To Rescue the Republic: Ulysses S. Grant, the Fragile Union, and the Crisis of 1876

To Rescue the Republic: Ulysses S. Grant, the Fragile Union, and the Crisis of 1876

by Bret Baier, Catherine Whitney

Narrated by Bret Baier

Unabridged — 11 hours, 41 minutes

To Rescue the Republic: Ulysses S. Grant, the Fragile Union, and the Crisis of 1876

To Rescue the Republic: Ulysses S. Grant, the Fragile Union, and the Crisis of 1876

by Bret Baier, Catherine Whitney

Narrated by Bret Baier

Unabridged — 11 hours, 41 minutes

Audiobook (Digital)

$27.99
FREE With a B&N Audiobooks Subscription | Cancel Anytime
$0.00

Free with a B&N Audiobooks Subscription | Cancel Anytime

START FREE TRIAL

Already Subscribed? 

Sign in to Your BN.com Account


Listen on the free Barnes & Noble NOOK app


Related collections and offers

FREE

with a B&N Audiobooks Subscription

Or Pay $27.99

Overview

#1 New York Times Bestseller

Fox News Channel's Chief Political Anchor illuminates the heroic life of Ulysses S. Grant

"To Rescue the Republic is narrative history at its absolute finest. A fast-paced, thrilling and enormously important book." -Douglas Brinkley

An epic history spanning the battlegrounds of the Civil War and the violent turmoil of Reconstruction to the forgotten electoral crisis that nearly fractured a reunited nation, Bret Baier's To Rescue the Republic dramatically reveals Ulysses S. Grant's essential yet underappreciated role in preserving the United States during an unprecedented period of division.

Born a tanner's son in rugged Ohio in 1822 and battle-tested by the Mexican American War, Grant met his destiny on the bloody fields of the Civil War. His daring and resolve as a general gained the attention of President Lincoln, then desperate for bold leadership. Lincoln appointed Grant as Lieutenant General of the Union Army in March 1864. Within a year, Grant's forces had seized Richmond and forced Robert E. Lee to surrender.

Four years later, the reunified nation faced another leadership void after Lincoln's assassination and an unworthy successor completed his term. Again, Grant answered the call. At stake once more was the future of the Union, for though the Southern states had been defeated, it remained to be seen if the former Confederacy could be reintegrated into the country-and if the Union could ensure the rights and welfare of African Americans in the South. Grant met the challenge by boldly advancing an agenda of Reconstruction and aggressively countering the Ku Klux Klan. 

In his final weeks in the White House, however, Grant faced a crisis that threatened to undo his life's work. The contested presidential election of 1876 produced no clear victory for either Republican Rutherford B. Hayes or Democrat Samuel Tilden, who carried most of the former Confederacy. Soon Southern states vowed to revolt if Tilden was not declared the victor. Grant was determined to use his influence to preserve the Union, establishing an electoral commission to peaceably settle the issue. Grant brokered a grand bargain: the installation of Republican Hayes to the presidency, with concessions to the Democrats that effectively ended Reconstruction. This painful compromise saved the nation, but tragically condemned the South to another century of civil-rights oppression.

Deep with contemporary resonance and brimming with fresh detail that takes readers from the battlefields of the Civil War to the corridors of power where men decided the fate of the nation in back rooms, To Rescue the Republic reveals Grant, for all his complexity, to be among the first rank of American heroes.


Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

08/16/2021

Fox News anchor Baier (Three Days at the Brink) paints a flattering portrait of Ulysses S. Grant in this breezy revisionist history. Drawing analogies to today’s partisan discord, Baier focuses on “Grant’s resolve and heroism in times of unparalleled turmoil,” including his command of the Union Army during the Civil War; his two-term presidency (1868–1876), which encompassed the most hard-fought years of Reconstruction; and his controversial brokering of a “grand bargain” in the contested 1876 election between Republican Rutherford B. Hayes and Democrat Samuel Tilden. Baier claims that “we are so accustomed to dwelling on the failures of Reconstruction that we often overlook its successes,” including the 15th Amendment, which Grant helped push through in 1870, the election of the first Black U.S. senators, and the passage of the Enforcement Act, which Grant argued was necessary to curb racist violence in the South. Baier also refutes critics who fault Grant for supporting the withdrawal of federal troops from the South by claiming that Democrats and Republicans “were ready to give the Southern states a chance to do the right thing on their own,” and that “it’s unclear what more could have been done... short of permanent military occupation.” Though many readers will disagree with that assessment, Baier succeeds in humanizing Grant and clarifying the complex factors behind his decision-making. This is an accessible and nuanced introduction to an oft-misunderstood figure American history. (Oct.)

David Rubenstein

Bret Baier has provided a valuable public service by showing why Ulysses S. Grant deserves much more public acclaim for his presidential years than Grant has traditionally been given. If you enjoy reading about American history, you will love Bret Baier’s fresh look at the man most responsible for the outcome of the Civil War and the peaceful resolution of the contested presidential election of 1876. I highly recommend this book on one of America’s most important leaders.

Booklist

Until recently, historians have tended to focus on the rampant corruption that took place during the administration of Ulysses S. Grant. … Baier (Three Days at the Brink, 2020) surveys Grant’s life from his Midwestern origins through his undistinguished West Point education, his military successes leading Union forces, and his 1868 elevation to the Presidency. … Baier finds parallels to contemporary politics in this, which makes his account all the more compelling.

Douglas Brinkley

Bret Baier’s To Rescue the Republic is narrative history at its absolute finest. With great verve and a fair-and-balanced ethic, Baier brilliantly recounts the heroic life of Ulysses S. Grant—as Civil War general, U.S. President, Reconstruction Era leader and beloved national icon. His dramatic retelling of the election of 1876 which pitted Samuel J. Tilden against Rutherford B. Hayes is stupendous. A fast-paced, thrilling and enormously important book. Highly recommended.

James L. Swanson

A brilliant character study of a great American. In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier brings Ulysses S. Grant—war hero, president, and author—to life in a vivid, gripping style that speaks to the issues of our time."

Mark Levin

Bret Baier once again brings his wonderful journalistic storytelling skills to the task of examining a significant moment in American history. To Rescue the Republic is the richly detailed and often suspenseful story of Ulysses S. Grant, our 18th president. In particular Bret focuses on those dramatic moments when Grant rescues the Republic—first during the Civil War, then making the peace after the war, and finally in the bitterly contested election of 1876, when he devised a grand bargain to save the presidency and the nation. The parallels with modern times are striking, and the lessons Bret raises are worth serious attention: the future of the Republic isn’t a given. We must fight for it in every era.

Michael Beschloss

Yes, history can help light the way. Bret Baier’s absorbing book shows us why Ulysses Grant was a far more important President than later generations gave him credit for, and how the crises of civil war, Reconstruction and the deadlock of 1876 resembled the turbulent period we are living through.

John F. Marzalek

"As the United States suffers through turbulent times, news anchor Bret Baier reaches back to earlier years of heroism when the nation, then and now, experienced an earlier examples of woe. This is a book which, when carefully read, provides insight into a difficult era."

Jay Winik

With To Rescue The Republic, Bret Baier, the nation’s leading reporter of history, has written a veritable tour de force. This remarkable book is history as it should be: magnificently composed, meticulously researched, and brimming with lessons for today's divided political arena. Baier has brought to life the riveting but too often forgotten story of how US Grant preserved the Republic at one of its moments of greatest peril. This is not just a tale for our age, but an absorbing tale for the ages. It belongs on the bookshelf of every lover of history.

Brian Kilmeade

Throughout history, great men have stepped forward at just the right moment to save America at its most critical times. In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier brilliantly chronicles how Ulysses S. Grant was that great man multiple times. Perhaps you think you know the story, but Bret brings you back to the 1870s in a way I didn’t think possible. A must read!” 

New York Post

A thoroughly researched account of the Civil War general’s life and work. Baier grippingly portrays the crisis Grant faced at the end of his presidency, when the election produced no clear successor, and the painful compromise that settled it—a historical moment ripe for examination today.

Booklist

Until recently, historians have tended to focus on the rampant corruption that took place during the administration of Ulysses S. Grant. … Baier (Three Days at the Brink, 2020) surveys Grant’s life from his Midwestern origins through his undistinguished West Point education, his military successes leading Union forces, and his 1868 elevation to the Presidency. … Baier finds parallels to contemporary politics in this, which makes his account all the more compelling.

New York Post

A thoroughly researched account of the Civil War general’s life and work. Baier grippingly portrays the crisis Grant faced at the end of his presidency, when the election produced no clear successor, and the painful compromise that settled it—a historical moment ripe for examination today.

David Eisenhower

"In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier combines the journalist's instinct for timeliness and a great story with the historian's ability to document and chronicle in ways that stand the test of time. To Rescue the Republic doubles as a political and military portrait of U.S. Grant and as a definitive account of Grant's ability to broker a settlement of the contentious election of 1876. This success marked the culmination of Grant's efforts as general and president to win and end the American civil war. A key message of this book— in this time of discord and racial conflict— is that the American republic is a land of opportunity. Talent rises to the top. And because of this, no problem confronting Americans is ultimately is beyond resolution. This book is as inspiring as it is readable, and it is easily my favorite book of 2021."

American Spectator

"A terrific account of the famous Civil War general turned 18th president. ... Bret Baier has done it again, producing another presidential history that will last as long as there are presidential history books."

DOUGLAS BRINKLEY

Riveting. With characteristic intellectual verve and brilliant analysis, Bret Baier allows readers to freshly understand how the Tehran Conference shaped world history. Essential reading by a first-rate storyteller!

JAY WINIK

In his monumental new book about one of history’s most epic events, Bret Baier has outdone himself yet again. I could not put this extraordinary book down. Three Days at the Brink is a masterpiece: elegantly written, brilliantly conceived, and impeccably researched. This book not only sparkles but is destined to be a classic!

DAVID EISENHOWER

In the past three years, Bret Baier, perhaps America’s top newscaster, has become one of America’s best historians as well. Three Days at the Brink is a fascinating narrative that doubles as a political portrait of FDR and a history of the momentous Tehran conference. Must reading.

Kirkus Reviews

2021-08-13
The latest book of pop history from the chief political anchor for Fox News.

The Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, which Baier witnessed in his capacity as a political reporter and anchor, gave new meaning to the turmoil surrounding the 1876 presidential election. In this conventional biography of Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885) designed for general readers who have not studied the era, the election occupies only 50 pages near the end. A mediocre West Point cadet, Grant achieved little glory in the Mexican-American War, resigned his commission, and struggled to earn a living. The beginning of the Civil War found him clerking in a leather goods shop and farming. The only West Point graduate in the area, he was chosen to lead local units; after six months of intense activity against minor Confederate posts and lobbying by his congressman, a friend of Lincoln, Grant became a general. He turned out to be the most aggressive and imaginative Union commander. A national idol after Appomattox in 1865, he easily won presidential elections in 1868 and 1872. Recent historians have upgraded his performance in office, but Baier holds the traditional view that Grant was an honorable man but a poor politician surrounded by scoundrels. Scandals occurred regularly, and his final months in office were preoccupied by the mess following the 1876 election, which saw a closely contested battle that the Republican candidate, Rutherford B. Hayes, barely won. As in his previous books on FDR, Eisenhower, and Reagan, Baier relies heavily on other biographies, including Ron Chernow’s superior Grant (2017), and Grant’s own memoirs, a straightforward and plainspoken history. Throughout, the author can’t resist the use of invented dialogue and conjectures of historical figures’ inner thoughts, but he gets the facts right.

Better Grant biographies are not in short supply; readers should seek them out instead of this one.

Product Details

BN ID: 2940176192575
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date: 10/12/2021
Edition description: Unabridged
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews