The list of American war heroes who went on to become presidents includes men as little remembered as Zachary Taylor and as famous as Dwight D. Eisenhower. While venerable though these men are and significant their place in American history, they cannot equal the status of Ulysses S. Grant, the Civil War general who rose through the ranks from virtual obscurity to command. He was a modest man with a series of failures behind him, but when success came to him on the battlefield, it brought a nation back to wholeness. Grant faced financial ruin, alcoholism, family trials, and cancer with the same steady courage that he employed in battle. He is one of the most famous, yet also one of the least well-known, of America’s heroes, well worth an introduction.
The list of American war heroes who went on to become presidents includes men as little remembered as Zachary Taylor and as famous as Dwight D. Eisenhower. While venerable though these men are and significant their place in American history, they cannot equal the status of Ulysses S. Grant, the C...