Philip Sheridan was a US cavalry officer whose military leadership in the last year of the American Civil War helped the Union Army clinch a decisive victory. He graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1853. He served mostly at frontier posts till he was appointed a colonel in 1862. Over the years, he rose to the rank of major general. He was closely associated with General-in-chief Ulysses S Grant, who transferred him from command of an infantry division in the Western Theatre to lead the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac. He helped defeat the Confederate forces under General Jubal Early in the Shenandoah Valley, and played a major role in the destruction of the economic infrastructure of the valley. This incident came to be known as ‘The Burning.’ He was eventually appointed general-in-chief of the US Army. In 1888, he got promoted to the rank of General of the Army during the term of President Grover Cleveland. In his later years, he also fought in the Indian Wars of the Great Plains. As a soldier as well as a private citizen, he helped in development and protection of the Yellowstone National Park.