William Moultrie (; November 23, 1730 – September 27, 1805) was an American planter and politician who became a general in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. As colonel leading a state militia, in 1776 he prevented the British from taking Charleston, and

Fort Moultrie Fort Moultrie is a series of fortifications on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, built to protect the city of Charleston, South Carolina. The first fort, formerly named Fort Sullivan, built of palmetto logs, inspired the flag and n ...

was named in his honor. After independence, Moultrie advanced as a politician; he was elected by the legislature twice within a decade as Governor of South Carolina (1785–87, 1792–94), serving two terms. (The state constitution kept power in the hands of the legislature and prohibited governors from serving two terms in succession.)

Life

William Moultrie was born in Charles Town in the

Province of South Carolina Province of South Carolina, originally known as Clarendon Province, was a province of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776. It was one of the five Southern colonies and one of the thirteen American colonies. The monar ...

. His parents were the Scottish physician Dr. John Moultrie and Lucretia Cooper, and he acquired a

slave plantation A slave plantation was an agricultural farm that used enslaved people for labour. The practice was abolished in most places during the 19th century. Slavery Planters embraced the use of slaves mainly because indentured labor became expensive ...

, enslaving over 200

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

. Moultrie fought in the

Anglo-Cherokee War The Anglo-Cherokee War (1758–1761; in the Cherokee language: the ''"war with those in the red coats"'' or ''"War with the English"''), was also known from the Anglo-European perspective as the Cherokee War, the Cherokee Uprising, or the Cherok ...

(1761). Before the advent of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

, he was elected to the colonial assembly representing St. Helena Parish. In 1775, Moultrie was commissioned as colonel of the

2nd South Carolina Regiment The 2nd South Carolina Regiment was raised on June 6, 1775, at Charleston, South Carolina, for service with the Continental Army. History At organization the regiment consisted of 10 companies from eastern South Carolina and was part of the So ...

of provincial troops. In 1776, Moultrie's defense of a small fort on Sullivan's Island (later named

in his honor) prevented Sir Henry Clinton and Sir

Peter Parker Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August ...

from taking Charleston. The

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

passed a resolution thanking Moultrie. He was promoted to

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...

and his regiment was taken into the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

. Moultrie successfully led a repulse of the British at Port Royal in February 1779. That spring when Maj. Gen. Benjamin Lincoln took the bulk of the American force towards Augusta, Georgia, Moultrie was stationed at Black Swamp with a small contingent to watch the British on the other side of the Savannah River. When the British suddenly crossed the Savannah en masse and tried to move on Charleston, Moultrie managed a skillful tactical retreat across the Coosawhatchie and the Tullifiny Rivers and all the way back to Charleston where he held off a short siege. He refused to surrender at a time when the civilian authorities in Charleston felt somewhat abandoned by the Continental Congress and were almost ready to give up. Moultrie was captured when Charleston surrendered to the British in 1780. He was left in command of the American POWs which required all of the patience and skill of a diplomat when advocating for his men against the harsh British commandant, Lt. Col. Nisbet Balfour. The British also attempted to lure him to their side, and he was absolutely indignant when he was approached by Charles Greville Montague. Moultrie was eventually exchanged for British prisoners and in the last year of the war, he was promoted to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in 1782, the last man appointed by Congress to that rank. After the war he was elected by the new state legislature as

35th Military units *35th Fighter Wing, an air combat unit of the United States Air Force *35th Infantry Division (United States), a formation of the National Guard since World War I *35th Infantry Regiment (United States), a regiment created on 1 July 1 ...

Governor of South Carolina The governor of South Carolina is the head of government of South Carolina. The governor is the ''ex officio'' commander-in-chief of the National Guard when not called into federal service. The governor's responsibilities include making yea ...

(1785–87). The state constitution prohibited men from serving two successive terms as governor, an effort to keep power in the hands of the legislature. Moultrie was re-elected by the legislature in 1792, serving into 1794. William Moultrie was the first president of the Society of the Cincinnati of the State of South Carolina and served in that capacity until his death. In 1802 he published his ''Memoirs of the Revolution as far as it Related to the States of North and South Carolina.'' left, The Moultrie Flag left, Fort Moultrie, in 2006

Legacy

After the war, the fort he had defended was renamed

in his honor. It operated as a pivotal defense point until supplanted by

Fort Sumter Fort Sumter is a sea fort built on an artificial island protecting Charleston, South Carolina from naval invasion. Its origin dates to the War of 1812 when the British invaded Washington by sea. It was still incomplete in 1861 when the Battle ...

. Fort Moultrie was used as an active post of the United States Army from 1798 until the end of World War Two. Moultrie County, Illinois is also named in his honor. Ochlockoney, Georgia was renamed in 1859 as Moultrie when it was incorporated by the Georgia General Assembly.

Moultrie Flag

During his notable defense of the fort in 1776, a

flag A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

of Moultrie's own design was flown: a field of blue bearing a white crescent with the word LIBERTY on it. The flag was shot down during the fight. Sergeant

William Jasper William Jasper (''c.'' 1750 – October 9, 1779) was a noted American soldier in the Revolutionary War. He was a sergeant in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment. Jasper distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie (then called Fort Sulliv ...

held it up to rally the troops, and the story became widely known. The flag became an icon of the Revolution in the South. It was called the Moultrie, or the Liberty Flag. The new state of South Carolina incorporated its design into its

state flag In vexillology, a state flag is either the flag of the government of a sovereign state, or the flag of an individual federated state (subnational administrative division). Government flag A state flag is a variant of a national flag (or occasi ...

References

External links

SCIway Biography of William Moultrie
*http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_south_carolina/col2-content/main-content-list/title_moultrie_william.html *
The Society of the CincinnatiThe American Revolution Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moultrie, William 1730 births 1805 deaths American people of Scottish descent American slave owners American Revolutionary War prisoners of war held by Great Britain Continental Army generals Continental Army officers from South Carolina Members of the South Carolina House of Representatives Lieutenant Governors of South Carolina People of South Carolina in the French and Indian War Politicians from Charleston, South Carolina Governors of South Carolina South Carolina state senators South Carolina Federalists Federalist Party state governors of the United States Flag designers South Carolina militiamen in the American Revolution

Life

Legacy

Moultrie Flag

References

Further reading

External links