Army (Union Army)Years of service
1839–1854
1861–1869
RankGeneral of the ArmyCommands
Company F, 4th Infantry
21st Illinois Infantry Regiment
District of Southeast Missouri
District of Cairo
Army of the Tennessee
Division of the Mississippi
United States Army
Battles/wars
Mexican–American War
American Civil War

Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant, /ˈhaɪrəm juːˈlɪsiːz/ HY-rəm yoo-LISS-eez; April 27, 1822 – July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Army to victory in the American Civil War in 1865 and thereafter briefly served as secretary of war. Later, as president, Grant was an effective civil rights executive who signed the bill that created the Justice Department and worked with Radical Republicans to protect African Americans during Reconstruction.
Born and raised in Ohio, Grant possessed an exceptional ability with horses. Admitted to West Point, Grant graduated 21st in the class of 1843 and served with distinction in the Mexican–American War. In 1848, he married Julia Dent, and together they had four children. Grant resigned from the army in 1854 and returned to his family but lived in poverty. 