The Training Ground: Grant, Lee, Sherman, and Davis in the Mexican War, 1846–1848

Nearly all of the Civil War’s greatest soldiers—Grant, Lee, Sherman, Davis, and Jackson—were forged in the heat of the Mexican War. This is their story.

The Mexican War has faded from our national memory, but it was a struggle of enormous significance. It was the first US war waged on foreign soil, and it nearly doubled the size of our nation. At this fascinating juncture of American history, a group of young men came together to fight as friends, only years later to fight as enemies.

Full of dramatic battles, daring rescues, secret missions, soaring triumphs, and tragic losses, The Training Ground is history at its finest.