United States History - 19th Century - Civil War, United States History - 19th Century - General & Miscellaneous, Executive Branch, U.S. Armed Forces - Biography, U.S. - Political Biography, United States Armed Forces

Grant

Name: Grant
Author: Jean Edward Smith
ISBN: 9780684849270

by Jean Edward Smith

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Overview

Ulysses S. Grant was the first four-star general in the history of the United States Army and the only president between Andrew Jackson and Woodrow Wilson to serve eight consecutive years in the White House. As general in chief, Grant revolutionized modern warfare. As president, he brought stability to the country after years of war and upheaval. Yet today Grant is remembered as a brilliant general but a failed president.

In this comprehensive biography, Jean Edward Smith reconciles these conflicting assessments of Grant's life. He argues convincingly that Grant is greatly underrated as a president. Following the turmoil of Andrew Johnson's administration, Grant guided the nation through the post-Civil War era, overseeing Reconstruction in the South and enforcing the freedoms of new African-American citizens. His presidential accomplishments were as considerable as his military victories, says Smith, for the same strength of character that made him successful on the battlefield also characterized his years in the White House.

Synopsis

The man Ulysses S. Grant most admired was Abraham Lincoln. In the Civil War, the aim of the four-star general was always to carry out Lincoln's policies. Grant's accomplishments as president were as considerable as his military victories, but he was over-trusting of friends who abused his trust.

Book Magazine

The historical perception of Ulysses S. Grant is that Grant led his country to victory during the Civil War by indiscriminately sacrificing his men in battle. The eighteenth president has been dismissed as an embarrassing failure whose administration was marked by utter corruption. Historian Smith, whose other books include a biography of United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall, offers a radically different view of Grant, whom he considers a strong political leader. Smith disputes the notion that Grant was a butcher of his own men, and this book, which is ultimately concerned with Grant's presidency, praises the leader's two administrations and defends his treatment of blacks during Reconstruction. While Smith's biography may upset those scholars in lockstep with previous interpretations, it will undoubtedly enthrall its readers.
—Glenn Speer

(Excerpted Review)

About the Author, Jean Edward Smith

Jean Edward Smith is the author of numerous works of history and biography, including biographies of John Marshall and Lucius D. Clay. He taught political science at the University of Toronto for more than thirty years and is currently the John Marshall Professor of Political Science at Marshall University.

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Grant's reputation as a general has steadily improved in the past quarter century, and the preceding decade has seen reevaluation of a presidency previously dismissed as an eight-year disaster. Smith, until now best known for his work in 20th-century U.S. foreign policy (George Bush's War), integrates Grant's career and achievements in what is by far the best comprehensive biography to date of a man who remains in enigma. A West Pointer who disliked the army enough to resign from it in 1854, Grant failed unobtrusively at every civilian enterprise he attempted. His return to arms in 1861 was marked by no spectacular triumph. Instead, from Shiloh through Vickburgh to Chattanooga, he established himself as the North's best general by a combination of flexibility, resilience and determination. Lee's unconditional surrender was accompanied by Grant's de facto pardon of the defeated army, and Smith persuasively interprets this as an early turning point of reconstruction, preventing Northern reprisals that might have left the nation permanently divided emotionally. Elected president in 1868, Grant above all sought reconciliation, yet made measured and effective use of the army to protect black rights in the south. Smith makes a strong case that the financial scandals that dogged Grant's second term reflected individual misfeasance rather than structural malaise-Grant was better at judging military subordinates than political advisers. His mediation of the Hayes-Tilden election in 1876 helped avert a national crisis. As a conqueror who was also a healer of war's wounds, Grant stands with no superiors and few equals, Smith forcefully argues. (Apr.) Forecast: The timing of this book is right, with Colin Powell as secretary of state and an election whose questions of black disenfranchisement and small electoral margin of victory are analogous to Hayes-Tilden. Add to that this book's comprehensiveness, rigor and readability, and it should do quite well. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Scholars consistently rank Ulysses Grant as the greatest Civil War general but one of the worst American presidents. This provocative biography attempts to reconcile Grant's contradictory reputations via the concept of "character." Marshall University political scientist Smith, who also authored the top-notch modern biography John Marshall: Definer of a Nation, effectively portrays Grant as a consistently decent, modest, and competent individual who experienced terrible luck in his civilian life but the opposite in public service. Grant never considered himself a warrior or a politician, but when presented with a mission he was tenacious. Lincoln recognized Grant's battlefield persistence and so did the public. Grant could be forceful, but he also could be too trusting and too needy of support, especially from his wife. A successful first term in the White House led to a less successful encore, though had Grant been a natural politician, it is likely he could have had a third term. The author effectively argues that Grant was not personally involved in his cronies' scandals. This is the best one-volume biography of Grant to date, and it may help elevate him among his fellow presidents. Highly recommended. William D. Pederson, Louisiana State University in Shreveport Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.