The Second Battle of Charleston Harbor, also known as the siege of Charleston Harbor, siege of Fort Wagner, or Battle of Morris Island, took place during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
in the late summer of 1863 between a combined
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
/
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
force and the
Confederate
Confederacy or confederate may refer to:
States or communities
* Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
defenses of
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
.
Background
After being repulsed twice trying to take
Fort Wagner
Fort Wagner or Battery Wagner was a beachhead fortification on Morris Island, South Carolina, that covered the southern approach to Charleston Harbor. It was the site of two American Civil War battles in the campaign known as Operations Agai ...
by storm,
Maj. Gen.
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 a ...
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 ...
decided on a less costly approach and began laying siege to the fort.
Opposing forces
Union
Confederate
Siege
Innovations and difficulties
In the days immediately following the
second battle of Fort Wagner
The Second Battle of Fort Wagner, also known as the Second Assault on Morris Island or the Battle of Fort Wagner, Morris Island, was fought on July 18, 1863, during the American Civil War. Union Army troops commanded by Brig. Gen. Quincy Gillm ...
, Union forces besieged the Confederate works 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 ...
with an array of military novelties. Union gunners made use of a new piece of artillery known as the
Requa gun—25 rifle barrels mounted on a field carriage. While
sapper
A sapper, also called a pioneer (military), pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefie ...
s dug zig-zag trenches toward Fort Wagner a second novelty was used—the calcium floodlight. Bright lights were flashed upon the defenders, blinding them enough to decrease accurate return fire while the Union gunners fired safely from behind the lights
The Confederate defenders also had advantages. The ground the Union sappers were digging through was shallow sand with a muddy base. The trenching efforts also began to accidentally uncover Union dead from the previous assaults on Fort Wagner. Disease and bad water plagued soldiers on both sides.
Garrison
The Union army maintained a constant rotation of soldiers to man the forward trenches of the "grand guard". During the evening of August 16 a Confederate artillery shell burst through the bombproof serving as the headquarters for Colonel
Joshua B. Howell, commanding officer of the grand guard that evening. A shell fragment struck Colonel Howell, wounding him severely in the head. Despite Howell's quick recovery, the incident prompted the Union commander to exclusively use veteran troops in the forward trenches. Confederates also kept a constant rotation of soldiers through Fort Wagner and Battery Gregg. During the night, rowboats would bring fresh troops from the mainland to replace the garrison. Even though they had won a substantial victory at Fort Wagner, the Confederates fully expected the campaign to continue. Having a large garrison to draw from
Gen.
The Book of Genesis (from Greek language, Greek ; Hebrew language, Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its i ...
P.G.T. Beauregard
Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (May 28, 1818 - February 20, 1893) was a Confederate general officer of Louisiana Creole descent who started the American Civil War by leading the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Today, he is commonly ...
was prepared to continue the campaign. Immediately in command of Confederate forces surrounding Charleston was former career army officer and South Carolina businessman
Roswell S. Ripley. Ripley's forces were spread throughout fortifications surrounding Charleston Harbor and included a division of local South Carolina militia. Gilmore and Admiral John A. Dahlgren requested reinforcements from General-in-Chief
Henry Halleck
Henry Wager Halleck (January 16, 1815 – January 9, 1872) was a senior United States Army officer, scholar, and lawyer. A noted expert in military studies, he was known by a nickname that became derogatory: "Old Brains". He was an important par ...
. Halleck was reluctant but nevertheless a division from the
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...
was transferred to the south under
George H. Gordon
George Henry Gordon (July 19, 1823 – August 30, 1886) was an American lawyer and a Union general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Gordon was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts. He moved to Framingham, Massachusetts, at the age of five ...
. General
John G. Foster
John Gray Foster (May 27, 1823 – September 2, 1874) was an American soldier. A career military officer in the United States Army and a Union Army, Union general during the American Civil War, he served in North Carolina, North and South Caroli ...
, Union commander of the
Department of North Carolina
The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a United States Military department encompassing Union-occupied territory in the Confederate States during the Civil War. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing department ...
, enthusiastically sent a division of reinforcements telling Gilmore "Charleston is too important to be lost when so nearly won".
Batteries
![IroncladActionSep1863](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/IroncladActionSep1863.jpg)
Despite the marshy conditions on Morris Island, Union forces had constructed powerful batteries to combat Fort Wagner. These batteries were often named in honor of fallen leaders such as Batteries
Strong,
Reynolds Reynolds may refer to:
Places Australia
*Hundred of Reynolds, a cadastral unit in South Australia
*Hundred of Reynolds (Northern Territory), a cadastral unit in the Northern Territory of Australia
United States
* Reynolds, Mendocino County, Calif ...
,
Kearny and
Weed
A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...
. Others were named for high ranking army officers such as Batteries
Rosecrans and
Meade.
Inside Fort Wagner only one 10-inch Columbiad faced seaward and the few landward guns were in poor condition. During Colonel
Lawrence M. Keitt's tenure in command of the Confederate garrison he established signal stations on Fort Wagner's west wall to coordinate with Confederate batteries on James Island. Keitt's replacement, General
Johnson Hagood Johnson Hagood may refer to:
*Johnson Hagood (governor) (1828–1898), American Civil War soldier and Governor of South Carolina, 1880–1882
* Johnson Hagood (1873–1948), American World War I general
See also
*Johnson Hagood Stadium
Johnson ...
, made better use of sharpshooters and the few landward guns to impede the Union siege works upon the fort. The Confederates protected their own guns and bombproofs but exposed themselves to Union naval fire and in the end could only slow the Union trenches.
Swamp Angel
On August 2 under the direction of Colonel
Edward W. Serrell Union engineers began constructing a battery further inland with the intention of bombing the city of Charleston directly. By August 17 the massive battery was ready for its armament. Lieutenant Charles Sellmer with a detachment of the 11th Maine Infantry was called in to man the 200-pound
Parrott rifle
The Parrott rifle was a type of muzzle-loading rifled artillery weapon used extensively in the American Civil War.
Parrott rifle
The gun was invented by Captain Robert Parker Parrott, a West Point graduate. He was an American soldier and invent ...
now being referred to as the "Swamp Angel". On August 21 Gilmore sent an ultimatum to Beauregard to abandon Forts Wagner and Sumter or Charleston would be fired upon. When Gilmore received no reply by the following day the first shot was fired from the Swamp Angel into Charleston using the steeple of St. Michael's Church for a bearing. On August 22 Confederate batteries tried in vain to silence the Swamp Angel. Beauregard scorned Gilmore for turning his guns on a civilian city and demanded an opportunity to evacuate citizens. Gilmore complied with a day of cease-fire but also took the opportunity to express the fact that Charleston was a legitimate military target as an ammunition supply. The firing resumed but on the 36th shot the Swamp Angel burst and was not replaced during the campaign. It was the first time a civilian population was deliberately targeted for military purposes during the Civil War.
Fort Sumter
![ExplodingShellATFortSumter1863](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/ExplodingShellATFortSumter1863.jpg)
Despite trenching difficulties, by mid-August Gillmore had his siege guns within range of
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 Battl ...
. On August 17, he opened fire and during the first day of the bombardment nearly 1,000 shells were fired. By August 23, the masonry had been turned to rubble and Beauregard removed as many of the fort's guns as possible. Gillmore wired the
War Department War Department may refer to:
* War Department (United Kingdom)
* United States Department of War (1789–1947)
See also
* War Office, a former department of the British Government
* Ministry of defence
* Ministry of War
* Ministry of Defence
* Dep ...
that "Fort Sumter is a shapeless and harmless mass of ruin". However, the bombardment of Fort Sumter would continue in general until December 31, 1863.
Fall of Fort Wagner
Attacks on rifle pits
Gillmore's attention returned to Fort Wagner. By now his forces were close enough to the Confederate works for the infantry to take action. On August 21 Colonel George B. Dandy led the 100th New York Infantry in a rush toward Fort Wagner's
rifle pit
A defensive fighting position (DFP) is a type of Earthworks (engineering)#Military use, earthwork constructed in a military context, generally large enough to accommodate anything from one soldier to a fire team (or similar sized unit).
Termin ...
s. The New Yorkers quickly established a temporary
picket line
A picket line is a horizontal rope along which horses are tied at intervals. The rope can be on the ground, at chest height (above the knees, below the neck) or overhead. The overhead form is usually called a high line.
A variant of a high l ...
but their success was short lived. General Hagood ordered a counterattack which drove off Dandy's men.
Following Dandy's attack Confederate engineers began working to strengthen the rifle pits, hoping to force the Union army into mounting another costly assault. Before work could be completed Gilmore ordered
division
Division or divider may refer to:
Mathematics
*Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication
*Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division
Military
*Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...
commander General
Alfred H. Terry
Alfred Howe Terry (November 10, 1827 – December 16, 1890) was a Union army, Union Major general (United States), general in the American Civil War and the military commander of the Dakota Territory from 1866 to 1869, and again from 1872 to 18 ...
to capture the rifle pits. Terry prepared the 24th Massachusetts Infantry from Brigadier General
Thomas G. Stevenson
Thomas Greely Stevenson (February 3, 1836 – May 10, 1864) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action during the battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse.
Biography
Stevenson was born in Boston, Massachusetts ...
's
brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division.
Br ...
to lead the attack. In support was the 3rd New Hampshire Infantry. Each member of the 24th Massachusetts was equipped with an additional two shovels to immediately rebuild the rifle pits once taken. On the evening of August 25 General Stevenson personally led the attack forward covered by fire from the requa guns. The attack overran the 61st North Carolina Infantry, many of whom surrendered. Colonel George P. Harrison, the fort's commander, ordered an artillery counterattack but the rifle pits were already turning into a new siege line. On September 5, Gillmore and Admiral Dahlgren attacked with an intense bombing of Fort Wagner for 36 hours killing 100 of the remaining defenders.
[Wise p.175]
Evacuation
Conditions within the fort were becoming intolerable, and the garrison commander,
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
Lawrence M. Keitt, informed General Beauregard that he now had only 400 men capable of defending the fort. Therefore, on the evening of September 6–7, Beauregard ordered Confederate forces to abandon their positions on Morris Island. On September 7, Union troops occupied Fort Wagner.
Aftermath
Fort Wagner had withstood 60 days of constant bombing and held off a much larger Union army. Yet the Union army and navy had captured an important position at the mouth of Charleston Harbor and reduced its most formidable fortress to rubble. Despite this, the city of Charleston and Fort Sumter itself would remain in Confederate control until
William T. Sherman
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
's armies marched through
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
in 1865.
Additional operational maps
Gallery: the siege of Charleston Harbor from the ''Atlas to Accompany the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies''.
File:CHARLESTON MAP 1.jpg, ''Map 1''
File:CHARLESTON MAP 2.jpg, ''Map 2''
File:CHARLESTON MAP 3.jpg, ''Map 3''
File:CHARLESTON MAP 4.jpg, ''Map 4''
See also
*
Troop engagements of the American Civil War, 1863
The following engagements took place in the year 1863 during the American Civil War. During the year, Union (American Civil War), Union forces captured the Confederate States of America, Confederate cities of Vicksburg and Port Hudson, giving them ...
*
List of costliest American Civil War land battles
This is a list of the costliest land battles of the American Civil War, measured by casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing) on both sides.
Highest casualty battles
See also
* List of American Civil War battles
* Timeline of events l ...
*
First Battle of Charleston Harbor
The First Battle of Charleston Harbor was an engagement near Charleston, South Carolina that took place April 7, 1863, during the American Civil War. The striking force was a fleet of nine ironclad warships of the Union Navy, including seven m ...
*
Second Battle of Fort Wagner
The Second Battle of Fort Wagner, also known as the Second Assault on Morris Island or the Battle of Fort Wagner, Morris Island, was fought on July 18, 1863, during the American Civil War. Union Army troops commanded by Brig. Gen. Quincy Gillm ...
*
Second Battle of Fort Sumter
The Second Battle of Fort Sumter was fought on September 8, 1863, in Charleston Harbor. Confederate General P. G. T. Beauregard, who had commanded the defenses of Charleston and captured Fort Sumter in the first battle of the war, was in over ...
*
Battle of Fort Pulaski
The siege of Fort Pulaski (or the Siege and Reduction of Fort Pulaski) concluded with the Battle of Fort Pulaski fought April 10–11, 1862, during the American Civil War. Union forces on Tybee Island and naval operations conducted a 112-day si ...
*
Blockade runners of the American Civil War
The blockade runners of the American Civil War were seagoing steam ships that were used to get through the Union blockade that extended some along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coastlines and the lower Mississippi River. The Confederate stat ...
*
Siege artillery in the American Civil War against Charleston Harbor
Notes
References
* Chaitin, Peter, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''The Coastal War: Chesapeake Bay to Rio Grande''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1984. .
* Kennedy, Frances H., ed
''The Civil War Battlefield Guide'' 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998. .
*
CWSAC Report Update
Memoirs and primary sources
* U.S. War Department
''a Compilation of the
Official Records
The ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies in the War of the Rebellion'', commonly known as the ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies'' or Official Records (OR or ORs), is the most extensive collection of Americ ...
of the Union and Confederate Armies''. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901.
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Charleston Harbor II
Operations against the Defenses of Charleston (American Civil War)
Battles of the Lower Seaboard Theater and Gulf Approach of the American Civil War
Inconclusive battles of the American Civil War
Sieges of the American Civil War
Battles of the American Civil War in South Carolina
Charleston County, South Carolina
Naval battles of the American Civil War
Conflicts in 1863
1863 in South Carolina
July 1863 events
August 1863 events
September 1863 events
19th-century in Charleston, South Carolina