MARCH 9, 1864:
In a
formal ceremony, Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant received command of all
Union armies. Although most people expected him to be a desk commander in D.C.,
he surprised everyone by announcing that he would “command from the field” at
the head of the Army of The Potomac. Although most Washington politicians
believed that this would mean the dismissal of George Meade as Commander of the
Army of The Potomac, Grant retained him in this role; Grant, however, “kicked
Henry Halleck upstairs” by making him Chief of Staff; “Old Brains” would have
direct command of neither troops nor officers.
Lieutenant General Grant also announced that his primary goal was the
destruction of the Army of Northern Virginia. This marked the first time that
there was an overarching strategy to the war in the field, other than just
generally “winning” or “preserving the Union.”
