Battle of Port Royal Facts

November 7, 1861

Key facts about the Battle of Port Royal (November 7, 1861), which established a base of operations for the Union naval blockade of South Atlantic seaports throughout the Civil War.

Portrait of Samuel F. DuPont

Flag Officer Samuel F. Du Pont commanded the U.S. naval forces at the Battle of Port Royal. [Wikimedia Commons]

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.