Ulysses S. Grant Memorial

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The Ulysses S. Grant Memorial is a United States Presidential Memorial in Washington, D.C., honoring American Civil War General and President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant. It is located at the base of Capitol Hill (Union Square, the Mall, 1st Street, between Pennsylvania Avenue and Maryland Avenue), and like the United States Capitol above it (at the top of the hill), the monument's statue faces west, looking towards the Washington Monument and overlooking the National Mall. It is the largest equestrian statue in the United States and the second largest in the world, after the monument to Italy's King Victor Emanuel in Rome.

The monument was created by sculptor Henry Merwin Shrady, who spent 20 years of his life working on it. The platform for the monument, made of Vermont marble, is 252 feet long and 71 feet wide. It is divided into three sections. The tall, middle section depicts Grant aboard his war horse Cincinnati on a 22-foot high pedestal, and he is flanked, on either side, by fighting Union Artillery and Cavalry groups. Surrounding the main pedestal are four shorter pedestals, each one supporting a bronze figure of a lion in repose.

The most striking feature of the central statue is Grant's calm (almost disaffected) attitude amidst the raging fighting going on around him. This is not surprising because Grant was known for his calmness and coolheadedness during battle.

Construction began in 1909; the Artillery Group (above) was completed in 1912, the Cavalry Group (below) was completed in 1916, and the bronze figure of Grant was completed in 1920. The memorial was dedicated on the 100th anniversary of Grant's birth, April 27, 1922. Today it stands as the center of a three-part sculptural group including the James A. Garfield Monument and the Peace Monument.