Date:
- November 7, 1861
Location:
- Port Royal Sound, South Carolina
Campaign:
- South Atlantic Blockade
Principal Union commander(s):
- Flag Officer Samuel F. Du Pont
- Brigadier General Thomas W. Sherman
Principal Confederate commander(s):
- Brigadier General Thomas F. Drayton
- Colonel R. G. M. Dunovant
- Colonel William C. Heyward
Union forces engaged:
- South Atlantic Blockading Squadron
- Port Royal Expedition Force
Confederate forces engaged:
- Fort Beauregard Garrison
- Fort Walker Garrison
Number of Union military personnel engaged:
- Roughly 12,600 (600 marines and sailors, plus 12,000 soldiers)
Number of Confederate soldiers engaged:
- Roughly 3,000
Union casualties:
- 31 (8 killed, 23 wounded)
Confederate casualties:
- 63 (11 killed, 48 wounded, 4 missing)
Result:
- Union victory
Significance:
- In the aftermath of the Union victory at the Battle of Port Royal, the Union navy established a base of operations in Port Royal Sound that would facilitate efforts to blockade Southern seaports throughout the war.
- The Union victory at the Battle of Port Royal prompted the evacuation of Beaufort, South Carolina.
- In the aftermath of the Union victory at the Battle of Port Royal, Beaufort, South Carolina became the first Southern city to be occupied by Federal troops during the Civil War.
- In the aftermath of the Union victory at the Battle of Port Royal, many wealthy planters in the Sea Islands abandoned their estates, leaving behind as many as 13,000 slaves.