Personal Memoirs
With annotations compiled by the editors of the Ulysses S. Grant is a work of profound political, historical, and literary significance. This celebrated annotated edition will introduce a new generation of readers of all backgrounds to an American classic. The digital Loeb Classical Library loebclassics. Our recent titles are available via Edelweiss. Visit our multimedia page for video about recent projects and interviews with HUP authors.
Join Our Mailing List: Subscribe to receive information about forthcoming books, seasonal catalogs, and more, in newsletters tailored to your interests. Grant Edited by John F. Marszalek With David S. Gallo Preface by Frank J. Against the former enemy and against the former rivals. Grant was dying of cancer and the memoir was dictated to a stenographer until the constrictions of his throat made this impossible. But it remains clear and precise.
The meaning of the book to me is in the acceptance of responsibility entails the active search for achievable objectives and the articulation of those objectives in the form of a plan. This imparts the text with direction and clarity. There's a sense that in order to control that particular complex situation acting was better than reacting. View all 4 comments. Twain famously compared Grant's Personal Memoirs to Caesar's De Bello Gallico , to stress not only the quality of the work, but more importantly to increase book sales. The comparison makes sense superficially: But that comparison only goes so far, and illustrates a key difference between the two men: He was reckoned by Cicero, again as Rome's finest declaimer and orator, an extrovert whose charisma, charm, and guile secured his political ascent well before he could claim any martial victories of note.
Grant's Memoirs , on the other hand, are a perfect reflection of Ulysses S. And beyond those traits particular to himself, Grant was an exemplar of the 19th-century army officer. In a time where misunderstood orders could easily create chaos and havoc and thus lead to calamity , it was imperative that officers, particularly commanding officers, be able to write well. And write well he did, without the superfluous flourishes that were popular at the time; his unadorned, plain, reductive style was somehow fitting, considering the subject. While his master, Lincoln, was himself master of his own style of American English by way of Shakespeare and Blackstone traces of which one might see in, say, Henry James Grant's style seems to neatly pre-figure Hemingway's declarative minimalism though without the burden of the latter's insecurities.
And so the two chief architects of the Union victory were also, however inadvertently, the literary progenitors of the American empire. An impressive achievement by a dying man. View all 3 comments. I thought Julius Caesar and Winston Churchill could write of war and leadership but Grant's memoirs blew me away. Written while he was dying in an effort to provide future funds for his family, the great American Civil War general created a classic review of his life in a style that reminded me of an old John Ford western. My image of him changed, as I knew only of his victory in war and failure in politics.
They say that managers do the thing right, wh Stunning. They say that managers do the thing right, whereas leaders do the right thing. In this regard, Ulysses S. Grant fell under the latter banner. He was not a functionary. This makes his writing more focused, as he basically left his ego at the door. How he was able to do this with the pain of cancer, his body withering away Within the genre of memoirs, I've always had the impression that this book stands out as a historically significant example.
In the late 19th century Grant's memoir was a leading best seller. As a child I remember seeing this tome perched on a prominent high shelf in the local rural town library and wondering to myself if anybody ever r Within the genre of memoirs, I've always had the impression that this book stands out as a historically significant example. As a child I remember seeing this tome perched on a prominent high shelf in the local rural town library and wondering to myself if anybody ever read that really big book.
What I saw back then may have been the original two volume edition, but my memory isn't clear on that detail. Grant comes across in the book as a reasonable and likeable person who never aspired to a military career even though he did attend West Point Military Academy. He describes his application and resulting entrance into the academy as being completely the result of his father's initiative. His claim to having not aspired to a military career is supported by the fact that he did resign from the U.
Army within several years after the end of the Mexican-American War. I found the first part of the book that covered his early life, Mexican-American War, and the western campaign of the Civil War to be interesting reading that went pretty fast. But my reading bogged down when I got to the eastern campaign which consisted mostly of details of shifting such-and-such division from one place to another. I required nearly a half year to finish.
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The book contains a sizeable Appendix that contains the text of numerous military orders. I didn't read that stuff. The memoir ends with the end of the Civil War. No mention is made of his presidency. I'm really sorry he didn't cover the later years which I know ended up being a disappointment for him in many ways. It would be interesting to note how he would reflect on that difficult time of his life. It's my understanding that this memoir was written and published with the encouragement and advice of Mark Twain who made sure that the publishing process was done in a manner to would assure income for Grant's widowed wife.
Grant died within a couple days of his final additions to the memoir. The book sales did indeed provide a comfortable income for his wife after his death. This was important because the Grants were not independently wealthy, and there was no presidential pension in those days. Dec 30, Caroline rated it it was amazing Shelves: The two authors combine the same crystal clear description of events, the masterful strategy, the commentary on the events that put them in the field, and the perceptive evaluation of the characters of their own warriors and the leaders of the enemy.
The second covers the Civil War after he was given command of the entire army, as Lieutenant General. I was so struck by the pivot from the battle for Vicksburg, at the end of the first half, to the campaign for Richmond in the second. In the west, Grant had faced an almost impregnable site, endless water and mud, massive rivers, sloughs, bad weather, and general bad odds. His patience and strategy of allowing the men to try almost any maneuver to get forge a passage to Vicksburg through the mush during the winter, to keep the soldiers from going crazy and to prevent Washington from firing him, eventually got them to the dryer weather when he could finally undertake his own strategy to take this critical location.
He succeeded, in partnership with the Navy. The pivot to leading the Army of the Potomac in the East, which he was awarded immediately after Vicksburg, shows him at once capable of deciding on a strategy of attacking Lee and the other Southern generals along the entire line between the States simultaneously.
This required careful preparation, but then massive coordination of hundreds of moving parts--very different from the focus on one location. I thought that the general who could undertake so many different types of war and motivate his officers to carry out their parts for the most part promptly and imaginatively was certainly a phenomenal leader. It is also fascinating to watch Grant attribute successes and failures to individuals. His pet peeve was officers who dawdled when he ordered them to get going.
Grant is generally even-handed when talking about the Southern officers, many of whom he knew from West Point or the old Army. While I enjoy the strategy discussions, I am not that interested in battle scenes. I most enjoy reading about how an army is supported and overcomes obstacles through preparation work. Logistics and engineering are fascinating to me. The idea that thousands of wagons of food and forage and ammunition have to keep flowing as the army keeps moving is amazing.
And the amount of time armies spend building bridges and works seems to be about fifty times as much as they spend actually fighting. Or perhaps not doomed, because he also states that one of his reasons for pounding ahead at all costs in the east was to got a victory somewhere to prevent the North from agreeing to some compromise that would end the war with a division between the two combatants.
He thought slavery was abhorrent, and the men who prompted the rebellion treasonous. But when it was over, he wanted it to be over--no retribution. But he also had an idealistic idea that had Lincoln lived all would have gone easily. But the rendition of the destruction is endless. I must read another perspective.
Lastly, the role of technology. Early in the book when he was in California after the Mexican War Grant tells of an Army officer who was a bad sailor, and had been send round the horn seasick three times because every time he finally arrived at his destination orders caught up with him that said he should have been posted on the opposite coast. Similar delays dog the fighting in the Mexican war.
But by the Civil War the troops are moved by train, and telegraph lines are strung up all over the battlefields. Grant seems able to communicate with almost all of his officers most of the time. Amazing changes in a very short time. This Republic of Suffering. It will be hard. My own family was half Quaker pacifist, and half recent-immigrant-in-hiding, as I interpret their absence from the census.
They escaped fighting, but it sometimes seems as if the rest of us will never escape the consequences. An interesting book that is well written but not a personal memoir in the modern sense. This is not a tell all, voyeuristic baring of the soul. Grant is a 19th Century American. I have to admit to liking the 19th Century Americans. They were down to earth blistering realistic people. He assumed that his potential readers were more interested in why he was famous.
He was not famous for being famous. He was famous for prosecuting the war to a successful conclusion for the Union. What he thought ab An interesting book that is well written but not a personal memoir in the modern sense. What he thought about the war and how he out generaled the Confederates WAS important. And this is interesting. I was fascinated by how one ran a 19th Century army. Forage for horses was a strategic resource.
It was possible for an army to live off the land by stealing from the surrounding civilian population. The cavalry were sent to go behind the enemy lines to destroy lines of communication and transport much like how air-force would be used in the 20th Century. This is a book about the campaigns of the Civil War but we do get a glimpse of the man. Grant decided toward the end of the war to avoid annihilating the trapped Confederate armies.
The description of the tactics and instructions given to his armies can be a little tedious. This is leavened however by the description of the political problems of dealing with politically appointed generals, a vindictive Halleck who often persecuted his underlings and Lincoln and his cabinet who often interfered in the day to day running of the war. There were also many levels of competence amongst his officers. Some were cowards, some overly defensive and many just could not lead men and some could not follow orders. In Sherman he found a partner who had the perfect balance of aggression, competence, attention to detail and initiative.
Grants views on slavery, the Mexican War, the Confederacy and the various myths about the war which are still extant are extremely interesting and alone are worth the effort of reading this rather large book. May 21, William S. This book is often called the finest presidential memoir. It doesn't, however, deal with the Grant presidency at all.
Instead, it is his recollection of Civil War events, written in a race of time against his approaching death from throat cancer. With that focus, the book is magnificent - and a surprise. The strategic thinking about his famous battles is clear and comprehensible. Having read many books about the Civil War, I found myself shaking my head many times and noting "so that's how - and This book is often called the finest presidential memoir. Having read many books about the Civil War, I found myself shaking my head many times and noting "so that's how - and why - that happened.
Furthermore, he has the grace to apologize over the bloody fiasco at Cold Harbor, something that Lee, who shared the blame, never did. If Grant's seesaw reputation continues to rise, this excellent account will deserve much of the credit. A must resad for anyone interested in the Civil War, or for that matter, American history in general.
History Buffs and lovers of Biographies. One of the greatest books I have read, it holds a surprising literary quality that few biographies hold.
Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant - Wikipedia
He puts you in the battlefield, and his vivid memory added by his brilliant expression, brings you back to the 's. Mar 22, Bob Mayer rated it it was amazing. When he became President, Ulysses S. Grant lost his army pension. After the Presidency, he went into business with his son. They became caught up in a Ponzi scheme. Grant not only lost everything, he was deeply in debt.
Then he was diagnosed with terminal throat cancer-- all those cigars. He didn't want to leave his wife destitute so he agreed to Mark Twain's long standing request to write his memoirs. Grant in his first command. There was no fight, but the two were linked ever afterward. Twain carried a copy of Grant's Unconditional Surrender letter from Fort Donelson in his pocket all his life. So Grant wrote his memoirs, finishing just days before his death, Twain published it, and it became the highest selling nonfiction book of the 19th Century. It's a fascinating from the mind of a most incredible man.
Jan 04, Nooilforpacifists rated it it was amazing Shelves: Unexpectedly lucid and thoughtful, Grant manages to communicate the talent that made him the North's most successful general: He could view terrain, and see, instantly, not just how it should be assaulted, but how the attacking army must be supplied. Yes, he also actually would attack, unlike McClellan. Famously, the book was written to provide a legacy for the Grant family, and completed in two sections, the second under severe pain after jaw cancer surgery.
But, unlike others, I Unexpectedly lucid and thoughtful, Grant manages to communicate the talent that made him the North's most successful general: But, unlike others, I don't find much of a difference. Yes, there's some backing-and-filling about voting Democrat, Lincoln, race relations, etc. But an easy read, and a must-read for Civil War enthusiasts. Jan 04, Herbert Lobsenz rated it it was amazing.
Grant started this two volume memoir in the fall of after he'd been diagnosed with terminal throat cancer. Earlier that year his business partner had defrauded Grant and others by turning their partnership into a Ponzi scheme. Now penniless, in order to provide for his family after he died, Grant entered into an agreement with his friend, Mark Twain, under which Grant would write and Twain would publish the memoir. The memoir begins with Grant's service in the Mexican War, which he considere Grant started this two volume memoir in the fall of after he'd been diagnosed with terminal throat cancer.
The memoir begins with Grant's service in the Mexican War, which he considered unjust. Nonetheless he carried out his duties with a distinction that caused his recruitment back into the army after the secession and attack on Fort Sumter, which he fiercely opposed. He hated the treason involved in the attack and hated the institution of slavery. The first volume covers the campaign in the West and the attack on the almost impregnable fortress of the Confederacy on the heights at Vicksburg.
He explains in detail how he surveyed the ground on which the battle would be fought, all the approaches to that battleground, the defensive positions, the potential obstacles, and a detailed description of how he would move, feed, arm and doctor the casualties of the different divisions and how he brought the generals of the army and the naval forces together to fight in that battle, which, of course, he won. On that same day General Meade won the battle of Gettysburg—the high watermark of the Confederacy.
Vicksburg ended confederate control of the Mississippi River, split the South in two and prompted Lincoln to say "the father of the waters once again flows unhindered to the sea. The biggest difficulty with this fine book is the maps of the battles which are described hill by hill and brook by brook but illustrated by maps that lack the detail of the narrative and are shrunk to the size of a book. Even with a magnifying glass they are impossible to read.
I remember my father sitting at our dining room table after dinner with giant maps of the battles spread out so he could follow all the battles of that war in true detail. He was born the year Grant started writing and his uncle spent four years in the Army of the Potomac from First Bull Run to Petersburg. Grant speaks fondly of those generals who always arrived at the battle on time and who attacked—Sheridan, Hancock and above all Sherman. And he speaks frankly of those generals who did not arrive at the battle on time and did not attack.
And he speaks of those in Washington who tried to direct the battle from far away without knowledge of the troops, the enemy or the ground. He speaks of the Confederate generals too, sometimes hilariously. He describes a time before Bragg, the impatient and obstreperous man who later became General Bragg, who, because of numerous casualties, found himself, simultaneously, company commander, battalion quartermaster and battalion commander.
As company commander Bragg sent in a supplies requisition to himself as quartermaster, which he turned down, and which again as company commander he appealed the quartermaster's decision to himself as battalion commander. Grant was relentless on the attack, humble in victory, merciful to the wounded, respectful to the defeated, truly a great man.
In reading his direct and unadorned prose and knowing, he was fighting to finish the memoir before he died, you might get the idea that he left out the literary flourishes because he knew he didn't have time, but all through the memoir he includes copies of his pre-battle orders to his generals and they are written as simply, clearly and gracefully as the memoir itself. He was simply an excellent writer.
Mark Twain compared him to Julius Caesar, another general who was an excellent writer. Five days after General Grant finished the memoir, he died. The book's main focus is his military exploits in the Mexican American and Civil Wars. I read the free e-book version from Gutenberg which rendered the maps unusable too small , and as a result the battle descriptions were difficult to follow.
If this is important to you, I'm sure you could pull the maps up on a separate computer when reading these sections. The most interesting parts to me was Grant's perhaps unintentional revelation of his difficulty in judging character and his relationship with Sherman. Several times you'll read a statement like, I posted General X due to his reputation, our meeting, etc, but he failed to deliver.
My understanding is this weakness also plagued his administration. He spends much of the book describing Sherman's efforts in a positive light. Clearly Sherman was his right hand during the entire War. Much of this writing on Sherman is defensive in nature, which makes me want to explore why he felt he had to defend Sherman's actions 20 years later. At pages, it isn't a quick read.
But as a frankly written primary source on perhaps the most turbulent time in our nation's history, it is worth the investment. Feb 09, Chris rated it liked it Shelves: Grant wrote his memoirs in as a means to generate income for his family after his death. In his retirement, he had run into bad luck and been swindled out of much of his savings, which prompted him to begin writing his autobiography. I enjoyed the first third of the book which covered his early childhood, his West Point experiences and the Mexican American War.
This portion had a personal tone and some of the stories he told were amusing and charming. The rest of the book was spent on the C Grant wrote his memoirs in as a means to generate income for his family after his death. The rest of the book was spent on the Civil War years. I felt that this portion tended to be more matter of fact and frequently sounded more like an after action report of various battles rather than a narrative. I was hoping it would include more of his own insight and reflections. I would recommend Ronald C.
White's biography American Ulysses to get a richer portrait of Grant. Grant is one of the most famous figures in American history. He was the Union general who had successfully led the nation's troops to victory in the Civil War. Grant wrote these memories while dying and trying to provide an income for his wife.
Mark Twain, who was his publisher and is not exactly unbiased, compared the work to that of Julius Caesar. As my title suggests I found Grant, for a great and historic figure, to be a man very down to earth. Grant's writing is easy to read and understand. As a reader, I had an easy time identifying with a man who died ninety-six years before I was born. Grant begins in this introduction explaining why he is writing these memoirs, mainly his money problems and he discusses how sick he has been.
He explains how his sons have helped verify certain facts for him, while working on these volumes. Most touchingly, he states that his intention is just to tell his side and not to make light of anyone else's service during the war. There must be many errors of omission in this work, because the subject is too large to treated of in two volumes in such way as to do justice to all the officers engaged.
There were thousands of instances, during the rebellion, or individual, company, regimental and brigade deeds of heroism which deserve special mention and are not here alluded to. The troops engaged in them will have to look to the detailed reports of their individual commanders for the full history of those deeds. Grant did not like West Point at first, although that his attitude changed as time went on. Grant also tells the tale of wearing his full dress uniform around town, after graduation, and having everyone laugh at him.
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That story is a bit of comic relief that leads up to the Mexican War. Grant throughout his entire life would have incredibly strong feelings about that conflict. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory. To us it was an empire of incalculable value; but it might have been obtained by other means.
The Southern rebellion was largely an outgrowth of the Mexican war. Nations, like individuals, are punished for their transgressions. We go our punishment in the most sanguinary and expensive war of modern times. Grant admired him because he felt that even though he was the commanding general, his feelings on the war were the same as his. Grant would copy his attitude and concepts on military matters. Hard times would fall on him he would resign from the Army, according to him, because he could not make a living of Army pay. Grant would struggle to support himself and his family.
He would peddle wood, work for his father and many other things. Destiny would call to him however when the Civil War broke out. As an officer of some experience, Grant was able to rejoin the Army as volunteer Colonel, and would quickly see a star. On the Western Front, Grant would achieve victory after victory. He would gain ground for the Union, promotions for himself, and the attention of President Abraham Lincoln.
In one of my reviews of Caesar, I pointed out my lack of understanding of military tactics. So, some of the best stuff in this book, for me, is not discussion of strategy but rather some of the more human moments of the work. Such as, when Grant finds himself confronted with a confederate bureaucrat after a victorious battle.
His impudence was so sublime that I was rather amused than indignant. I told him, however, that if he would remain in Memphis I did not believe the Confederate government would ever molest him. He left, no doubt, as much amazed at my assurance as I was at the brazenness of his request. He did not think the Founders themselves would disallow states leaving in the beginning but as soon as the union began admitting other states, that right ceased to exist.
I do not think that is the most intellectual argument but it is the one that worked for him. Where Grant really is insightful was his conclusion that the South benefited from losing in the Civil War. The latter had the people, the institutions, and the territory to make a great and prosperous nation. The former was burdened with an institution abhorrent to all civilized people not brought up under it, and one which degraded labor, kept it in ignorance, and enervated the governing class.
With the outside at war with this institution, they could not have extended their territory. The labor of the country was not skilled, nor allowed to become so. The non-slaveholders would have left the country, and the small slaveholder must have sold out to his more fortunate neighbor. Soon the slaves would have outnumbered the masters, and, not being in sympathy with them, would have risen in their might and exterminated them. The war was expensive to the South as well as to the North, both in blood and treasure, but it was well worth the cost.
His mention of his own presidency is only in passing, and he does not discuss receiving the four star commission in It is quite possible that he meant to discuss these things but illness got the better of him and he cut it short. Or maybe those end years were not very pleasant for President Grant and therefore he chose not to go into them in much detail.
Nevertheless, President Grant's book is worthy of all the praise that it receives, and I recommend this work more then any other from this time period. On one hand, I was deeply disappointed. The title of this book—The Complete Personal Memoirs of Ulysses Grant—led me to believe that he would cover his entire life, or at least all of the important parts of it, in the telling. However, after hearing about his childhood and service in the Mexican War, and then going through an extremely protracted description of every battle of the Civil War in which he was involved, the book abruptly ends after peace is made between North and South.
Now, I have been known to read and enjoy some dry books. But dry does not begin to convey what I went through reading hundreds and hundreds of pages on battles, skirmishes, troop movements, and details of captures, supplies, and correspondence. Grant might have been a great general, but he was not a great memoir writer. A lot of this description was mind-numbingly boring. However, there were gems sprinkled throughout the book. His analysis of the causes and effects of the war, and the advantages and disadvantages of both sides was also very interesting.
If you are actually a military scholar and literally want every little detail of each battle, you might find this book useful. Feb 12, Eduardo rated it it was amazing Shelves: I didn't know whether to expect a boring account of lots of battles and dates, but I didn't find that to be the case. I found the first half of the book to be fascinating.
It was full of interesting accounts of himself and other people. It's a great, engaging, first person narrative of important history and a great story. It did later get to be too much battle-account for me.
What Mark Twain said of the book: I was abl Wonderful book! I was able to say in all sincerity, that the same high merits distinguished both books—clarity of statement, directness, simplicity, unpretentiousness, manifest truthfulness, fairness and justice toward friend and foe alike, soldierly candor and frankness, and soldierly avoidance of flowery speech.
Nov 19, Darrel rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: Anyone interested in the US Civil War. I have read this AND listened to it as an audio book from Libravox. As an avid student of the Civil War, it is most satisfying to hear the story from those who were actually there and in the fight. This memoir is well written and easy to follow. I would also say that Grant is fairly honest in his assessment of things with, of course, some self serving analysis occasionally.
If you want to see the war from the perspective of the man who most influenced it, this is a must re I have read this AND listened to it as an audio book from Libravox. If you want to see the war from the perspective of the man who most influenced it, this is a must read. I would also say that reading a general history of the war would be good, before reading this, as it will give a bigger picture within which to place Grant. Aug 22, Sotiris Makrygiannis rated it really liked it Shelves: For sure a General, a President, a part of American history.
Wanted to be a Professor, ended up to be all the above but died almost poor because they fooled him in business. He wrote the book to make money at the end of his life. He is respectful to his enemies, he explains how the USA got new territories from Mexico by provoking them to be the aggressors. Since he knew the territories of the South, he led the campaign against the USA South rebels during the civil war.
He knew his op A good man? He knew his opponents, they were schoolmates. Explains why he allowed lotting at the end bc he lost a garrison with supplies and choose that man with guns are better to be controlled then go hungry. Lots of details for every battle, who did a good job and who didn't. On the subject of slavery, for sure was against it and speaks kindly about the coloured people. Very Presidential for sure and surely had the guts to admit to his own mistakes.
This book is a long summary of the US Civil war, the reasons, the build-up, the campaign and much more. Need to read also the story of General Lee to see the Southerner opinions. Is over 35 hours of audiobook and has good military strategy tricks and tips but needs lots of effort to avoid being boring.
A free version can be found at Librivox https: Mar 31, Brian rated it it was amazing. One of the best books I have ever read. A well-deserved excellent reputation. Vivid, personal, inspiring, and still eminently relevant. Dec 07, James Todd rated it it was amazing. I really enjoyed listening to the unabridged audio.