Second Battle Of Fort Sumter
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The Second Battle of Fort Sumter was fought on September 8, 1863, in Charleston Harbor.
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
P. G. T. Beauregard, who had commanded the defenses of Charleston and captured
Fort Sumter Fort Sumter is a historical Coastal defense and fortification#Sea forts, sea fort located near Charleston, South Carolina. Constructed on an artificial island at the entrance of Charleston Harbor in 1829, the fort was built in response to the W ...
in the first battle of the war, was in overall command of the defenders. In the battle, Union forces under Major General Quincy Gillmore attempted to retake the fort at the mouth of the harbor. Union gunners pummeled the fort from their batteries on
Morris Island Morris Island is an 840-acre (3.4 km2) uninhabited island in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, accessible only by boat. The island lies in the outer reaches of the harbor and was thus a strategic location in the American Civil War. The i ...
. After a severe bombing of the fort, Beauregard, suspecting an attack, replaced the artillerymen and all but one of the fort's guns with 320 infantrymen, who repulsed the naval landing party. Gillmore had reduced Fort Sumter to a pile of rubble, but the Confederate flag still waved over the ruins.


Background

Union efforts to retake Charleston Harbor began on April 7, 1863, when
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
Samuel Francis Du Pont, commander of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, led the
ironclad An ironclad was a steam engine, steam-propelled warship protected by iron armour, steel or iron armor constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or ince ...
frigate ''New Ironsides'', the tower ironclad ''Keokuk'', and the monitors ''Weehawken'', ''Pasaic'', ''Montauk'', ''Patapsco'', ''Nantucket'', ''Catskill'', and ''Nahant'' in an attack on the harbor's defenses (The 1863 Battle of Fort Sumter was the largest deployment of monitors in action up to that time). The attack was unsuccessful, the Union's best ship, USS ''New Ironsides'' never effectively engaged, and the ironclads fired only 154 rounds, while receiving 2,209 from the Confederate defenders. Due to damage received in the attack, the USS ''Keokuk'' sank the next day, off the southern tip of
Morris Island Morris Island is an 840-acre (3.4 km2) uninhabited island in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, accessible only by boat. The island lies in the outer reaches of the harbor and was thus a strategic location in the American Civil War. The i ...
. Over the next month, working at night to avoid the attention of the Federal squadron, the Confederates salvaged ''Keokuk's'' two eleven-inch Dahlgren guns. One of the Dahlgren guns was promptly placed in Fort Sumter. The Confederates, in the meantime, were strengthening Fort Sumter. A workforce of just under 500 slaves, under the supervision of Confederate army engineers, were filling casemates with sand, protecting the gorge wall with sandbags, and building new traverse,Traverses
Civil War Fortifications dictionary.
blindages, and bombproofs. Some of Fort Sumter's artillery had been removed, but 40 pieces still were mounted. Fort Sumter's heaviest guns were mounted on the barbette, the fort's highest level, where they had wide angles of fire and could fire down on approaching ships. The barbette was also more exposed to enemy gunfire than the
casemate A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armoured structure from which guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to antiquity, the term "casemate wall" ...
s in the two lower levels of the fort. A special military decoration, known as the
Gillmore Medal The Gillmore Medal is a military decoration of the United States Army which was first issued on October 28, 1863. The medal is named after Major General Quincy A. Gillmore who commanded Union troops attempting to seize Fort Wagner in 1863 dur ...
, was later issued to all Union service members who had performed duty at Fort Sumter under the command of Major-General
Quincy Adams Gillmore Quincy Adams Gillmore (February 28, 1825 – April 7, 1888) was an American civil engineer, author, and a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was noted for his actions in the Union victory at Fort Pulaski, where his m ...
File:FortSumter1865.jpg, View of Confederate-held Fort Sumter, August 23, 1863. File:InteriorViewFtSumter1864.jpg, Interior View of Fort Sumter, taken by a Confederate photographer, 1864. File:ExteriorViewFtSumter1865.jpg, Exterior view of Fort Sumter, 1865. Banded rifle in foreground
fraise
at top. File:ViewFtSumterSandBar1865.jpg, View of Fort Sumter from the sandbar, 1865.


Battle

After the devastating bombardment, both Major General Quincy A. Gillmore and
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
John A. Dahlgren, now commanding the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, determined to launch a boat assault on Fort Sumter for the night of September 8–9, 1863. Cooperation between the Army and Navy was poor. Dahlgren refused to place his sailors and
marines Marines (or naval infantry) are military personnel generally trained to operate on both land and sea, with a particular focus on amphibious warfare. Historically, the main tasks undertaken by marines have included Raid (military), raiding ashor ...
under the command of an army officer, so two flotillas set out towards Fort Sumter that night. The army flotilla was detained off
Morris Island Morris Island is an 840-acre (3.4 km2) uninhabited island in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, accessible only by boat. The island lies in the outer reaches of the harbor and was thus a strategic location in the American Civil War. The i ...
by the low tide. By the time they could proceed, the navy assault had already been defeated and the army flotilla returned to shore. The navy's assault involved 400 sailors and marines in 25 boats. The operation was a fiasco from beginning to end. Poor reconnaissance, planning and communication all characterized the operation.
Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
Thomas H. Stevens, Jr., commanding the
monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, Wes ...
''Patapsco'', was placed in charge of the assault. When Commander Stevens protested that he "knew nothing of he assault'sorganization " and "made some remonstrances on this grounds and others." Dahlgren replied "There is nothing but a corporal's guard bout 6–10 menin the fort, and all we have to do is go and take possession." This underestimation of the Confederate forces on Dahlgren's part may explain why he was hostile to a joint operation wishing to reserve the credit for the victory to the navy. Fewer than half of the boats landed. Most of the boats that did land landed on the right flank or right gorge angle, rather than on the gorge where there was a passable breach. The Union sailors and marines who did land could not scale the wall. The Confederates fired upon the landing party and as well as throwing hand grenades and loose bricks. The men in the boats that had not landed fired muskets and revolvers blindly at the fort, endangering the landing party more than the garrison. The landing party took shelter in shell holes in the wall of the fort. In response to a signal rocket fired by the garrison, Fort Johnson and the Confederate warship CSS ''Chicora'' opened fire upon the boats and landing party. The boats that could withdraw withdrew, and the landing party surrendered. The Union casualties were 8 killed, 19 wounded, and 105 captured (including 15 of the wounded). The Confederates did not suffer any casualties in the assault.


Aftermath

After the unsuccessful boat assault, the bombardment recommenced and proceeded with varying degree of intensity, doing more damage to Fort Sumter until the end of the
war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
. The garrison continued to suffer casualties. The Confederates continued to salvage guns and other material from the ruins and harassed the Union batteries on
Morris Island Morris Island is an 840-acre (3.4 km2) uninhabited island in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, accessible only by boat. The island lies in the outer reaches of the harbor and was thus a strategic location in the American Civil War. The i ...
with
sharpshooters A sharpshooter is one who is highly proficient at firing firearms or other projectile weapons accurately. Military units composed of sharpshooters were important factors in 19th-century combat. Along with "marksman" and "expert", "sharpshooter" i ...
. The Confederates mounted four
columbiad The columbiad was a large-caliber, smoothbore, muzzle-loading cannon able to fire heavy projectiles at both high and low trajectory, trajectories. This feature enabled the columbiad to fire solid Round shot, shot or Shell (projectile), shell to ...
s, one columbiad rifled, and two rifled 42-pounders, in the left face, bottom tier casemates. The last Confederate commander, Major Thomas A. Huguenin, a graduate from
The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina The Citadel Military College of South Carolina (simply known as The Citadel) is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Established in 1842, it is the third oldest of the six senior military colleges ...
, never surrendered Fort Sumter, but General
William T. Sherman William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...
's advance through South Carolina finally forced the Confederates to evacuate Charleston on February 17, 1865, and abandon Fort Sumter. The Federal government formally took possession of Fort Sumter on February 22, 1865, with a flag-raising ceremony. One Union soldier was killed and another Union soldier was mortally wounded during the surrender ceremony. Fifty-two Confederate soldiers were killed there during the remainder of the war. While a number of slaves were killed while working at the fort, the exact number is unknown.


Notes


References

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CWSAC Report Update
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Sumter, Second Battle of Operations against the Defenses of Charleston (American Civil War) Confederate victories of the American Civil War Battles of the American Civil War in South Carolina Battle of Fort Sumter II Naval battles of the American Civil War United States Marine Corps in the 18th and 19th centuries Conflicts in 1863 1863 in South Carolina History of Charleston, South Carolina September 1863 19th-century in Charleston, South Carolina Attacks on military installations in the United States