Which presidents that served in the military actually saw combat? I know Grant and Washington right? Did Jackson? Any others?
Yes, there are actually quite a bit more than you might expect. Now, I'm not including every President who had any sort of military service. These are just the Presidents who saw real combat where they faced fire or fired at the enemy in anger.
GEORGE WASHINGTON
Involved in fighting while serving in the British Colonial Army during the French & Indian War and definitely saw combat as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
JAMES MONROE
Monroe took part in Washington's famous Crossing of the Delaware during the American Revolutionary War. At the Battle of Trenton, Monroe was seriously wounded and very nearly died.
ANDREW JACKSON
Served in the American Revolutionary War despite only being a teenager and was slightly wounded after being captured by the British. He's the only President who was ever a Prisoner of War. Later saw combat in Indian Wars like the Seminole War and the War of 1812, rising to Major General.
WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON
Saw combat during Indian Wars in the Northwest Territories (Ohio/Indiana/Michigan) and War of 1812, rising to Major General.
ZACHARY TAYLOR
Spent a 40-year career in the military and saw combat in the War of 1812, Indian Wars, and the Mexican-American War, ultimately ending up a Major General.
FRANKLIN PIERCE
Rose to Brigadier General in the U.S. Army during the Mexican-American War and was injured in battle.
ANDREW JOHNSON*
While Johnson wasn't technically a soldier during the Civil War, he was appointed Military Governor of Tennessee and given the rank of Brigadier General and there was quite a bit of unrest and violence in the state during the rebellion, so I'm including him with an asterisk.
ULYSSES S. GRANT
Obviously was the Union's most important Commanding General during the Civil War and saw some of the bloodiest action throughout the war. Grant also faced combat during the Mexican-American War and was the first President who graduated from West Point. Along with Washington and WWI commander John J. Pershing, Grant is one of just three Americans to be named General of the Armies.
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES
Hayes was involved in significant fighting during the Civil War and wounded several times. Other than Grant, he saw the most action of any President in the Civil War, and ended the war as a Major General.
JAMES GARFIELD
Was elevated to Major General in the Union Army during the Civil War and involved in a number of battles.
BENJAMIN HARRISON
Saw action during the Civil War and rose to Brigadier General in the Union Army.
WILLIAM McKINLEY
The youngest of the Presidents who served in the Civil War, McKinley was recognized for bravery under fire while serving in the Union Army. One of his commanders was future President Hayes.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Famously led the Rough Riders calvary regiment of volunteers in action in Cuba during the Spanish-American War.
HARRY S. TRUMAN
As mentioned recently, Truman commanded an artillery regiment during World War I and actually fired one of the last shots of the war in France just hours before the Armistice went into effect.
DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER*
Eisenhower also gets an asterisk because he is obviously one of the most revered military leaders in American history and was Supreme Commander of all Allied forces during World War II. And while he organized and commanded the largest invasion in the history of humanity, he didn't actually face fire in the same way that even a General Patton or General MacArthur did.
JOHN F. KENNEDY
As a young U.S. Navy commander during World War II, JFK's PT boat was rammed by a Japanese destroyer in the South Pacific, killing some of his crew. JFK was badly injured, but rescued another injured member of his crew by swimming to deserted island while dragging him by the life jacket with his teeth. After searching and finding an inhabited island, JFK carved a message in a coconut for a native islander to deliver to Allied forces who were eventually able to rescue him. JFK was the first (and only) President to be awarded a Purple Heart.
LYNDON B. JOHNSON
LBJ was serving in Congress when World War II broke out but joined the U.S. Navy Reserve. In 1942, President Roosevelt sent LBJ on a fact-finding mission to the South Pacific. According to some accounts, during on observation flight, LBJ's plane was attacked by Japanese fighters but successfully completed its mission. General Douglas MacArthur awarded LBJ the Silver Star for the mission, but there have been questions and controversies over the years about what actually happened on the flight. Either way, General MacArthur's citation praised LBJ for his service and he proudly wore his Silver Star decoration for the rest of his life.
GERALD FORD
During World War II, Ford joined the U.S. Navy Reserve and after requesting duty at sea was stationed on the aircraft carrier USS Monterey. An active and popular junior officer on the carrier, Ford and the USS Monterey took part, according to one historian, in "virtually all the major battles in the South Pacific." Ford received ten battle stars while on the ship and, in a frightening incident, was nearly washed overboard when a massive typhoon struck the Third Fleet, causing a fire on the Monterey and sinking several ships.
GEORGE H.W. BUSH
The youngest fighter pilot in the U.S. Navy when he enlisted, George H.W. Bush flew 58 combat missions in the Pacific Theater during World War II. During a September 1944 bombing mission of a Japanese base on Chichi Jima, an outer island roughly 620 miles away from Tokyo, Bush's plane was shot down by the Japanese. Before he had to bail out the uncontrollable plane, Bush completed the bombing run over his target. Jumping out of the plane, Bush's head smashed into the tail, opening a large cut that bled heavily into the shark-infested waters that he landed in. Bush's two fellow crew members were either killed when their plane was struck or unable to parachute to safely. For several hours, the injured Bush floated in the ocean as Japanese planes searched for him, but eventually was rescued by an American submarine. The future President was just 20 years old at the time and the story of his mission and near-death experience is even more harrowing if you take the time to read the details.
