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The Battle of Belmont in southeastern Missouri was General Ulysses S. Grant’s first major battle of the Civil War, which was fought November 7, 1861. Although Grant’s army had initial success, the battle nearly turned into a disaster when the Union soldiers began looting the Confederate camp. Grant was forced to set the camp on fire to stop the looting. The Confederates sent reinforcements across the Mississippi River from Columbus, Kentucky in a counterattack that drove the Grant’s army back to Cairo, Illinois. Even though the battle almost ended in disaster, the fact that Grant was willing to be aggressive, and go on the offensive, caught the attention of President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln liked the fact that Grant was willing to fight when many of his generals would not.