Ulysses S Grant promoted to General of the Armies of the United States.
Missouri history was made last week on December 23, 2022, when the Civil War hero and one-time Missouri resident Ulysses S. Grant was posthumously promoted to the rank of General of the Armies of the United States, sometimes referred to as being a “six-star general.” The promotion commemorates the 200th anniversary of his birth. Ulysses and Julia Grant were married in Missouri, and three of their four children were born here. After Grant completed his military service in 1854, the family lived together at Julia’s parents’ estate near St. Louis in the Soulard area. Ulysses S. Grant joins only George Washington and John Joseph Pershing—another Missourian—in this honor. Missouri Humanities is proud to honor the legacy of Ulysses S. Grant with a traveling exhibit. More than 13,000 people have viewed the exhibit in St. Louis, Jefferson City, Hannibal, Cape Girardeau, Kansas City, Pilot Knob, and Bloomfield. The exhibit opens for a six-week run on January 2, 2023, at the Campbell House Museum in downtown St. Louis, and we hope you will stop by to celebrate Missouri’s rich military history!
For Immediate Release: December 23, 2022
Authorization of Ulysses S. Grant’s posthumous promotion to the U.S. Army’s highest rank becomes law
The Grant Monument Association is pleased to report that Congress has passed, and today President Biden signed into law, legislation authorizing the President to posthumously promote Ulysses S. Grant to General of the Armies of the United States, the U.S. Army’s highest rank. This provision was passed as Section 583 of the National Defense Authorization Act, which is accessible here. It confers on Grant the same rank and precedence held by General John J. Pershing, the only officer to have been General of the Armies of the United States during his lifetime. The posthumous honor of that rank was conferred in 1976 upon George Washington during the celebration of the nation’s bicentennial.
This posthumous promotion of General Grant is a fitting honor in this bicentennial year of his birth. It reflects the extraordinary importance of his military career. Washington and Grant were the top commanders of the U.S. Army during the two wars of existential importance to the United States: the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. Grant, whose battlefield achievements ensured the survival of our nation amid the greatest threat it had ever faced, is regarded by many military historians as the most capable and accomplished general in American history, besides being one of the great military commanders in world history. His campaigns are still studied by the modern U.S. Army. Beyond that, his battlefield accomplishments effected the emancipation of enslaved people, and during his postwar career, he fought for profound changes to the Constitution that conferred upon former slaves equal rights, including the right to vote regardless of race.
This singular record of accomplishment should stand as an inspiration to Americans for generations to come. Special thanks to the cosponsors of the original legislation authorizing Grant’s posthumous promotion (see links for House cosponsors and Senate cosponsors), without whose support this honor would not have been conferred. We hope that President Biden makes the posthumous promotion now authorized and look forward to celebrating this honor soon.
