Posted on 04/27/2022 9:57:50 AM PDT by Borges
By the time Grant took command the South was penniless, shoeless, had 1/10th the industrial might of the North and woefully outmanned (in sheer #s). The North was fielding fresh conscripts (mostly Irish immigrants). Sherman? He was a war criminal who starved, burned out and murdered civilians.
You are correct. I forgot you don’t feed trolls.
In his civil war mems, he indicates that the Mexican war was the most worthless war fought for all the wrong reasons. Later he indicates that the expenditures for military purposes be used for the general defense of the nation and nothing more.
In short, he basically indicated that WE SHOULD NOT, become become entangled in foreign interventions.
As president, he made poor choices for the fulfillment of his cabinet. But, he also put an end to the thought of control of the nations currency by a national bank and prevented it.
He drank out of boredom. Never partook of it while his wife or sons were present or when things were “hot” on the battlefield. It took just a little to make him tipsy.
He was a short man.
He also was a quiet man not particular to anger-only two or three times he showed any anger on the battle campaign.
He was a private type man with his family. He was once caught holding his wife’s hand by one of his staff and he basically blushed about it. He loved his family dearly.
He was frightened to near death about giving speeches.
The site of blood made him ill.
He once had a man flogged for being mean to a horse.
It is said that he smoked over 20 cigars a day.
He was just 45 or 46 when he took command of ALL the federal armies during that war.
I almost post to and pinged you to this thread.
Timing is everything in comedy as well as in life...
Just after the surrender of the Army of N Virginia, and the winding down of the war, when Lincoln was killed. He and Lee, Johnston and Sherman saved this country.
The cabinet and the whole of Washington DC were out to hang Lee and go through the south for revenge. Grant basically indicated to them that they would have to go through him to do that.
He ran the country himself for a short 24 hours after that by preventing a continuation and restart of that war.
I think the special docu about that is called 3 days to save a nation.
Heh, funny how that works sometimes. “You know, I haven’t heard from my ex-wife for a long time...ring ring ring...”
Four to one manpower advantage not to mention all the cargo and logistics advantageous, also a willingness to throw away lives rather cavalierly.
I wouldn't call what he did, doing it "well."
My dad was a high functioning alcoholic nearly his entire adult life, and of all the things I admire about him, his ability and determination to work through it and eventually kick alcohol late in his life is one of the most significant.
I have read a bit about Grant, and while I think some of the issues about his drinking are a bit overblown as sometimes happens to people who make a lot of enemies, especially enemies that are the result of performance comparison where the person doing the exaggerating is on the inferior side.
But it is also clear that Grant did have an issue with alcohol, so he battled it.
In my opinion, it is difficult not to be impressed buy a guy who just a few years earlier had been sleeping under stairs wearing all his clothes.
That is quite a jump to make...from that to leading General to the Presidency.
I have always felt his biggest weakness was that he trusted people he shouldn’t have. He had what we call “loyalty issues”. I fall prey to that myself, giving people far too much rope who end up to not have been deserving of such loyalty.
The Union Army conscripted less than 10% of its total strength during the war. Actually, the Confederate Army drafted a slightly higher % of its manpower than the North did, about 11-12%. The Civil War, on both sides, was fought overwhelmingly by men who volunteered.
I think President Trump suffered from this as well.
Grant’s Tomb is covered in graffiti, by the way.
Absolutely. Well, we all got weaknesses...!
“He is a butcher and is not fit to be at the head of an army. Yes, he generally manages to claim a victory, but such a victory! He loses two men to the enemy's one. He has no management, no regard for life.”Mary Todd Lincoln
“When Grant showed up at the battlefield he turned the tide...”
You obviously are not familiar with Shiloh. “Grant developed a reputation during the war for being more concerned with his own plans than with those of the enemy. His encampment at Pittsburg Landing displayed his most consequential lack of such concern—his army was spread out in bivouac style, with many of his men surrounding a small, log meetinghouse named Shiloh Church, passing the time waiting for Buell’s army with drills for his many raw troops without establishing entrenchments or other significant defensive measures. Major crossings into the encampment were guarded and patrols frequently dispatched.
In his memoirs, Grant justified his lack of entrenchments by recounting that he did not consider them necessary, believing “drill and discipline were worth more to our men than fortifications.” Grant wrote that he “regarded the campaign we were engaged in as an offensive one and had no idea that the enemy would leave strong intrenchments to take the initiative...
Grant wanted to avoid provoking any major battles until the linkup with Buell’s Army of the Ohio was complete. Thus the Union army had sent out no scouts or regular patrols and did not have any vedettes in place for early warning, concerned that scouts and patrols might provoke a major battle before the Army of the Ohio finished crossing the river. Grant telegraphed a message to Halleck on the night of April 5, “I have scarcely the faintest idea of an attack (general one) being made upon us, but will be prepared should such a thing take place.”” - Wiki
Grant was already there and in command. But he didn’t expect the South to attack...so he did NOTHING to prepare.
He was there the first day. His orders indicate he didn’t know enough about what was going on to give useful orders. And that evening, 15000 additional men arrived...and the commanding general on the Confederate side was dead.
You might try reading a few books about Shiloh before blaming Sherman for Grant’s decisions. And before claiming Grant performed well.
W.T. Sherman’s grave doubles as a port-a-potty.
“In my opinion the officers and men paroled at Appomattox C.H. and since upon the same terms given to Lee, cannot be tried for treason so long as they observe the terms of their parole…..I will state further that the terms granted by me met with the hearty approval of the President at the time, and of the country generally.”
When Grant went to the White House, he found Johnson unyielding. The President said he wanted “to make treason odious,” stating that Lee and other rebel leaders had to face punishment…..“When can these men be tried,” asked Johnson.
Grant replied, “Never, unless they violate their parole. I have made certain terms with Lee, which were the best and only terms. If I had told him and his army that their liberty would be invaded, that they would be open to arrest, trial, and execution for treason, Lee would never have surrendered, and we should have lost many lives in destroying him. My terms of surrender were according to military law, and so long as General Lee observes his parole, I will never consent to his arrest. I will resign the command of the army rather than execute any order to arrest Lee or any of his commanders so long as they obey the law.”
“In my ever-so-humble opinion, Eisenhower himself was one of our greatest Generals...”
I don’t think a single general who served under him agreed - in their private diaries. They sucked up to him in public, though.
Meh. Had Lee equal forces, he would have been able to conquer the North.
4 to 1 advantage in manpower, not to mention all the logistical and technological advantages.
Continually slugging it out with a smaller force will eventually win no matter what else you do.
How do you feel about illegals voting?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.