Robert Gray
Sergeant Major
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2012
These images shows Ulysses S. Grant at a moment of repose with his most impressive horse, Cincinnati. Grant derived his fame as an equestrian not just from his heroism on the battlefield but from his command of horses off the battlefield. Able to tame the wildest horses, Grant had a kinship with these animals all his life. He acquired Cincinnati in 1863, after the Union victory at Chattanooga, and never let anyone else ride him except for Abraham Lincoln. These photos demonstrate the mastery of horsemanship as a status symbol in the nineteenth century.
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Library of Congress
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Library of Congress