With the outbreak of civil war in April 1861, fate smiled on Ulysses S. Grant and the leather store clerk was destined to play a major role in the struggle for national identity. But his rise to prominence and success got off to an inauspicious start.

Following the bombardment on Fort Sumter and President Lincoln’s call for 75,000 volunteers to suppress what he called a rebellion in the Southern states, Grant offered his services to the adjutant general in Washington. Although West Point graduates and veterans of the Mexican War (Grant was both) were in demand, Grant’s offer was not acted upon.

Gov. Richard Yates, however, had placed Grant in charge of mustering Illinois’ volunteer regiments into state service. Then on June 17, 1861, Yates appointed him colonel of the 21st Illinois Infantry. Grant’s star was finally on the rise. Two months later he was appointed a brigadier general of volunteers and headquartered at Cairo, Ill. His first action during the war came in November when he led an advance down the Mississippi River and, on the 7th, attacked a Confederate camp at Belmont, Mo. After initial success, Grant’s troops were driven back by Confederate reinforcements. The general, however, did not panic and managed to extricate his command. Being aggressive and cool-headed soon became his hallmark.

For the soldiers under Grant’s command, weeks of routine activity followed the battle at Belmont. But during the winter months the general formulated plans for the spring campaign.

With a deep appreciation for geography, his eyes were fixed on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers. These streams were natural pathways for invasion of the Deep South, but were guarded by Confederate Forts Henry and Donelson, respectively. In February 1862, Grant led a combined land and naval force up the Tennessee River against Fort Henry. (The naval force included several of the City Series gunboats, such as Cairo, the first ironclads to see action during the war.)

On Feb. 6, the ironclads reduced Fort Henry before Grant could get his troops into position. The general, however, wasted no time and marched his army of 30,000 men over land against Fort Donelson. On Feb. 14, the gunboats went into action against Donelson’s river batteries, but were repulsed with heavy loss.

The next day, Confederate forces launched a vicious attack in a desperate attempt to break through Grant’s encircling force. The Union right flank crumbled and fell back, but Grant rallied his troops and counterattacked driving the men in gray back into the fort. On Feb. 16 the surrounded Confederates surrendered the fort.

The terms Grant demanded gave the Union commander a new nickname, one he would live up to at Vicksburg — “Unconditional Surrender” Grant. In recognition of this, the first major Union victory of the war, Grant was promoted to major general of volunteers.

Continuing his drive up the Tennessee River, Grant established his army at Pittsburg Landing, around a small meeting house called Shiloh. On April 6, in a surprise predawn attack, Confederate legions overran Union camps and forced the soldiers in blue back several miles to the bank of the river. Reinforced overnight, Grant attacked the next morning and in turn regained the lost ground, and compelled the Confederates to withdraw to Corinth, Miss. (The strategic rail center would fall to the Federals in May when Confederate troops withdrew and fell back to Tupelo.) Criticized for being surprised at Shiloh, Grant contemplated resigning. But Gen. William T. Sherman, who would become Grant’s most trusted subordinate and closest friend, talked him out of it.

Throughout the summer, Grant’s troops guarded railroads in Tennessee.

But following the battles of Iuka (Sept. 19) and Corinth (Oct. 3-4) in north Mississippi, the initiative in the West swung in favor of Union forces. Grant was quick to seize the opportunity to begin his long-awaited drive on Vicksburg. On Nov. 2, from his headquarters in Jackson, Tenn., Grant directed his columns south along the Mississippi Central Railroad. But the road to Vicksburg would be a long and bloody one.

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Next: Grant’s army moves south.

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Terrence J. Winschel is a former historian for the Vicksburg National Military Park.