United States Presidential Candidates, 1868 - Ulysses S. Grant, Andrew Johnson, Thomas A. Hendricks, Winfield Scott Hancock (Paperback)

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 43. Chapters: Ulysses S. Grant, Andrew Johnson, Thomas A. Hendricks, Winfield Scott Hancock, Ulysses S. Grant and the American Civil War, Horatio Seymour, George H. Pendleton, Dan Rice, James Rood Doolittle, John Creswell, Joel Parker, Asa Packer, Sanford E. Church, James E. English. Excerpt: Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822 - July 23, 1885) was the 18th President of the United States (1869-1877) as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America. Grant began his lifelong career as a soldier after graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1843. Fighting in the Mexican-American War, he was a close observer of the techniques of Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott. He resigned from the Army in 1854, then struggled to make a living in St. Louis and Galena, Illinois. After the American Civil War began in April 1861, he joined the Union war effort, taking charge of training new regiments and then engaging the Confederacy near Cairo, Illinois. In 1862, he fought a series of major battles and captured a Confederate army, earning a reputation as an aggressive general who seized control of most of Kentucky and Tennessee at the Battle of Shiloh. In July 1863, after a long, complex campaign, he defeated five Confederate armies (capturing one of them) and seized Vicksburg. This famous victory gave the Union control of the Mississippi River, split the Confederacy, and opened the way for more Union victories and conquests. After another victory at the Battle of Chattanooga in late 1863, President Abraham Lincoln promoted him to the rank of lieutenant general and gave him charge of all of the Union Armies. As Commanding General of the Un...