Monday, July 23, 2007

U.S. Grant & the Battle of Vicksburg

No one who saw U.S. Grant during his "lean years" could have imagined that THIS man would one day be catapulted to the presidency of the United States. His rise, when it came, was meteoric.

David Chandler, in his book The Campaigns of Napoleon, noted that of the 20 most brilliant battles of history, only two were from the U.S. Civil War. One of these was Grant's leadership and decision making in the Battle of Vicksburg. His decision at Vicksburg -- a strategic plan that emerged from a long hard brooding over the problem -- was one of two or three key decisions in the war.

As in our own lives, much of life is simply execution... plodding... Only in certain moments do we have the true power and opportunity to lay our mark on events. Grant was an original thinker who took initiative. The Battle of Vicksburg was his "mark" and it changed the course of the war, and history.
May 4, 1997

Along with several other books about our 18th president, I have twice read the Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant, published by Mark Twain, and drawn great inspiration from his life. What I find especially exciting is that one never knows what tomorrow will bring. After the Mexican War, Grant fell into the boring tedium of non-combat soldiering followed by a retreat from the service altogether to be with his family. As a farmer he likewise failed and ended up a clerk in his brother's hardware store. Only when the war came did he have the opportunity to fulfill the role destiny had prepared for him. Grant rose to the occasion, and distinguished himself. His singular character qualities set him apart from other generals and earned him great respect from those who served under him.

May we ourselves do the same. If you wish to read a brief summary of the key character qualities that made him an inspirational leader, visit http://www.ennyman.com/grant.html

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