17. Ulysses S Grant is said to have been obsessed with keeping his naked body hidden from the world – and, according to the man himself, he succeeded
Ulysses S. Grant may well have been one of the finest soldiers the United States has ever produced, plus an astute politician who made it all the way to the White House, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t human, with the same quirks and weird obsessions as everyone else. For instance, despite leading soldiers in numerous battles during the horrific American Civil War, Grant hated the sight of blood. And not just human blood. He would always ask for his steaks to be cooked right the way through and served to him with charcoal on.
What’s more, during the Civil War, Grant’s men and fellow officers soon learned that he would never wash or change his uniform in front of them. Instead, he would wash in a tent, with the entrance firmly laced up. Of course, he carried this obsession with him into peacetime, too. Indeed, when he was in his 60s, Grant allegedly claimed – or, some say he even boasted – that nobody had seen him fully nude since he was a young boy. Interestingly, Grant was married twice and had children with each of his wives.