President Lincoln nominated Grant as Lieutenant General of the Army the same day he signed the bill re-establishing the position, which was previously held by George Washington. Grant’s victories at Vicksburg and Chattanooga had won the respect of Congress and the president and Grant's military strategy proved effective in winning the war.
Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives and Records Administration
President Abraham Lincoln’s nomination of Ulysses S. Grant to be Lieutenant General of the Army, February 29, 1864
Defending the Union
The secession of 11 Southern states in 1861 plunged the nation into the Civil War, pitting the confederacy against the Union. Three years later, the war still raged. President Abraham Lincoln, frustrated by the failures of his military leaders, turned to Ulysses S. Grant as a commander he believed could lead the Union to victory. Showing confidence in Grant, Congress revived the Army’s highest rank of Lieutenant General, and Lincoln nominated Grant for the position.
President Lincoln nominated Grant as Lieutenant General of the Army the same day he signed the bill re-establishing the position, which was previously held by George Washington. Grant’s victories at Vicksburg and Chattanooga had won the respect of Congress and the president and Grant's military strategy proved effective in winning the war.
Records of the U.S. Senate, National Archives and Records Administration
