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The "Grand Army of the Republic" (GAR) was a advocacy groups in American politics, supporting voting rights for black veterans, promoting patriotic education, help to make Memorial Day a national holiday, lobbying the United States Congress to establish regular veterans' pensions, and supporting Republican political candidates. Its peak membership, at more than 490,000, was in 1890, a high point of various Civil War commemorative and monument dedication ceremonies. It was succeeded by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (S.U.V.C.W.), composed of male descendants of Union Army and Union Navy veterans.
After the end of Decatur, Illinois, by Dr. Benjamin F. Stephenson.
The G.A.R. initially grew and prospered as a de facto political arm of the [2]
In his General Order No. 11, dated May 5, 1868, first G.A.R. Commander-in-Chief, General United Confederate Veterans.[3]
In the 1880s, the Union veterans organization revived under new leadership that provided a platform for renewed growth, by advocating Federal
[95] In
The Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. The title of "Grand Army of the Republic" for the clone army appears across various other Star Wars media. This clone army first fought in a war that was also their namesake, the Clone Wars, as the largest military force for the Galactic Republic in a civil war against the Confederacy of Independent Systems, who themselves employed a mass-produced army, the Separatist Droid Army.
The GAR is referenced in John McCrae's poem He Is There! which was set to music in 1917 by Charles Ives as part of his cycle Three Songs of the War.[94]
The GAR is mentioned in the seldom sung second verse of the patriotic song You're a Grand Old Flag.[93]
Willa Cather's short story The Sculptor's Funeral briefly references the GAR.[92]
The GAR is briefly mentioned in William Faulkner's novel, The Sound and the Fury.[91]
Charles Portis's classic novel, True Grit, makes reference to the GAR.[90]
Another Nobel Prize winning author, Sinclair Lewis, refers to the GAR in his acclaimed novel Main Street.[89]
Later in the book, references are made to the graves of GAR members in California in order to emphasize the passage of time.[88]
See:
Many states held annual encampments based on the national encampment model. These state encampments filled both a social and political function, as state GAR leaders were elected, political platforms voted upon, and veterans' issues were discussed openly. Much like the national organization, state GAR leaders could wield strong political influence.
With the exception of Hawaii, every state had GAR "posts" (forerunners of modern American Legion Halls or VFW Halls), even those of the former Confederacy. The posts were made up of local veterans, many of whom participated in local civic events. As Civil War veterans died or were no longer able to participate in GAR activities, posts consolidated or were disbanded.[87] Posts were assigned a sequential number based on their admission into the state's GAR organization, and most posts held informal names which honored comrades, battles, or commanders; it was not uncommon to have more than one post in a state honoring the same individual (such as Abraham Lincoln) and posts often changed their informal designation by vote of the local membership.
Memorials to the Grand Army of the Republic include a commemorative postage stamp, a U.S. highway, and physical memorials in numerous communities throughout the United States:
The GAR reached its largest enrollment in 1890, with 490,000 members. It held an annual "National Encampment" every year from 1866 to 1949. At that final encampment in Oregon, the GAR's Commander at the time, was therefore its last. In 1956, after the death of the last member, Albert Woolson, the GAR was formally dissolved.[2]
With membership strictly limited to "veterans of the late unpleasantness," the GAR encouraged the formation of Allied Orders to aid them in various works. Numerous male organizations jousted for the backing of the GAR, and the political battles became quite severe until the GAR finally endorsed the Sarah Emma Edmonds served in the 2nd Michigan Infantry as a disguised man named Franklin Thompson from May 1861 until April 1863. In 1882, she collected affidavits from former comrades in an effort to petition for a veteran's pension which she received in July 1884. Edmonds was only a member for a brief period as she died September 5, 1898; however she was given a funeral with military honors when she was reburied in Houston in 1901.[5]
The G.A.R.'s political power grew during the latter part of the 19th century, and it helped elect several United States presidents, beginning with the 18th, Ulysses S. Grant, and ending with the 25th, William McKinley. Five Civil War veterans and members (Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, and McKinley) were elected President of the United States; all were Republicans. (The sole post-war Democratic president was Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th chief executive.) For a time, candidates could not get Republican presidential or congressional nominations without the endorsement of the G.A.R. veterans voting bloc.
The pattern of establishing departments and local posts was later used by other American military veterans' organizations, such as the Spanish–American and Philippines Wars [formerly referred to as the "Philippine Insurrection"]) and the later American Legion (for the First World War and later expanded to include subsequent World War II, Korean, Vietnam and Middle Eastern wars).
The G.A.R. was organized into "Departments" at the state level and "Posts" at the community level, and military-style uniforms were worn by its members. There were posts in every state in the U.S., and several posts overseas.[4]
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Confederate States of America, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, United States, Republican Party (United States)
Detroit, Ontario, Ohio, Metro Detroit, Indiana
Puerto Rico, Philadelphia, Virginia, /e Washington, United States
United States Senate, Democratic Party (United States), Republican Party (United States), United States, Congressional Research Service
Grand Army of the Republic, Battle of Gettysburg, Naval War College, Douglas MacArthur, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
American Civil War, Grand Army of the Republic, Washington, D.C., Abraham Lincoln, Underground Railroad
Indiana, American Civil War, Indianapolis, United States, Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic, Rockville, Connecticut, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, 21st Connecticut Infantry Regiment, Ross S. Dent