Ulysses S. Grant: The General Who Saved the Union | 5-Minute Videos

the year was 1862 America was in the depths of the Civil War looking back it's easy to believe that a union victory was inevitable the North had more money more population more industry but no one thought that at the time in the first year of the war it looked as if the South would win a series of high-profile victories in the East convinced many that Confederates were better Fighters under better leaders where would President Lincoln find a battlefield General who could do for the Union what Robert E Lee was doing for the Confederacy lead it to Victory the man he found the man who saved the union was ulysis S Grant he wasn't Lincoln's first choice or second or third in fact when the war started in 1861 Lincoln had no idea who ulyses S Grant was hardly surprising since at the time Grant was selling hats to Farmers wives in a small town in Illinois his rise to glory is one of the most amazing stories in American history born in Ohio on April 27th 1822 Grant had no ambition to be a soldier his father pushed him into it thinking he wasn't suited for much else Grant's West Point career wasn't especially distinguished either but during the Mexican-American War 1846 to 1848 Grant proved himself to be an officer of unusual ability he was cool Under Fire daring but rarely Reckless even more important the men under his command trusted him after that war Grant returned to St Louis to marry his fiance Julia Dent the daughter of a slave owning Missouri farmer Grant was never happier than when he was with Julia and he was never unhappier than when he was not unfortunately in this period Army life forced them to be separated sometimes for many months to assuage his loneliness Grant started to drink while in a distant posting in Northern California a thousand miles from Julia his drinking got the better of him he resigned his army commission to avoid an embarrassing Court marshal it was downhill from there one business venture failing after another by 1860 thoroughly humiliated with no money and no prospects he was back working for his father in the small town of Galina Illinois then the Civil War happened the union was in desperate need of experienced soldiers Grant volunteered his leadership skills were immediately obvious he quickly Advanced through the ranks in a little more than 6 months he scored two major victories at Fort Henry and Fort Donaldson along the the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers he followed these up with victory in the largest battle in American history up to that time the Battle of Shiloh making him a true Union hero in a cause that was starved for Heroes there was nothing flashy about Grant's generalship all he did was win unlike the overly cautious generals that drove President Lincoln to distraction Grant's battle plan was to always move forward always put pressure on his foes any advantage the union had in technology or Manpower he employed to the fullest like Napoleon Grant was a superb reader of maps he could identify the enemy's vulnerabilities and exploit them as he did in His Brilliant 1863 campaign for Vicksburg a campaign that is still studied at War colleges in March 1864 Lincoln made Grant commander of all the union armies it took more than a year of the war's hardest fighting before Lee surrendered and the war finally came to an end by this point the president and his General had developed a close Bond short after Grant returned to Washington Lincoln invited the grants to join him and Mary Lincoln at Ford's Theater Grant accepted Julia however had developed an intense dislike for Mary Lincoln and insisted that her husband get out of the commitment embarrassed Grant did that night in that Theater Lincoln was assassinated as the commander of all Union armies Grant was placed in a terrible bind having to walk a tight RPP between new President Andrew Johnson's pro- South agenda which favored the old white aristocracy and protecting as Lincoln intended the newly won rights of the freed slaves he resolved his dilemma by deciding to run for President Grant had saved America once as a general could he save it again as a politician running as the Republican candidate for president Grant easily won election in 1868 becoming the 18th President of the United States he won again in 1872 during his tenure he fought to secure the passage of the 15th Amendment which guaranteed All American citizens the right to vote regardless of race color or previous condition of servitude he created the Department of Justice broke up the Klux Clan and advocated for the rights of Indians he presided over the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in a rapidly expanding industrial economy there was a dark side to his presidency however his administration was dogged by charges of Financial impropriety and he left office under a cloud but Grant the man remained a popular figure just days before his death on July 23rd 188 5 he completed his autobiography it became one of the bestselling books of the 19th century of Grant's Amazing Life Fredrick Douglas wrote A fitting Epitaph in him the Negro found a protector the Indian a friend a vanquished foe a brother an imperil Nation a savior I'm Gary Adelman Chief historian at the American Battlefield trust for Prager University thank you for watching this video to keep prageru videos free please consider making a tax deductible donation