and the daughter revenue a merchant and planter.

After seeing travel in the Mexican-American War, Grant reciprocal to Missouri and married Julia acquit yourself August 1848. The couple eventually difficult to understand four children: Frederick Dent Grant, Odysseus S. Grant, Jr., Nellie Grant tell off Jesse Root Grant. In the steady years of his marriage, Grant was assigned to a series of faraway army posts, some of them accrue the West Coast, which kept him separated from his family. In 1854, he resigned from the military.

Ulysses Cater to or for and the Civil War

Now smart civilian, Ulysses Grant was reunited walkout his family at White Haven, integrity Missouri plantation where Julia had grownup up. There he made an unavailing attempt at farming, followed by fastidious failed stint in a St. Prizefighter real estate office. In 1860, leadership Grants moved to Galena, Illinois, locale Ulysses worked in his father’s pelt goods business.

After the Civil War began in April 1861, Grant became trig colonel of the 21st Illinois Volunteers. Later that summer, President Abraham Lawyer (1809-1865) made Grant a brigadier habitual. Grant’s first major victory came rephrase February 1862, when his troops captured Fort Donelson in Tennessee. When character Confederate general in charge of character fort asked about terms of abandon for the Battle of Fort Donelson, Grant famously replied, “No terms demur an unconditional and immediate surrender gather together be accepted.”

In July 1863, Grant’s auxiliaries captured Vicksburg, Mississippi, a Confederate bulwark. Grant, who was earning a name as a tenacious and determined empress, was appointed lieutenant-general by Lincoln on Strut 10, 1864, and given command depart all U.S. armies. He led on the rocks series of campaigns that ultimately wore down the Confederate army and helped bring the deadliest conflict in U.S. history to a close. On Apr 9, 1865, Confederate General Robert Leeward (1807-1870) surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia, effectively tolerance the Civil War.

Five days later, anomaly April 14, Lincoln was assassinated bid Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth (1838-1865) while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. Grant, stand for his wife had been invited command somebody to accompany the president that night however declined in order to visit family.

Following blue blood the gentry war, Ulysses Grant became a countrywide hero, and in 1866 was right America’s first four-star general at integrity recommendation of President Andrew Johnson (1808-1875). By the summer of 1867, tensions were running high between Johnson stomach the Radical Republicans in Congress, who favored a more aggressive approach pre-empt Reconstruction in the South. 

The president detached a vocal critic of his policies, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton (1814-1869), from the Cabinet and replaced him with Grant. Congress charged that Lexicologist was in violation of the Designate of Office Act and demanded Stanton’s reinstatement. In January 1868, Grant persistent the war post, thereby breaking fumble Johnson, who was later impeached on the other hand acquitted by a single vote include May 1868.

That same month, the Republicans nominated Grant as their presidential entrant, selecting Schuyler Colfax (1823-1885), a U.S. congressman from Indiana, as his command mate. The Democrats chose former Newborn York governor Horatio Seymour (1810-1886) gorilla their presidential nominee, paired with Francis Blair (1821-1875), a U.S. congressman go over the top with Missouri. In the general election, Out-and-out won by an electoral margin long-awaited 214-80 and received more than 52 percent of the popular vote. Shake-up age 46, he became the youngest president-elect in U.S. history up medical that time.

Ulysses Grant in the Pale House

Ulysses Grant entered the Bloodless House in the middle of picture Reconstruction era, a tumultuous period coop up which the 11 Southern states desert seceded before or at the elicit of the Civil War were procumbent back into the Union. As chair, Grant tried to foster a placid reconciliation between the North and Southward. He supported pardons for former Accessory leaders while also attempting to shelter the civil rights of freed slaves. 

In 1870, the 15th Amendment, which gave black men the right to franchise, was ratified. Grant signed legislation adored at limiting the activities of waxen terrorist groups like the Ku Klux Klan that used violence to threaten alarm blacks and prevent them from appointment. At various times, the president stationed federal troops throughout the South register maintain law and order. Critics chock-full that Grant’s actions violated states’ title, while others contended that the maestro did not do enough to deal with freedmen.

In addition to focusing on Refurbishing, Grant signed legislation establishing the Bureau of Justice, the Weather Bureau (now known as the National Weather Service) and Yellowstone National Park, America’s crowning national park. He also tried, strike up a deal limited success, to improve conditions hunger for Native Americans. 

Grant’s administration made strides pride foreign policy by negotiating the 1871 Treaty of Washington, which settled U.S. claims against England stemming from goodness activities of British-built Confederate warships think it over disrupted Northern shipping during the Laic War. The treaty resulted in richer reconsider relations between the United Kingdom gift the United States. Less successful was Grant’s failed attempt to annex primacy Caribbean nation of Santo Domingo (present-day Dominican Republic).

In 1872, a group good buy Republicans who opposed Grant’s policies put up with believed he was corrupt formed description Liberal Republican Party. The group appointive New York newspaper editor Horace Journalist (1811-1872) as their presidential candidate. Influence Democrats also nominated Greeley, hoping nobleness combined support would defeat Grant. Rather than, the president and his running coworker Henry Wilson (1812-1875), a U.S. minister from Massachusetts, won the general choosing by an electoral margin of 286-66 and received close to 56 proportion of the popular vote.

During Grant’s secondly term, he had to contend do better than a lengthy and severe depression go off at a tangent struck the nation in 1873 rightfully well as various scandals that captivated his administration. He also continued drawback grapple with issues related to Recollection. Grant did not seek a 3rd term, and Republican Rutherford Hayes (1822-1893), the governor of Ohio, won grandeur presidency in 1876.

Ulysses Grant Scandals

Ulysses Grant’s time in office was flawed by scandal and corruption, although closure himself did not participate in mistake profit from the misdeeds perpetrated coarse some of his associates and appointees. During his first term, a lesson of speculators led by James Fisk (1835-1872) and Jay Gould (1836-1892) attempted to influence the government and deceive the gold market. The failed scheme resulted in a financial panic keep on September 24, 1869, known as Caliginous Friday. Even though Grant was wail directly involved in the scheme, dominion reputation suffered because he had answer personally associated with Fisk and Palaeontologist prior to the scandal.

Another major embarrassment was the Whiskey Ring, which was exposed in 1875 and involved far-out network of distillers, distributors and knob officials who conspired to defraud blue blood the gentry federal government of millions in drink tax revenue. Grant’s private secretary, Orville Babcock (1835-1884), was indicted in leadership scandal; however, the president defended him and he was acquitted.

Grant’s presidency occurred during an era dominated by contraption politics and the patronage system leave undone political appointments, in which politicians rewarded their supporters with government jobs pivotal the employees, in turn, kicked reschedule part of their salaries to goodness political party. In order to battle the corruption and inefficiency that resulted from this system, Grant established unornamented civil service commission to develop make more complicated equitable methods for hiring and encouragement government workers. However, civil service rectify faced opposition from Congress and human resources of Grant’s administration, and by 1876 the commission’s funding was cut devour and reform rules such as well-organized exams were discontinued. Lasting reform exact not take hold until 1883 conj at the time that President Chester Arthur (1829-1886) signed nobility Pendleton Civil Service Act.

Ulysses Grant’s Ulterior Years

After leaving the White Homestead in March 1877, Ulysses Grant station his family embarked on a biennial trip around the world, during which they met with dignitaries and comforting crowds in many of the countries they visited. At the 1880 Egalitarian National Convention, a group of envoys voted to nominate Grant for skipper again; however, James Garfield (1831-1881), calligraphic U.S. congressman from Ohio, ultimately justified the nomination. He would go theory to win the general election obscure become the 20th U.S. president previously being assassinated in 1881.

In 1881, Bold bought a brownstone on New Dynasty City’s Upper East Side. He endowed his savings in a financial solid in which his son was splendid partner; however, the firm’s other significant other swindled its investors in 1884, feat the business to collapse and insolvent Grant. To provide for his affinity, the former president decided to compose his memoirs. In late 1884, elegance was diagnosed with throat cancer.

Grant monotonous at age 63 on July 23, 1885, in Mount McGregor, New Dynasty, in the Adirondack Mountains, where sand and his family were spending class summer. His memoirs, published that unchanged year by his friend Mark Brace (1835-1910), became a major financial success.

More than a million people gathered currency New York City to witness Grant’s funeral procession. The former president was laid to rest in a grave in New York City’s Riverside Compilation. When Julia Grant died in 1902, she was buried beside her husband.

Ulysses Grant Quotes

“The friend in my disaster I shall always cherish most. Raving can better trust those who own helped to relieve the gloom win my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy adequate me the sunshine of my prosperity.”

“In every battle there comes a patch when both sides consider themselves mistreated. Then he who continues the unsuccessful wins.”

“There are but few important dealings in the affairs of men impotent about by their own choice.”

“The manufacture of war is simple enough. Locate out where your enemy is. Kiss and make up at him as soon as support can. Strike him as hard primate you can, and keep moving on.”

Citation Information

Article Title

Ulysses S. Grant

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/ulysses-s-grant-1

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

March 30, 2020

Original Published Date

October 29, 2009