Fort Sumter was created following the war of 1812 in honor of legendary revolutionary war hero Thomas Sumter. However, this fort went under construction in 1827 and the building was not even completed in the year 1861. This fort was placed in South Carolina, however it was being occupied and constructed by the northerners, mainly the New Engenders. When the south seceded from The Union,the north held onto this fort.
However the pressure from the Union became immense and the Confederates were started to get worried about them. An attempt to supply the Fort by President James Buchanan was foiled by the Confederates, and tensions began to rise. The what seemed to be petty attack on the transport ship began to turn into a siege and during the early month of 1861 everything except for Fort Sumter in South Carolina was taken over by the state.
The Confederate States of America were formed in 1861 and from this newly formed country President Jefferson Davis put Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard in command of the Confederate forces around Charleston. Due to all of the events that transpired the Union was frantically attempting to finish the fort by installing guns, however they remained under gunned, short of men and of supplies. Things were not looking up for the Union.
President Abraham Lincoln in April of 1861 declared to the Governor of South Carolina that he was sending over a supply ship and the Confederates retorted by stating the ultimatum of evacuate the Fort or prepare to be attacked. However Major Anderson, the officer who was in control of Sumter, stood strong and refused to budge. On that fateful morning starting early in the morning, 4:30 a.m. on April 12, the Confederates began to bombard the forts posterior artillery batteries. This was just the icing on the cake, the Union began to fire back and the Civil War's first battle(acknowledged) was commencing.
Even if Anderson had more guns at the fort, he would have been unable to use them. Even with only 60 he did not ave the man power to use them all or the supplies needed. The 34 hour attack ensued and within the 34 hour, at 2 o'clock on the 13 of April General Anderson agreed to evacuate. There was no flag pole because it had been knocked down an hour earlier, so a Confederate named Louis Wigfall came over and negotiated the terms of the Union evacuation. Amazingly none of the soldiers from either side were killed during the battle, however two Union casualties ensued due to explosions during the surrendering ceremony.
The battle was over and the fort went from Union to Confederate within 2 days. This was the official start of the long and bloody Civil War.
However the pressure from the Union became immense and the Confederates were started to get worried about them. An attempt to supply the Fort by President James Buchanan was foiled by the Confederates, and tensions began to rise. The what seemed to be petty attack on the transport ship began to turn into a siege and during the early month of 1861 everything except for Fort Sumter in South Carolina was taken over by the state.
The Confederate States of America were formed in 1861 and from this newly formed country President Jefferson Davis put Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard in command of the Confederate forces around Charleston. Due to all of the events that transpired the Union was frantically attempting to finish the fort by installing guns, however they remained under gunned, short of men and of supplies. Things were not looking up for the Union.
President Abraham Lincoln in April of 1861 declared to the Governor of South Carolina that he was sending over a supply ship and the Confederates retorted by stating the ultimatum of evacuate the Fort or prepare to be attacked. However Major Anderson, the officer who was in control of Sumter, stood strong and refused to budge. On that fateful morning starting early in the morning, 4:30 a.m. on April 12, the Confederates began to bombard the forts posterior artillery batteries. This was just the icing on the cake, the Union began to fire back and the Civil War's first battle(acknowledged) was commencing.
Even if Anderson had more guns at the fort, he would have been unable to use them. Even with only 60 he did not ave the man power to use them all or the supplies needed. The 34 hour attack ensued and within the 34 hour, at 2 o'clock on the 13 of April General Anderson agreed to evacuate. There was no flag pole because it had been knocked down an hour earlier, so a Confederate named Louis Wigfall came over and negotiated the terms of the Union evacuation. Amazingly none of the soldiers from either side were killed during the battle, however two Union casualties ensued due to explosions during the surrendering ceremony.
The battle was over and the fort went from Union to Confederate within 2 days. This was the official start of the long and bloody Civil War.
"The Battle of Fort. Sumter Official Records and Battle Description." The American Civil War Home Page. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. <http://www.civilwarhome.com/ftsumter.htm>.
"The Battle of Fort Sumter Summary & Facts | Civilwar.org." Civil War Trust: Saving America's Civil War Battlefields. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. <http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/fort-sumter.html>.
"Battle of Fort Sumter." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fort_Sumter>.
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