Grant’s First Charge

Since Learned Foot apparently doesn’t care for my art appreciation posts, perhaps an historical post will be more to his liking.

Many of the senior officers on both sides of the Civil War saw their first military action in the Mexican War (1846-1848). In his Personal Memoirs, Ulysses Grant describes his first combat experience. He was a 2nd Lieutenant at the time, but because his company commander was given a temporary assignment elsewhere, he found himself in command of the company.

I at last found a clear space separating two ponds. There seemed to be a few men in front and I charged upon them with my company. There was no resistance, and we captured a Mexican colonel, who had been wounded, and a few men. Just as I was sending them to the rear with a guard of two or three men, a private came from the front bringing back one of our officers, who had been badly wounded in advance of where I was. The ground had been charged over before. My exploit was equal to that of the soldier who boasted that he had cut off the leg of one of the enemy. When asked why he did not cut off his head, he replied: “Someone had done that before.” This left no doubt in my mind but that the battle of Resaca de la Palma would have been won, just as it was, if I had not been there.