![]() ![]() Supporters of the monument hope to create a new visitor center. It was in terrible shape,” said Scaturro.Īlthough the tomb has since been restored, it has ongoing maintenance needs. ![]() ![]() From the 1970s to the early 1990s, Grant’s tomb was derelict. What I came to realize over the years is that much of what we consider polemics even today is not particularly new.”Īs Grant faded from public consciousness, the damage to his reputation was reflected by the neglect of his tomb. “They have very little to do with what Grant was actually doing as president. “A lot of the accounts of his presidency read like shallow Gilded Age character sketches,” Scaturro said. Lee were romanticized, Grant and other Unionists were “vilified.” He also said influential Northeasterners disapproved of Grant’s Western background and different approach to politics. The myth “was already taking root during Grant’s final years,” according to Scaturro. It got to the point that there was a whole literary and cultural school known as the myth of the Lost Cause, which diminished and demeaned those who fought for the Union and the Union cause and elevated the Confederacy.” “There was was a huge enthusiasm for reconciliation between Union and Confederate veterans in the decades after the war - part of bringing the country back together,” Scaturro said. After researching Grant for many years, Scaturro - also the author of the 1998 biography “President Grant Reconsidered” - said that some of Grant’s contemporary critics had political motivations for ruining his place in history. Yet Grant’s reputation after the war became mired in controversy, primarily due to criticism of his generalship and accounts of his presidency. He was the most famous soldier in the world without any doubt at the time of his world tour and at the time of his death.” “He had this preeminence that matched Washington and Lincoln. “In Grant’s own time, he was seen as an equal of any of the greats,” Scaturro said. Overcoming many personal struggles during his life, Grant was held in high esteem by many of his contemporaries and achieved an exceptional level of popularity among the American public. Its legacy cast a long shadow.” Did the Lost Cause Myth Hurt Grant’s Legacy? “I don’t think he is recognized in collective memory because there are still remnants of the Lost Cause myth. “When you look at it against the backdrop of other people who have served in a similar capacity, where is he in the national memory? Where is he in the national consciousness?” Scaturro asked. Although he is due the same honor, some argue, Grant has been left out. In 1976, Congress elevated Washington to the same rank as Pershing upon the bicentennial of the nation’s founding. The Army introduced the rank of five-star general in 1944, and thus the rank of “general of the armies” has sometimes been thought of as “a six-star general.” When Pershing was put in charge of the American Expeditionary Forces, he got a fourth star and after World War I was rewarded with the revived honorary title of “general of the armies” on September 8, 1919. The United States did not have anyone above the rank of major general until March 1864, when President Abraham Lincoln appointed Grant to the rank of lieutenant general in command of all armies that comprised the Union Army. Washington spent the Revolutionary War on the pay grade of major general, but was distinguished as “general of the army” or simply as “General Washington” as commander of the Continental Army. The title “general of the armies of the United States” was an honorary title intended for former president George Washington in 1799. “He’s not perfect, but nobody’s perfect.” Why Would Grant Be Promoted Now? It will be a statement by the country that he’s important and that his service deserves to be valued,” said Frank Scaturro, president of the Grant Monument Association and advocate for the proposal, in an interview with Military History. “I hope it will be a moment to recognize Grant. The legislation has paved the way for President Joe Biden to raise Grant’s rank above that of a five-star general - an honor held thus far only by George Washington and Gen. senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Roy Blunt (R-MO), passed unanimously in the Senate. Grant Bicentennial Recognition Act, introduced by U.S. Grant was born at Point Pleasant, Ohio, he may finally be up for a promotion.Īt a time when political divisions have polarized many in America, Democratic and Republican politicians have joined hands in bipartisan legislation to advance Grant’s promotion to the rank of general of the armies of the United States. Two centuries after famed American soldier and statesman Ulysses S. Grant May Receive a Promotion - Nearly 140 Years After He Died Close ![]()
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