Susan in NC’s Reviews > Grant > Status Update

“Grant explained that the original deal…had been scuttled in Washington, pointed to the furor over Lincoln’s death, and said Sherman should offer Johnston the identical terms extended to Lee at Appomattox…Even while reining in Sherman, Grant handled the situation with consummate finesse, allowing Sherman to save face by negotiating the surrender, while he stayed discreetly in the background.”

“… Sherman sent the agreement to Grant and Stanton for presidential approval, appending a breezy note that promised peace and gave no forewarning of the storm about to break. Sherman believed he had wisely bolstered existing state governments in the South, preventing an upsurge of guerrilla violence.”

“ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS RUDELY SNATCHED away just as many Americans had learned to appreciate his benevolence and farsighted wartime leadership. Nobody could have served as a fit successor to Lincoln, but the rise of Andrew Johnson to the presidency was an especially cruel stroke for the nation…[he] portrayed himself as a tribune of the common people, his selective populism encompassed poor whites but excluded blacks.”

“…a new responsibility had settled upon Grant, who became the foremost symbol of the Union and the political agenda ratified by the war, most notably justice for the freed slaves. Already carrying on the Lincoln legacy, which would shape his worldview in future years, he came up with an ideal gesture to honor the dead president, commanding…one of the best black regiments from Virginia for the funeral ceremony.”

“…Grant had to deal with the charge that he had merely been the lucky beneficiary of superiority in men and resources. He grew touchy on the subject because it addressed the larger question of whether he had crudely consigned young men to their death, winning by overwhelming force. The plain fact was that six Union commanders before him had failed, with the same men and matériel, whereas Grant had succeeded.”

“Robert Lincoln met his father with horses and a cavalry escort, and the retinue proceeded through eerily deserted streets, passing dozens of skeletal houses with gaping holes blown through their walls. When they reached the brick house where Grant awaited them…A beaming Lincoln bounded forward, grasping Grant’s hand robustly, his joy gushing to the surface.”

“ As word of the Petersburg and Richmond surrenders spread to northern cities, the joy was as profound as the pent-up misery of the war had been deep. In Washington crowds filled the streets with raucous people laughing and bellowing hurrahs. Philadelphia residents broke out flags and flapped them deliriously.”

“Sherman…aimed to shift the whole calculus of the war, lunging across a broad swath of southern territory…to demolish the civilian foundations of the war. His fiery procession would make a major statement about unmatched northern might versus southern weakness…the pride of the southern populace had to be humbled.”

“ Grant threw up a new line of entrenchments, forcing Lee, exhausted and suffering from sciatica, to broaden his defensive line despite waning manpower. Grant’s strategy was working better than he knew. Lee’s lines were stretched so taut that on November 2 he warned Jefferson Davis that without a fresh infusion of troops, “I fear a great calamity will befall us.””