Unconditional Surrender: Ulysses S. Grant in the Civil War

His friends called him “Sam.” His wife called him “Lyss” or “Victor.” His initials inspired a nickname tied to one of his greatest battlefield triumphs: “Unconditional Surrender Grant.” He quietly told his brother in April of 1861, while walking home after a recruiting meeting in Galena, Illinois, “I am in to do all I can.” And so he did. The unassuming Grant never expected to play a significant role in the Civil War, yet by its end, commanded every soldier in the United States armed forces.

Born in a modest clapboard house at Point Pleasant, Ohio, on the banks of the Ohio River, he first made his military mark near the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. His successes at Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, and eventually Vicksburg earned him the steadfast support of President Abraham Lincoln: “Grant,” he declared, “is my man and I am his the rest of the war!” After saving a Federal army in Chattanooga, he was promoted to lieutenant general and put in command of all Union forces. He made his headquarters in the field with the Army of the Potomac and oversaw the campaigns against Robert E. Lee, from the Wilderness through the prolonged siege of Petersburg and, finally, Appomattox Court House. His ultimate victory paved the way for two terms in the White House.

Unconditional Surrender invites readers to follow Grant’s journey with Dr. Curt Fields, the nation’s foremost Ulysses S. Grant living historian, and noted Civil War author Chris Mackowski. Drawing on years of extensive research, this book offers an ideal introduction to the “dust-covered man” from the Midwest who won the Civil War and preserved the United States.

Curt Fields is a living historian portraying General and President Ulysses S. Grant. He has appeared on the porches of the McLean house at Appomattox Court House as General Grant, the Grant home at White Haven in St. Louis as Captain Grant, and the McGregor Cottage in Wilton, New York, as former President Grant where the dying hero spent his last days. Fields holds a Ph.D. in educational administration and curriculum and is a retired secondary school principal and adjunct college instructor. He was also a Memphis, Tennessee, police officer and hostage negotiator.

Chris Mackowski, Ph.D., is a writing professor in St. Bonaventure University’s Jandoli School of Communication. He is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Emerging Revolutionary War’s sister organization, Emerging Civil War.