The Palmetto Fortress

A Tour de Force

In the spring of 1776, the British planners in London aimed to turn their recent stalemate and embarrassing withdrawal from Boston into a strategic victory that would end the rebellion that year. One fleet was ready to strike the crucial port of New York with a direct attack, while another planned a quick left hook at the equally important port of Charleston. The latter strike was to come first, setting the stage for a more decisive blow in the middle Atlantic colonies. Charleston, the major southern city at the time, had vital connections to the key islands in the West Indies, which were always a top priority for British interests. Dominated by a planter class, South Carolina wasn't seen as a heavily rebel area that would fall easily. However, a few brave patriots proved them wrong.

A Last-Minute Plan

Lord Dartmouth

The British strike at the southern colonies actually began earlier in the year when William Legge, Lord Dartmouth, and Secretary of State for the Colonies ordered General Henry Clinton and Commodore Peter Parker to rendezvous with another armada under General Lord Charles Cornwallis off Cape Fear, North Carolina. Misfortune on land and at sea turned the North Carolina plan to mud. But before Clinton could sail north, Parker reported that a reconnoiter of Charleston indicated the defenses were ill-prepared and that a quick strike against Fort Sullivan on Sullivan's Island in the harbor would be successful. After that, the city could be successfully assaulted. Anxious for some "low-hanging fruit" after the Tar Heel frustration, Clinton concurred, and so they made their way south, anchoring off the city on 7 June 1776.

A City Prepares

Charleston's waters were treacherous
as the British would soon discover

But the South Carolinians in Charleston had long anticipated that they would be a target of the British and eagerly built up defenses on Sullivan's Island. This was a three-sided fort with sixteen-foot-high sand walls surrounded by softwood palmetto logs. The spongy palmetto wood absorbed the impact of cannonballs—the main threat to the fort. The fort was armed with twenty-five guns of various sizes and calibers, and housed a garrison of over four hundred men. Most importantly, the commanding officer of Fort Sullivan was militia Colonel William Moultrie, who would soon prove to be one of the most capable fighting generals of the war. The city itself had a garrison of over six thousand troops, including Continental Line infantry. In command was Major General Charles Lee, a former British officer and widely regarded (especially by himself) as the finest officer in the American cause. Lee believed that Fort Sullivan was too exposed to the fire of British warships and ordered it to be abandoned. However, South Carolina Governor John Rutledge overruled Lee, viewing it as a necessary buffer against a naval attack. Geography and hydrography favored the defenders; the narrow harbor channel, with strong currents and shoals, troubled the British as they planned where to land and how to position their ships. It took a month before they were ready to attack the city that was just within their reach.

Colonel William Moultrie's militia
staged a gallant defense

Bombs Bursting in Air... Sand.. and Wood

The South Carolina flag hoisted in battle
boosts morale

On 28 June, a bombardment commenced between Parker's warships aligned off Sullivan Island and Moultrie's raw militia manning the guns protected by sand and palmetto logs. The barrage went on for hours. The British gunners were frustrated that, despite hit after hit, the combination of sand and spongy logs inflicted little damage on the fort. Shot after shot from the warships either bounced off the walls or got absorbed into the soft walls of the palmetto. The Americans fired back. But low on gunpowder, Moultrie insisted that each shot be well-aimed. In the middle of the hours-long engagement, a British shot cut down the South Carolina flag. A brave sergeant named William Jasper, in full view of the British and the Americans, ignored the hail of lead and iron to mount the parapet and restore the flag. The impact on the morale of both sides was telling. As the battle continued, the defenders' deliberate fire took its toll on the British ships, scoring hit after hit. Things took a final turn against the British when Parker sent three frigates around Sullivan Island to take the defenders in the flank. Unaware of the dangerous waters of the channel, all three suddenly grounded in the shallows. After a struggle, the two freed themselves, but the third, HMS  Acteon, remained stuck. The frustrated crew burned it to prevent the rebels from taking it.

The savage naval bombardment was decided
by shoals, sand, and wood

Fight  on till Dark

Commodore Parker

The firing continued on both sides. Commodore Parker's flagship had its anchor cable severed by a shot, causing the ship to turn and present its exposed stern to American fire. The rounds poured in, and one actually passed between Parker's legs as he shouted out commands. The commodore was unhurt but indignant as the shot tore his pants off. When darkness descended on the harbor, Parker signaled the fleet to disengage. Exasperated, the British fleet sailed from the harbor. It would be four long years before they would deign to return to face the Carolinians and their palmettos. The next one would end differently, but in 1776, the failed attack presented the British with a near disaster. The Royal Navy incurred well over two hundred casualties - Moultrie's men less than forty. And what of General Clinton? His men had landed on nearby Long Island to prepare for an assault on the mainland once Fort Sullivan fell. With the warships gone, this would not be. Instead, they remained exposed there for several weeks before the British transports were able to sail in and they could re-embark.

The Result

The British armada returned to New York at the end of July with ships damaged and sailors and soldiers discouraged. However, they soon had a chance for some revenge when the British launched their massive attack on Long Island in late August. Still, the victory at Fort Sullivan kept the South safe for four crucial years. It introduced the world to a brave new leader and boosted morale across the Carolinas and the entire rebellion. And in honor of the palmetto’s role in the victory, the noble tree with soft bark was added to the South Carolina state flag, where it remains today.

South Carolina State Flag