The life of Hiram Ulysses Grant began as the lives of all great men begin, in an ordinary and unpretentious way. In Point Pleasant, Ohio, Grant was born to Jesse and Hannah Grant, two hard-working, religious commoners who would go on to have 5 more (less notable) children. At a young age he began his father's business as an apprentice tanner; although it provided him with a decent wage, he hated the job and the environment and quickly decided, once he became an adult, that it was not the life for him (Miller Center). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay He was not overly educated at a young age, and as with many children, that school age bored him. What he lacked in terms of desire to receive a formal education, he more than made up for with his horseback riding skills, a very critical skill in this time and place in history. This skill set had an impact later in life, when his father enrolled him in the United States Military Academy at West Point, where, as a youth, he performed less than admirably in the common subjects of his education, however, his Skill with horses was his saving grace, as he had no equal in that area. He was thought to be a shoe-in for a place in the cavalry, but the coveted position passed him by and he was eventually assigned to the infantry (Miller Center). In the 1840s the United States Army was still near its humble beginnings, and Grant found himself assigned to the 4th Infantry at Jefferson Barracks, just south of St. Louis, Missouri. It was here that Grant first met the woman who would become the love of his life. Julia Dent was the sister of Grant's then-roommate, Frederick Dent, who had grown up near St. Louis, and Grant accompanied him on trips back to his home. Unfortunately, Grant had to wait to declare his intentions to Julia when the Mexican War broke out and was recalled (Miller Center). With his regiment transferred to Texas, Lieutenant Grant spent the next two years fighting, and being cited for bravery by his superiors; after being appointed Quartermaster, he gained valuable experience in the field of logistics. Although he achieved many successes in the war, Grant did not boast about them and openly mourned his fallen comrades in arms and lamented the waste created by the war. The end of the war saw Grant able to realize his dream of marrying Julia, although he was soon reassigned to the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and California. He hated being separated from his family, and his problems did not end there as he encountered financial problems and, by many accounts, began drinking to excess; this no doubt contributed to his sudden resignation in 1854 (Miller Center). Returning to his family, his problems seemed to follow him home, as he found it difficult to make a living, working half a dozen jobs that didn't work out. . On one particularly depressing Christmas, he was forced to pawn his watch just to get presents from his children, who now numbered four. In 1860 he was forced to ask his father for help, working for his younger brother in a tannery located in Illinois. Although the country's future took a disastrous turn, it provided Grant with a career in which he could excel, and the Union needed men with experience. After managing to put a particularly undisciplined regiment back on track, he earned the respect of his men and was subsequently promoted to brigadier general (Friedel and Sidey, 2006). Although Grant was finally in his element, the North overall did not have an easy road ahead of them. THEConfederates were mostly in their own territory and fighting (in their minds) for their own freedom. The Union had the difficult task of eradicating the enemy across a vast territory, and the South benefited from strong citizen support and started with superior military commanders. The North still had a strong advantage with better weapons, more soldiers, and crucial blockades to Confederate supply lines (Miller Center). Unfortunately for the Union, this advantage did not equate to easy victories and the war dragged on. The inefficiency of the Northern military leadership was not well reconciled with the drive of the Southerners and the fervor with which they fought. This continuing trend of poor military leaders in the North is what ultimately led Lincoln to turn to Grant as the man who would lead them to victory (Miller Center). Grant proved to be exactly the right man to do it soon after. In 1861 he led 3,000 soldiers in a battle that would ultimately end in a draw, but he showed a willingness to fight and later said of the lesson he learned that day: "I have never forgotten," he wrote, "that he had so many reasons to fear my strengths as well as his. The lesson was invaluable." (qtd. in the Miller Center). He continued to cement his legend by capturing two Confederate forts in Tennessee, earning both the nickname “Unconditional Surrender” and a well-deserved promotion to Major General (Miller Center). His good reputation with the people did not last long as he was blamed for the tragic loss known as the Battle of Shiloh. A skillful early morning ambush by Confederate forces pushed back Grant and the Union line, resulting in many soldiers being taken as prisoners of war (POWs). Grant however showed his tenacity when he managed to hold his position and mount a counter-attack the next day in which they gave their all. That said, the citizens laid all the lost lives of those troops directly at Grant's feet (Miller Center). Lincoln, however, understood the value of such a man and, instead of throwing him to the political wolves, stood by him and reminded him of all those of Grant's worth and ability. His calm demeanor during battle was a far cry from that of previous Union military commanders. He was decisive, concise, and knew the dangers of micromanaging his troops, trusting his junior officers to carry out his direct orders. Lincoln said it simply when asked, "I cannot spare this man; he fights." This alone says a lot about Grant's predecessors (Friedel and Sidey, 2006). Grant also did not let his momentum slow, after being named commander of the District of Tennessee, he moved quickly to capture Vicksburg, Mississippi, whose location allowed him not only to gain a highly defensible position, but also to cut the Confederate stranglehold that she had been on the Mississippi River since the war began. This was a turning point in the war, and after the crucial and devastating blow was struck, Lincoln declared "Grant is my man, and I am his" when he learned of the victory (Miller Center). It was not long before Grant had the entire Western theater of the war under his command. After more decisive victories in eastern Tennessee, Grant was the undisputed war hero, not only leading and shaping the victories, but his men and all of his generals earning their reputations as well. By 1864 Lincoln had named Grant de facto commander of all Union forces, and he was transferred to Washington, D.C. to oversee the war effort. Grant, being the man of action that he was, hated being too far from the battlefield and instead joined General Meade and began the grueling campaign in which a battleafter another between Grant and Robert E. Lee raged throughout the countryside. Such enormous losses were suffered during this campaign that Grant was given an additional nickname in the press, "The Butcher" (Miller Center). Grant ignored the murmurs from the peanut gallery and continued to fight Lee, resulting in such overwhelming victories. , that the South eventually began to lose the will to continue fighting. All of this culminated in Grant trapping the Confederate Army west of Richmond and forcing Lee to surrender on April 9, 1865. Lee's surrender to Grant was basically the unofficial end of the war. Grant wrote magnanimous surrender terms that would have prevented treason trials (Friedel and Sidey, 2006). In just 4 years, Grant had gone from tannery clerk to living legend, a flesh-and-blood hero who had enough war myths to keep him alive. surrounded him enough to make him dear to the entire nation. In 1866 he was appointed General of the Armies, a rank that had not been achieved since George Washington himself. He now had the public attention and respect of the country, making it less than surprising that it wasn't long before he became a presidential candidate (Miller Center). During the Reconstruction period, Grant attempted to work alongside the abysmal Lincoln. successor Andrew Johnson. However, he was no fan of Johnson's policies, and a dispute arose between the two when Grant refused to support him during one of his many fights with Congress. He moved increasingly toward the radical viewpoint, wanting greater protection for recently freed slaves, and although he had little to no interest in being president himself, his popularity led him to be virtually incapable of denying the people (Miller Center) . , Grant's appointment was nothing more than a formality. House Speaker Schuyler Colfax of Indiana was declared his running mate, and the Democrats chose Horatio Seymour, then governor of New York, to run against them. The 46-year-old Grant did not campaign, which was normal at the time, but he was undoubtedly the most popular candidate. He won the Electoral College vote by a nearly 3-to-1 margin over Seymour. Attributed largely to recently enfranchised Southern blacks in some Reconstructed states, it won the popular vote by 300,000 votes (Miller Center). Toward the end of his first term, Grant's popularity was still high, but over the past four years a small portion of the Republican Party had grown tired of his policies and branched out to become the liberal Republicans. They mostly simply opposed Grant's support for African Americans and federal government intervention in the South (Miller Center). The liberal Republicans essentially wanted the return of white rule to the South and nominated a man of their own, Horace Greely, as their candidate. The Democrats, knowing that they could profit from the Republican divide, immediately made their support for Greely known, and he also became their candidate. However, Greely couldn't keep his issues straight and ended up changing his stories and policies too often for people to think he was a stable voting choice. This led to Grant winning his re-election, and brought with it a Republican majority in both houses of Congress (Miller Center). Grant declared in 1875 that he had no interest in running for a third term, and demonstrated this when he played virtually no role. at the next election, leaving the election too close to decide. This in turn led Congress to negotiate a compromise to decide which votes counted, and ultimately ruled in favor of Rutherford B. Hayes, who became Grant's successor. During.).