GRANT
GRANT
answered his communication, and after visiting
Cincinnati, Oiiio, to see his classmate, George B.
McClellan, and after offering his services to
Governor Dennison at Columbus, Ohio, he re-
turned to Springfield, 111., and entered the
volunteer service as colonel of the 21st Illinois
infantry, June 17, lyCl, which regiment he
marched into Missouri. On July 31 Colonel
Grant was made commander of a svib-district
under Gen. John Pojje commanding the military
district of Northern Missouri. He was made
brigadier-general of volunteers, Aug. 7, lyCl, by
President Lincoln, at the request of Represent-
ative Washburne, his commission dating from
May 17. He was sent to Ironton, thence to St.
Louis, from there to Jefferson City, and back to
St. Louis, all within eighteen days, and was
finally assigned to the command of the district
of Southeastern Missouri with heac^quarters at
Cairo, 111. He occupied Paducah, Ky., Sept. 6,
1861, and on the 7th day of Nov. he attacked the
Confederate forces at Belmont, Mo., and with
House in which crant went to school-.Ceorcetown.o,
2500 men drove out the enemy and captured their
camp after a sharp battle in which he had a
horse shot under him. The Confederates were
reinforced and renewed the fight, forcing Grant
to fall back to his transports before a force of
upwards of 7000 men. He brought off with him
175 prisoners and lost 485 men, the Confederate
loss being 643. He then conceived the plan of
capturing Forts Henry and Donelson in Kentucky
by a co-operation of the army with the navy
represented by iron -clad gunboats imder Commo-
dore Foote. The consent of Gen. H. W. Halleck,
the department commander, was reluctantly
given after repeated urging, and on Feb. 6, 1862,
Fort Henry fell into the hands of the naval force
under Admiral Foote. Fort Donelson with 15,000
men, increased on the 15th to 27.000, withstood a
three days' assault and after a desperate effort on
the part of the Confederate commanders to cut
their way out of the fort, in which Generals
Floyd and Pillow escaped in the night on a
steamboat, and 3000 infantry and Forrest's cav-
alry. escaped through the Union lines. Gen. S. B.
Buckner unconditionally .surrendered on Jan. 16,
1862, after some parley, conforming to the terms
dictated by General Grant. The capture included
14,623 men, 65 cannon, and 17,600 small arms.
The loss in killed and wounded was about 2000
on each side. On receiving his parole General
Buckner received from Grant a sum of money
which enabled him to reach his home with
comfort, a thouglitful provision on the part of
the conqueror to the con(iuered, and a return
for the favor received by Captain Grant from
Buckner in 1854. General Grant was n:ade
major-genei'al of volunteers, his commission
dating Feb. 16, 1862. He urged the prompt
following up of his victor)' with an advance on
Nasliville, and on February 28 set out for that
place without awaiting orders, after having tele-
graplied to General Halleck that he should pro-
ceed if he were not directed to the contrary. He
was ordered to remain at Fort Henry and at the
same time was superseded in the command by
General Smith. On March 13, 1863, he was
restored to command, the Confederate troojis
having concentrated near Corinth, Miss., and he
transferred his headquarters on the 17th to
Savannah on the Tennessee river, where he
found an army of 38,000 men encamped on both
sides of the river. He immediately mobilized
the force on the west bank of the river near
Pittsburg Landing with the right resting on
Shiloh church, making a line of battle nearly
three miles in length. Here he was directed to
await the arrival of General Buell's army, 40,000
strong, who were moving through Tennessee by
forced marches. On April 6, 1862, the Confed-
erate army under Gen. A. S. Johnston made an
early morning attack on the right of Grant's line
and drove it back, following up their success all
along the line. About noon General Johnston
was killed and General Beauregard took the
command. With the aid of the gunboats in
the river Grant was enabled by falling back to the
river to withstand the onslaught of Beauregard's
50,000 men until Buell came up in the evening,
when the fortunes of war turned in favor of the
Federal army and the Confederates fell back
upon Corinth. There they entrenched and main-
tained their position till May 29, when Beaure-
gard evacuated the place and retreated southward
along the line of the Mobile & Ohio railroad.
General Halleck took command of the Federal
army in person on April 11 and Grant became
second in command, in charge of the right wing
and reserve. The army had been reinforced to
120,000 men, the division commanders being
Thomas, Pope, Buell and McClernand, and the
Confederates were 70.000 strong and entrenched.
An advance on Corinth was begun, April 30,
1863, and on May 30 the place was found evacu-
ated and Grant moved his headquarters to
Memphis, Tenn. On July 11, 1862, Halleck was
