On April 14, 1861, Union Major Robert Anderson (pictured here) surrendered Fort Sumter and its garrison to Confederate troops commanded by General P. G. T. Beauregard. On April 14, 1865, Anderson returned to raise the stars and stripes over the stronghold he had surrendered earlier. [Wikimedia Commons]
Battle of Fort Sumter Quick Facts
Facts About Battle of Fort Sumter
Date: April 12-13, 1861
Location: Charleston Harbor, South Carolina
Campaign: Operations in Charleston Harbor
Principal Union commander(s): Major Robert Anderson
Principal Confederate commander(s): Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard
Union forces engaged: 2 companies of the U.S. 1st Artillery, plus the regimental band
Confederate forces engaged: Provisional Forces of the Confederate States
Number of Union soldiers engaged: Roughly 84
Number of Confederate soldiers engaged: Roughly 6,000
Estimated Union casualties: 0
Estimated Confederate casualties: 0
Result: Confederate victory
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the first engagement of the American Civil War.
During the battle of Fort Sumter, Confederate forces fired over 3,000 artillery rounds at Fort Sumter.
During the battle of Fort Sumter, Union forces fired about 1,000 artillery rounds Confederate batteries around Charleston Harbor.
The Battle of Fort Sumter began at 4:30 a.m., April 12, 1861, when Captain George S. James’ battery of the South Carolina Artillery fired a mortar shot over Fort Sumter from the beach near Fort Johnson.
At 7 a.m. on April 12, 1861, Captain Abner Doubleday, Anderson’s second in command, fired the first Union artillery shot during the Battle of Fort Sumter.
During the surrender ceremony following the Battle of Fort Sumter, a cannon misfired, instantly killing Private Daniel Hough and mortally wounding Private Edward Galloway, making them the first casualties of the American Civil War.
On April 14, 1865, Brevet Major-General Robert Anderson returned to Fort Sumter to ceremoniously raise the stars and stripes over the stronghold he had been forced to evacuate earlier (four years to the day).
On the same day that Brevet Major-General Robert Anderson returned to Fort Sumter to ceremoniously raise the stars and stripes over the stronghold he had been forced to evacuate earlier, John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Lincoln in Washington, DC.
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