I read Grants biography three times. For all of his faults, Grant was a genius in reading his opponents mind and knowing what his troops were capable of. Terrai

I read Grants biography three times. For all of his faults, Grant was a genius in reading his opponents mind and knowing what his troops were capable of. Terrain and geography played a role but it is secondary to his men’s welfare. When Rosecrans were trapped by the Confederates after the battle of Chickamauga, Grant was assigned to take command and free the trapped Union army. Grant arrived and quickly saw that the Union troops were starving and that Confederates blocked the most direct supply routes and many mules and horses were driven to death in an attempt to feed the troops. Grant quickly launched a surprise attack to establish the “cracker line” a direct route to supply the troops with hard tack, a staple food of Union troops. Once his troops were fed and recovered their strength, he went on the offensive. At the battle of Missionary Ridge, Grant’s troops charged up a mountain against Confederate canon and drove Braxton Bragg off the field. For several months Bragg thought he was close to destroying an entire Union army and suddenly Grant showed up and turned the tables on him.