Battle of Sullivan's Island: Difference between revisions

Battle of Sullivan's Island
	Part of American Revolutionary War
	; A map made following the engagement.
Date	June 28, 1776
Location	Fort Sullivan, Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, Atlantic Ocean34°44′31.03″N 80°37′32.85″W / 34.7419528°N 80.6257917°W
Result	Colonial victory
Belligerents
South Carolina	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
William Moultrie	Peter Parker; Henry Clinton; William Campbell
Strength
435 militia,; 31 artillery pieces,; 2 shore batteries,; Fort Sullivan	Land:; 1,500 infantry; Sea:; 2 fourth-rates,; 6 frigates,; 1 bomb vessel
Casualties and losses
12 killed,; 27 wounded,; 1 shore battery destroyed,; Fort Sullivan damaged[citation needed]	94 killed,; 182 wounded,; 2 fourth-rates severely damaged,; 2 frigates moderately damaged,; 1 frigate grounded[citation needed]
	; The British frigate HMS Actaeon was scuttled a few days after being grounded during this battle.;

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The Battle of Sullivan's Island or the Battle of Fort Sullivan took place on June 28, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, also known as the American War of Independence. It took place near Charleston, South Carolina, during the first British attempt to capture the city from American rebels. Because of this it is sometimes known as the First Siege of Charleston, owing to a later more successful campaign in 1780.

Background

During 1775, the first year of the American Revolution, the city of Charleston in the colony of South Carolina was a rising center of commerce that was also a point of recruitment for the colonial rebels. While militia men skirmished with British and Loyalist bands through the southern colonies, the people of Charleston worked to support the rebellion by funneling recruits through the city, and by manufacturing supplies such as clothing, tools, and horse saddles for the Continental Army.

British operations

British army forces in North America were primarily tied up with the Siege of Boston in 1775. Seeking bases of operations where they had more control, the British planned an expedition to the southern colonies. Major General Henry Clinton, then in Boston, was to travel to Cape Fear, North Carolina, where he would join with largely Scottish Loyalists raised in the North Carolina backcountry, and a force of 2,000 men from Ireland under the command of Major General Charles Cornwallis.^[1]

The plan was beset by difficulties from the start. The Irish expedition, originally supposed to depart at the beginning of December 1775, was delayed by logistical difficulties, and its 2,500 troops did not depart until February 13, 1776, escorted by 11 warships under the command of Admiral Sir Peter Parker.^[2]^[3] Clinton left Boston on January 20 with two companies of light infantry, and first stopped at New York City to confer with William Tryon, New York's royal governor.^[4] Major General Charles Lee, sent by Major General George Washington to see to the defense of New York, coincidentally arrived there the same day as Clinton.^[5] New York was at that time extremely tense; Patriot forces were beginning to disarm and evict Loyalists, and the British fleet anchored there was having difficult acquiring provisions.^[6] Despite this, Clinton made no secret that his final target was in the south. Lee observed that this was "certainly a droll way of proceeding; to communicate his full plan to the enemy is too novel to be credited."^[7] This was not even the first notice of the expedition to the colonists; a letter intercepted in December had already provided intelligence that the British were planning to go to the South.^[6]

Clinton arrived at Cape Fear on March 12, expecting to find the European convoy already there. He met with the royal governors of North and South Carolina, Josiah Martin and William Campbell, and learned that the recruited Scottish Loyalists had been defeated at Moore's Creek Bridge two weeks earlier.^[8] He also received pleas for assistance from the royal governor of Georgia, James Wright, who had been arrested, and then escaped to a navy ship.^[9]

Parker's fleet had an extremely difficult crossing. Battered by storms and high seas, the first ships of the fleet did not arrive at Cape Fear until April 18, and Cornwallis did not arrive until May 3. After several weeks there, in which the British troops raided Patriot properties, Clinton, Cornwallis and Parker concluded that Cape Fear was not a suitable base for further operations.^[10] Parker had sent out some ships on scouting expeditions up and down the coast, and reports on the Charleston defenses were sufficiently promising that the decision was made to go there.

American defenses

John Rutledge, recently elected president of the General Assembly that remained as the backbone of South Carolina's revolutionary government, organized a defense force under the command of 46-year-old Colonel William Moultrie, a former militiaman and Indian fighter.^[11]^[12] These forces comprised three infantry regiments, two rifle regiments, and a small artillery regiment; they were augmented by three independent artillery companies, and the total force numbered about 2,000.^[13] These forces were further augmented by the arrival of Continental regiments from North Carolina and Virginia (1,900 troops), as well as militia numbering 2,700 from Charleston and the surrounding backcountry.^[13]

Moultrie saw Sullivan's Island, a sandy spit of land at the entrance to Charleston Harbor extending north about 4 miles (6.4 km) long and a few hundred yards wide,^[14] as a place well suited to build a fort that could protect the entrance from intruding enemy warships. A large vessel sailing into Charleston first had to cross Charleston Bar, a series of submerged shoals lying about 8 miles (13 km) southeast of the city, and then pass by the southern end of Sullivan's Island as it entered the channel. Later it would also have to pass the northern end of James Island, where Fort Johnson commanded the southeastern approach to the city.^[15] Moultrie and his 2nd South Carolina Regiment arrived on Sullivan's Island in March 1776, and began construction of a fortress to defend the island and the channel into Charleston Harbor.^[16] The construction moved slowly; Captain Peter Horry of the Patriot naval detachment described the site as a "an immense pen 500 feet long, and 16 feet wide, filled with sand to stop the shot". The workers constructed gun platforms out of two-inch planks and nailed them together with wood spikes.

Congress had appointed General Lee to command the Continental Army troops in the southern colonies, and his movements by land shadowed those of Clinton's fleet as it sailed south. Lee wrote from Wilmington on June 1 that the fleet had sailed, but that he did not know whether it was sailing for Virginia or South Carolina. He headed for Charleston, saying "[I] confess I know not whether I shall go to or from the enemy."^[10] He arrived in Charleston shortly after the fleet anchored outside the harbor, and took command of the city's defenses.^[10] He immediately ran into a problem: the South Carolina troops (militia or the colonial regiments) were not on the Continental line, and thus not formally under his authority. Some South Carolina troops resisted his instructions, and Rutledge had to intervene by proclaiming Lee in command of all South Carolina forces.^[17]

Square-shaped Fort Sullivan consisted only of the completed seaward wall, with walls made from palmetto logs 20 feet (6.1 m) high and 16 feet (4.9 m) wide. The walls were filled with sand, and rose 10 feet (3.0 m) above the wooden platforms on which the artillery were mounted. A hastily erected palisade of thick planks helped guard the powder magazine and unfinished northern walls. An assortment of 31 cannon, ranging from 9- and 12-pounders to a few English 18-pounders and French 26-pounders, dotted the front and rear walls.^[18] General Lee, when he had seen its unfinished state, had recommended abandoning the fort, calling it a "slaughter pen".^[19] President Rutledge refused, and specifically ordered Colonel Moultrie to "obey [Lee] in everything, except in leaving Fort Sullivan".^[20] Moultrie's delaying tactics so angered Lee that he decided on June 27 that he would replace Moultrie; the battle began the next day before he could do so.^[21]

British arrival

During late May, some of Admiral Parker's frigates scouted Charleston and observed the construction of the fort on Sullivan's Island. Combined with relatively unfavorable conditions at Cape Fear, the report of the Charleston defenses convinced Clinton and Parker to pursue action against Charleston.^[22] The fleet weighed anchor at Cape Fear on May 31, and arrived outside Charleston Harbor the next day.^[23] Moultrie noticed a British scout boat apparently looking for possible landing points on nearby Long Island, just a few hundred yards from Sullivan's Island. On June 8, after most of the British fleet had crossed the bar and anchored in Five Fathom Hole, Clinton sent a proclamation demanding that the Patriot rebels lay down their arms or face military action; Rutledge rejected the demand. With the fort on Sullivan's Island only half complete, Admiral Parker was confident that his warships would blast the fort into pieces.

The British fleet was composed of nine man-of-war ships: the flagship 50-gun Bristol, as well as the 50-gun Experiment and frigates Actaeon, Active, Solebay, Syren, Sphinx, Friendship, and the bomb vessel Thunder, in total mounting nearly 300 cannon. The army forces in the expedition consisted of the 15th, 28th, 33rd, 37th, 54th, and 57th regiments of foot, and part of the 46th.^[24]^[25] On June 7, Clinton issued a proclamation calling on the rebel colonists to lay down their arms. However, the inexperienced defenders fired on the boat sent to deliver it, and it was not delivered until the next day.^[26] That same day, Clinton began landing 2,200 troops on Long Island. The intent was that these troops would wade across the channel between Long and Sullivan's, which the British believed to be sufficiently shallow to do so, while the fleet bombarded Fort Sullivan.^[27]

General Lee responded to the British landing with several actions. He began reinforcing positions on the mainland in case the British were intending to launch an attack directly on Charleston.^[28] He also attempted to build a bridge of boats to provide an avenue of retreat for the fort's garrison, but this failed because there were not enough boats to bridge the roughly one mile (1.6 km) channel separating the island from Charleston; the unwillingness of Moultrie and Rutledge to support the effort may also have played a role.^[29] The Americans also constructed an entrenchment at the northern end of Sullivan's Island, which was manned by more than 750 men and three small cannons,^[30]^[31] and began to fortify a guard post at Haddrell's Point on the mainland opposite Fort Sullivan.^[32]

General Clinton encountered the first major problem of the attack plan on June 17. An attempt to wade the channel between the two islands established that part of the channel was at least shoulder-deep, too deep for troops to cross even without the prospect of enemy opposition.^[33] He considered using boats to ferry the troops across, but the Americans, with timely advice from General Lee, adopted a strong defensive position that was virtually impossible to bombard from ships or the Long Island position.^[34] As a result, the British and American forces faced each other across the channel, engaging in occasional and largely inconsequential cannonfire at long range. Clinton reported that this meant that Admiral Parker would have "the glory of being defeated alone."^[17] The attack was originally planned for June 24, but bad weather prompted Parker to call it off.^[35]

Battle

On the morning of June 28, Fort Sullivan was defended by Colonel Moultrie, commanding the 2nd South Carolina Regiment and a company of the 4th South Carolina Artillery, numbering 435 men.^[13] At around 9:00 am that morning, a British ship fired a signal gun indicating all was ready for the attack.^[36] Less than an hour later, nine warships had sailed into positions facing the fort. The Thunder and Friendship anchored about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the fort while Parker took the Active, Bristol, Experiment and Solebay to a closer position about 400 yards (370 m) from Sullivan's Island, where they anchored facing broadside to the fort. Each of these ships began to fire upon the fort when it reached its position, and the defenders returned the fire.^[37] Although many of the Thunder's shots landed in or near the fort, they had little effect; according to Moultrie, "We had a morass in the middle, that swallowed them up instantly, and those that fell in the sand in and about the fort, were immediately buried".^[38] Thunder's role in the action was also relatively short-lived; she had anchored too far away from the fort, and the overloading of her mortars with extra powder to increase their range eventually led to them breaking out of their mounts.^[39] Owing to shortage of gunpowder, Moultrie's men were deliberate in the pace of their gunfire, and only a few officers actually aimed the cannons. They also fired in small volleys, four cannons at a time. One British observer wrote, "Their fire was surprisingly well served" and it was "slow, but decisive indeed; they were very cool and took care not to fire except their guns were exceedingly well directed."^[37]

General Clinton began movements to cross over to the northern end of Sullivan's Island. Assisted by two sloops of war, the flotilla of longboats carrying his troops came under fire from Colonel William Thomson's defenses. Facing a withering barrage of grape shot and rifle fire, Clinton abandoned the attempt.^[40]

Around noon the frigates Sphinx, Syren, and Actaeon were sent on a roundabout route, avoiding some shoals, to take a position from which they could enfilade the fort's main firing platform and also cover one the main escape routes from the fort.^[37] However, all three ships grounded on an uncharted sandbar, and the riggings of Actaeon and Sphinx became entangled in the process.^[39] The British managed to refloat the Sphinx and Syren, but the Acteon remained grounded, having moved too far onto the submerged sandbar. Consequently, none of these ships reached its intended position, a piece of good fortune not lost on Colonel Moultrie: "Had these three ships effected their purpose, they would have enfiladed us in such a manner, as to have driven us from our guns."^[38]

*Fort Sullivan looking into Charleston Harbor during the American Civil War. The fort has been known as Fort Moultrie since the Colonel William Moultrie's victory in 1776.*

At the fort, Moultrie ordered his men to concentrate their fire on the two large man-of-war ships, the Bristol and Experiment, which took hit after hit from the fort's guns. On the Bristol, one round hit the quarterdeck, slightly wounding Parker in the knee and thigh. The shot also tore off part of his britches, leaving his backside exposed. The defenders were well supplied as the bombardment drew into the afternoon, as Lee brought more ammunition and gunpowder for the fort, continuing to fire back at the British ships. With the extra powder, the patriots continued firing defiantly at the British ships, until sunset when the fleet finally withdrew out of range.

Counting casualties, Parker reported 40 sailors killed and 71 wounded aboard the Bristol, which was hit more than 70 times with much damage to the hull, yards, and rigging. The Experiment was also badly damaged with 23 sailors killed and 56 wounded with similar damage. The Active and Solebay reported 15 casualties between them.^{[citation needed]} The American Patriots reported their casualties at only 17 killed and 20 wounded. The following morning, the British, unable to drag the grounded Acteon off the sandbar, set fire to the ship to prevent her from falling into enemy hands. Patriots in small boats sailed to the burning ship and removed a few of its cannons before withdrawing back to the shore. The grounded warship exploded after the fires reached the powder magazine.

Aftermath

The British did not attempt to take the fort again. Within days of the battle, Charlestonians learned of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia, a sign of their capacity to oppose British arms. In mid-July the British fleet withdrew northward to help the main British army in its campaign against New York.

The victory on June 28 stood as the Southern colonies' own physical Declaration, stymying British plans in those colonies, and helping to win uncommitted Americans to the struggle for independence from Great Britain. It also enabled the Southern colonies to support the military campaigns in the north. Most importantly, the victory kept Charleston free from British occupation for more than three years. Finally, this victory kept the British out of the South, preventing General Washington, in the Middle Colonies, from being attacked on two fronts; northern and southern.

Fort Sullivan was renamed Fort Moultrie shortly after the battle to honor Colonel William Moultrie for his successful defense of fort and the city of Charleston.

Notes

^ Russell (2000), p. 79
^ Wilson, p. 37
^ Russell (2000), p. 85
^ Russell (2002), pp. 92–98
^ Russell (2002), p. 90
^ ^a ^b Russell (2002), p. 96
^ Russell (2002), p. 98
^ Wilson, p. 36
^ Montgomery, pp. 54–55
^ ^a ^b ^c Ward, p. 670
^ Russell (2000), p. 90
^ Russell (2002), p. 131
^ ^a ^b ^c Ward, p. 672
^ Russell (2002), p. 87
^ Wilson, p. 43
^ Russell (2002), p. 123
^ ^a ^b Ward, p. 673
^ Russell (2000), p. 88
^ Russell (2000), p. 90
^ Russell (2002), p. 199
^ Wilson, p. 48
^ Russell (2002), p. 160
^ Russell (2002), pp. 162,167
^ Morrill, p. 19
^ Russell (2002), p. 209
^ Russell (2000), p. 90
^ Russell (2000), p. 91
^ Russell (2002), pp. 184–185
^ Wilson, p. 45
^ Russell (2000), p. 92
^ Russell (2002), p. 212
^ Russell (2002), p. 187
^ Morrill, p. 22
^ Wilson, p. 46
^ Wilson, p. 47
^ Russell (2002), p. 204
^ ^a ^b ^c Ward, p. 674
^ ^a ^b Wilson, p. 49
^ ^a ^b Russell (2002), p. 209
^ Russell (2002), pp. 212–213

References

Montgomery, Horace (ed) (2010) [1958]. Georgians in Profile: Historical Essays in Honor of Ellis Merton Coulter. University of Georgia Press. ISBN 9780820335476. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help)
Morrill, Dan (1993). Southern campaigns of the American Revolution. Nautical & Aviation Publishing.
Russell, David Lee (2000). The American Revolution in the Southern colonies. Jefferson, NC: McFarland. ISBN 9780786407835. OCLC 248087936.
Russell, David Lee (2002). Victory on Sullivan's Island: the British Cape Fear/Charles Town Expedition of 1776. Haverford, PA: Infinity. ISBN 9780741412430. OCLC 54439188.
Stokely, Jim (1985). Fort Moultrie, Constant Defender. Division of Publications, National Park Service.
Ward, Christopher (1952). The War of the Revolution. New York: MacMillan. OCLC 214962727. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |authorid= ignored (help)
Wilson, David K (2005). The Southern Strategy: Britain's conquest of South Carolina and Georgia, 1775–1780. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 1570035733. OCLC 232001108.

[R79-1] Russell (2000), p. 79

[W37-2] Wilson, p. 37

[R85-3] Russell (2000), p. 85

[4] Russell (2002), pp. 92–98

[5] Russell (2002), p. 90

[RV96-6] Russell (2002), p. 96

[7] Russell (2002), p. 98

[W36-8] Wilson, p. 36

[9] Montgomery, pp. 54–55

[W670-10] Ward, p. 670

[11] Russell (2000), p. 90

[12] Russell (2002), p. 131

[W672-13] Ward, p. 672

[14] Russell (2002), p. 87

[W43-15] Wilson, p. 43

[16] Russell (2002), p. 123

[W673-17] Ward, p. 673

[18] Russell (2000), p. 88

[19] Russell (2000), p. 90

[20] Russell (2002), p. 199

[Wil48-21] Wilson, p. 48

[22] Russell (2002), p. 160

[23] Russell (2002), pp. 162,167

[24] Morrill, p. 19

[25] Russell (2002), p. 209

[26] Russell (2000), p. 90

[R2K_91-27] Russell (2000), p. 91

[28] Russell (2002), pp. 184–185

[29] Wilson, p. 45

[30] Russell (2000), p. 92

[31] Russell (2002), p. 212

[32] Russell (2002), p. 187

[Mor22-33] Morrill, p. 22

[34] Wilson, p. 46

[Wil47-35] Wilson, p. 47

[36] Russell (2002), p. 204

[W674-37] Ward, p. 674

[Wil49-38] Wilson, p. 49

[R209-39] Russell (2002), p. 209

[40] Russell (2002), pp. 212–213

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@@ Line 46: / Line 46: @@
 Congress had appointed General Lee to command the Continental Army troops in the southern colonies, and his movements by land shadowed those of Clinton's fleet as it sailed south.  Lee wrote from Wilmington on June 1 that the fleet had sailed, but that he did not know whether it was sailing for Virginia or South Carolina.  He headed for Charleston, saying "[I] confess I know not whether I shall go to or from the enemy."<ref name=W670/>  He arrived in Charleston shortly after the fleet anchored outside the harbor, and took command of the city's defenses.<ref name=W670/>  He immediately ran into a problem: the South Carolina troops (militia or the colonial regiments) were not on the Continental line, and thus not formally under his authority.  Some South Carolina troops resisted his instructions, and Rutledge had to intervene by proclaiming Lee in command of all South Carolina forces.<ref name=W673>Ward, p. 673</ref>
-Square-shaped Fort Sullivan consisted only of the completed seaward wall, with walls made from [[Sabal palmetto|palmetto]] logs {{convert|20|ft|m}} high and {{convert|16|ft|m}} wide.  The walls were filled with sand, and rose {{convert|10|ft|m}} above the wooden platforms on which the [[artillery]] were mounted. A hastily erected [[palisade]] of thick planks helped guard the powder magazine and unfinished northern walls. An assortment of 31 [[cannon]], ranging from 9- and 12-pounders to a few English 18-pounders and French 26-pounders, dotted the front and rear walls.<ref>Russell (2000), p. 88</ref>  General Lee, when he had seen its unfinished state, had recommended abandoning the fort, calling it a "slaughter pen".<ref>Russell (2000), p. 90</ref>  President Rutledge refused, and specifically ordered Colonel Moultrie to "obey [Lee] in everything, except in leaving Fort Sullivan".<ref>Russell (2002), p. 199</ref>
+Square-shaped Fort Sullivan consisted only of the completed seaward wall, with walls made from [[Sabal palmetto|palmetto]] logs {{convert|20|ft|m}} high and {{convert|16|ft|m}} wide.  The walls were filled with sand, and rose {{convert|10|ft|m}} above the wooden platforms on which the [[artillery]] were mounted. A hastily erected [[palisade]] of thick planks helped guard the powder magazine and unfinished northern walls. An assortment of 31 [[cannon]], ranging from 9- and 12-pounders to a few English 18-pounders and French 26-pounders, dotted the front and rear walls.<ref>Russell (2000), p. 88</ref>  General Lee, when he had seen its unfinished state, had recommended abandoning the fort, calling it a "slaughter pen".<ref>Russell (2000), p. 90</ref>  President Rutledge refused, and specifically ordered Colonel Moultrie to "obey [Lee] in everything, except in leaving Fort Sullivan".<ref>Russell (2002), p. 199</ref>  Moultrie's delaying tactics so angered Lee that he decided on June 27 that he would replace Moultrie; the battle began the next day before he could do so.<ref name=Wil48>Wilson, p. 48</ref>
 ===British arrival===
@@ Line 54: / Line 54: @@
 The British fleet was composed of nine [[man-of-war]] ships: the flagship [[Fourth-rate|50-gun]] [[HMS Bristol (1775)|''Bristol'']], as well as the 50-gun [[HMS Experiment (1776)|''Experiment'']] and [[frigates]] [[HMS Actaeon (1775)|''Actaeon'']], [[HMS Active (1758)|''Active'']], [[HMS Solebay (1753)|''Solebay'']], [[HMS Syren|''Syren'']], [[HMS Sphinx (1775)|''Sphinx'']], [[HMS Friendship|''Friendship'']], and the [[bomb vessel]] [[HMS Thunder (1771)|''Thunder'']], in total mounting nearly 300 cannon.  The army forces in the expedition consisted of the 15th, 28th, 33rd, 37th, 54th, and 57th regiments of foot, and part of the 46th.<ref>Morrill, p. 19<!--does not mention Thunder--></ref><ref>Russell (2002), p. 209<!--Thunder--></ref>  On June 7, Clinton issued a proclamation calling on the rebel colonists to lay down their arms.  However, the inexperienced defenders fired on the boat sent to deliver it, and it was not delivered until the next day.<ref>Russell (2000), p. 90</ref>  That same day, Clinton began landing 2,200 troops on Long Island.  The intent was that these troops would wade across the channel between Long and Sullivan's, which the British believed to be sufficiently shallow to do so, while the fleet bombarded Fort Sullivan.<ref name=R2K_91>Russell (2000), p. 91</ref>
-General Lee responded to the British landing with several actions.  He began reinforcing positions on the mainland in case the British were intending to launch an attack directly on Charleston.<ref>Russell (2002), pp. 184–185</ref>  He also attempted to build a bridge of boats to provide an avenue of retreat for the fort's garrison, but this failed because there were not enough boats to bridge the roughly one mile (1.6 km) channel separating the island from Charleston; the unwillingness of Moultrie and Rutledge to support the effort may also have played a role.<ref>Wilson, p. 45</ref>  The Americans also constructed an entrenchment at the northern end of Sullivan's Island, which was manned by more than 750 men, and three small cannons.<ref>Russell (2000), p. 92</ref><ref>Russell (2002), p. 212</ref>
+General Lee responded to the British landing with several actions.  He began reinforcing positions on the mainland in case the British were intending to launch an attack directly on Charleston.<ref>Russell (2002), pp. 184–185</ref>  He also attempted to build a bridge of boats to provide an avenue of retreat for the fort's garrison, but this failed because there were not enough boats to bridge the roughly one mile (1.6 km) channel separating the island from Charleston; the unwillingness of Moultrie and Rutledge to support the effort may also have played a role.<ref>Wilson, p. 45</ref>  The Americans also constructed an entrenchment at the northern end of Sullivan's Island, which was manned by more than 750 men and three small cannons,<ref>Russell (2000), p. 92</ref><ref>Russell (2002), p. 212</ref> and began to fortify a guard post at Haddrell's Point on the mainland opposite Fort Sullivan.<ref>Russell (2002), p. 187</ref>
-General Clinton encountered the first major problem of the attack plan on June 17.  An attempt to wade the channel between the two islands established that part of the channel was at least shoulder-deep, too deep for troops to cross safely.<ref name=Mor22>Morrill, p. 22</ref>
+General Clinton encountered the first major problem of the attack plan on June 17.  An attempt to wade the channel between the two islands established that part of the channel was at least shoulder-deep, too deep for troops to cross even without the prospect of enemy opposition.<ref name=Mor22>Morrill, p. 22</ref>  He considered using boats to ferry the troops across, but the Americans, with timely advice from General Lee, adopted a strong defensive position that was virtually impossible to bombard from ships or the Long Island position.<ref>Wilson, p. 46</ref>  As a result, the British and American forces faced each other across the channel, engaging in occasional and largely inconsequential cannonfire at long range.  Clinton reported that this meant that Admiral Parker would have "the glory of being defeated alone."<ref name=W673/>  The attack was originally planned for June 24, but bad weather prompted Parker to call it off.<ref name=Wil47>Wilson, p. 47</ref>
 ==Battle==
+On the morning of June 28, Fort Sullivan was defended by Colonel Moultrie, commanding the 2nd South Carolina Regiment and a company of the 4th South Carolina Artillery, numbering 435 men.<ref name=W672/>  At around 9:00 am that morning, a British ship fired a signal gun indicating all was ready for the attack.<ref>Russell (2002), p. 204</ref>  Less than an hour later, nine warships had sailed into positions facing the fort. The ''Thunder'' and ''Friendship'' anchored about {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} from the fort while Parker took the ''Active'', ''Bristol'', ''Experiment'' and ''Solebay'' to a closer position about {{convert|400|yd|m}} from Sullivan's Island, where they anchored facing broadside to the fort.  Each of these ships began to fire upon the fort when it reached its position, and the defenders returned the fire.<ref name=W674>Ward, p. 674</ref>  Although many of the ''Thunder''{{'s}} shots landed in or near the fort, they had little effect; according to Moultrie, "We had a morass in the middle, that swallowed them up instantly, and those that fell in the sand in and about the fort, were immediately buried".<ref name=Wil49>Wilson, p. 49</ref>  ''Thunder''{{'s}} role in the action was also relatively short-lived; she had anchored too far away from the fort, and the overloading of her mortars with extra powder to increase their range eventually led to them breaking out of their mounts.<ref name=R209/>  Owing to shortage of gunpowder, Moultrie's men were deliberate in the pace of their gunfire, and only a few officers actually aimed the cannons.  They also fired in small volleys, four cannons at a time.  One British observer wrote, "Their fire was surprisingly well served" and it was "slow, but decisive indeed; they were very cool and took care not to fire except their guns were exceedingly well directed."<ref name=W674/>
+General Clinton began movements to cross over to the northern end of Sullivan's Island.  Assisted by two sloops of war, the flotilla of longboats carrying his troops came under fire from Colonel [[William Thomson (American Revolutionary War)|William Thomson]]'s defenses.  Facing a withering barrage of [[grape shot]] and rifle fire, Clinton abandoned the attempt.<ref>Russell (2002), pp. 212–213</ref>
-At around 9:00 am on June 28, a British ship fired a signal gun indicating all was ready to advance against the fort. Less than an hour later, the nine warships arrived at the fort. The ''Thunder'' and ''Friendship'' anchored about {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} from the fort while Parker took the ''Active'', ''Bristol'', ''Experiment'' and ''Solebay'' to a closer position about {{convert|400|yd|m}} off Sullivan's Island.  He held the frigates ''Sphinx'', ''Syren'', and ''Actaeon'' in reserve less than a mile (1.6&nbsp;km) behind the four main ships. At 11:30 AM, the 13-inch bomb batteries aboard the ''Thunder'' opened fire on Fort Sullivan, and minutes later the full broadsides of the British warships began hitting the fort. The fort's gunners worked furiously to return the British fire. Three poorly protected 12-pound guns a few yards from the fort were abandoned, but the remaining 28 cannon kept returning fire.  The fort's construction fortuitously benefited the defenders, as the sand and palmetto logs of the fort's walls stood up well to the cannonade, smothering most of the British cannonballs before they could explode.  Most of the American casualties came from direct hits through the [[embrasures]].
-During the bombardment, the three British ships held in reserve sailed past the fort north toward The Cove to take up positions from which they could attack the fort's flanks, only to run onto an uncharted sandbar. The British managed to refloat the ''Sphinx'' and ''Syren'', but the ''Acteon'' remained grounded, having moved too far onto the submerged sandbar.
+Around noon the frigates ''Sphinx'', ''Syren'', and ''Actaeon'' were sent on a roundabout route, avoiding some shoals, to take a position from which they could [[enfilade]] the fort's main firing platform and also cover one the main escape routes from the fort.<ref name=W674/>  However, all three ships grounded on an uncharted sandbar, and the riggings of ''Actaeon'' and ''Sphinx'' became entangled in the process.<ref name=R209>Russell (2002), p. 209</ref>  The British managed to refloat the ''Sphinx'' and ''Syren'', but the ''Acteon'' remained grounded, having moved too far onto the submerged sandbar.  Consequently, none of these ships reached its intended position, a piece of good fortune not lost on Colonel Moultrie: "Had these three ships effected their purpose, they would have enfiladed us in such a manner, as to have driven us from our guns."<ref name=Wil49/>
-[[File:FortMoultrieCharleston.jpg|300px|right|thumb|''Fort Sullivan looking into Charleston Harbor during the [[American Civil War]]. The fort has been known as Fort Moultie since the Colonel William  Moultrie's victory in 1776.'']]
+[[File:FortMoultrieCharleston.jpg|300px|right|thumb|''Fort Sullivan looking into Charleston Harbor during the [[American Civil War]]. The fort has been known as Fort Moultrie since the Colonel William Moultrie's victory in 1776.'']]
-In the meantime, Clinton had tried to cross the landing force over to Sullivan's Island. He quickly discovered that the water in the narrow strait between Long Island, where he had landed his troops, and Sullivan's Island, was six to seven feet (about 2 meters) deep, instead of the {{convert|18|in|m}} that had been expected.  Patriot militiamen on Sullivan's Island and the nearby mainland opened fire on Clinton's men as they attempted to cross the strait, and eventually forced them to give up the effort.
 At the fort, Moultrie ordered his men to concentrate their fire on the two large man-of-war ships, the ''Bristol'' and ''Experiment'', which took hit after hit from the fort's guns. On the ''Bristol'', one round hit the quarterdeck, slightly wounding Parker in the knee and thigh.  The shot also tore off part of his britches, leaving his backside exposed. The defenders were well supplied as the bombardment drew into the afternoon, as Lee brought more ammunition and gunpowder for the fort, continuing to fire back at the British ships. With the extra powder, the patriots continued firing defiantly at the British ships, until sunset when the fleet finally withdrew out of range.