Grant: The Man Who Won the Civil War

by Robin Neillands

General Sam Grant made famous the expression 'unconditional surrender', which is how most of his battles ended -- for his opponents. A hard-drinking soldier in a hard-drinking army, he led the Federal armies to victory, forcing Robert E Lee to surrender the main Confederate army in 1865. Robin Neillands' concise biography takes us from Grant's disasterous pre-war record to his sudden emergence as a general of genius.

Genres: Civil War, Nonfiction, Biography, History, Military Fiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published April 8, 2004

About the author

Robin Hunter Neillands was a British writer known for his works on travel and military history. A former Royal Marine who served in Cyprus and the Middle East, he later became a prolific author, publishing under multiple pen names. His military histories, often featuring firsthand accounts from veterans, challenged revisionist narratives, particularly regarding Bernard Montgomery, the Dieppe Raid, and the Allied bombing campaign in World War II. Neillands also authored numerous travel books inspired by his extensive journeys across Europe. His works, both popular and scholarly, earned him a nomination for the Royal United Services Institute’s Military Literature Award.

Reviews

[Andrew]

NUTSHELL: Brief, but dry. Mostly about military maneuvers and political jockeying. Light on personal characterization.

MORE: Perhaps this book suffered the fate of receiving too-high expectations, as Grant is one of my favorite historical figures. Perhaps I have been spoiled on the narrative drama and characteristic depth of David McCullough and Edmund Morris. Perhaps I’m just in a bad mood - who knows?
For whatever reason I wished I had stayed away from this book, I advise you to do the same. I will search for another, better book on Grant.

[Dave]

Well written with a lot of peripheral knowledge. Example: Grant's father was a leather tenner who was trained by John Brown’s (the famous abolitionist) father! Fascinating!

[Laurel]

I found this book very biased in favor of Grant, excusing his faults while acknowledging them and overglorifying his accomplishments. It was also very dry while simultaneously glossing over so many pertinent details of the war, and the sourcing was not easy to follow to fact check.

[Steve Smits]

A short history of the Civil War presented through the career of Grant. Readers who want to learn about the military course of the war in a concise way will enjoy this well-written book.

I have an interest in Maj-Gen. Henry W. Halleck, a native of my home town so I am always curious about how historians view him. Halleck was Grant's superior until 1864 when he became his subordinate after Grant became general in chief of all the union armies. Many historians have treated Halleck superficially, and unfairly, focusing on his flaws while ignoring the positive contributions he made to the war effort. This author gives a balanced view of Halleck that is satisfying to read.

The author explains cogently how Grant's strategy of simultaneous, coordinated engagement of all the union armies and his focus on destroying the confederate's military capacity to continue the war was, as obvious as it seems to us now, at the time a breakthrough in strategic thinking that resulted in the inevitability of union victory.

[Lois]

This very concise recount of the Civil War is told via the career of Ulysses S. Grant. General Grant is put in good light, which is in agreement with several relatively recent historical texts. The inclusion of maps, as other reviewers mentioned, would have been helpful, but since I was reading a Kindle edition, looking battle sites up on the internet was simple and added to my enjoyment of this book. This is not an introductory book about the Civil War nor is it a true overview. It is really biography of a dedicated American during his time of service to our country.

[Raymond K. Schneider]

I never knew Grant

Grant was a figure who had significant impact on US history. As described in this book he was a focused leader able to identify issues and implement solutions in a manner far superior to his contemporaries. This book addresses the main issues, moves quickly, and leaves the irrelevant behind. I learned who Grant was.

[TJ]

Outstanding

Extremely well told story of what actions & character traits caused Grant to succeed as a great, perhaps America's finest, general. It is a study in leadership, whether military or in other endeavors. Highly recommended.

study in what leadership

[Gary Leibl]

This book is enjoyable. I would have enjoyed it more if it included maps.

[Charles C, Kash]

Great read

This book lays out the good and the bad of General Grant. It gave me a good idea of his leadership through the civil war!

[Don]

Interesting

This well written book reveals a lot about Grant the man I never knew before. It reads well and holds the readers interest from start to finish.

[Richard]

Excellent biography

Gives a fair and just review of Grant as a general. The wish there more as president, and a it more about his life outside of the military

[barry lindfield]

Cracking read

Downloaded this book just to see what it was like what a amazing book with insight into a war I really new nothing about. Well worth it.

[Eric J. Hartsfield]

I enjoyed it BUT

lacks any maps at all so I had refer to other books to follow the narrative. Otherwise a very good short history of Grant's actions during the Civil War.