![]() He died in New York in 1885.Ī reassessment of Grant that began more than 20 years ago has gained steam as the nation grapples with statues and monuments erected after the Civil War by Confederate descendants who tried to portray Southern leaders as noble, and the war's cause as something other than slavery. Grant was elected to the first of two terms as president as a Republican in 1868, three years after Lincoln's assassination and the end of the war. ![]() Army and rose to become its top commander, a general whom Lincoln prized for his aggressiveness. ![]() Louis, where he lived before the war a Grant birthday party in Clermont County, Ohio, where he was born a weekend celebration in Georgetown, Ohio, where he lived as a child and a ceremony at Grant's tomb on the Hudson River in New York.Īfter serving in the Mexican War and failing repeatedly at business, Grant rejoined the U.S. Other bicentennial events included a living history weekend at the Grant historic site in St. ![]() It was held at the Grant presidential library - located, oddly enough, in Mississippi, the scene of Grant's epic, war-altering victory at Vicksburg. Medford's and Waugh's comments came at a symposium last month to kick off a series of events marking the 200th anniversary of Grant’s birth on April 27, 1822. “These are 19th century men and they were more progressive than average men during that period, but they’re still struggling with some very basic issues,” Medford said. Similar to Lincoln, who didn't view Black people as fully equal to white people yet issued the Emancipation Proclamation, it’s difficult to judge Grant based on today's norms, said Edna Greene Medford, a history professor at historically Black Howard University. And he favored a policy of “assimilating” Native Americans into white culture rather than letting them maintain their own traditions - a practice some now view as cultural genocide. Grant: American Hero, American Myth.”īut Grant also tried to expel Jewish people from a Southern military district he oversaw in an ill-fated attempt to crack down on illegal cotton trading. Grant as a general who saved the Union and as a steadfast and essential president who both championed civil rights and made sure that the United States stayed together,” said historian Joan Waugh, who wrote “U. “In the current memory wars, and boy are they raging, it seems particularly relevant that we revisit, revise and recast Ulysses S. Grant now is considered by some to be America’s first civil rights president, a troubled leader who did his best to protect freed slaves during Reconstruction after the Civil War. Once widely viewed as a battlefield butcher and a drunk, Grant's life has undergone a reassessment in recent years. A Native American man was among Grant's best friends and Grant was sympathetic toward Indigenous people but, as president, he let white settlers overrun their lands.Ī relentless attacker on the battlefield, Grant failed to prevent corruption in his own administration.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |