Charleston Harbor, Defense of
CHARLESTON HARBOR, DEFENSE OF
CHARLESTON HARBOR, DEFENSE OF. On 1 June 1776, during the American Revolution, a British squadron led by Sir Henry Clinton and Peter Parker anchored off Sullivan's Island, at the entrance to Charleston Harbor, Charleston, S.C. The city of Charleston was defended by six thousand colonial militia, while a much smaller force, led by Colonel William Moultrie, was stationed on the island. On 28 June the British tried to batter down the island fort, only to find that their shots buried themselves in the green palmetto logs of the crude fortification. After the loss of one ship, the British retired and sailed for New York. Thus the Carolinas averted the threatened British invasion of the South.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
McCrady, Edward. The History of South Carolina in the Revolution, 1775–1780. New York: Macmillan, 1901.
Wates, Wylma Anne. "'A Flag Worthy of Your State'." South Carolina Historical Magazine 86: 4 (1985): 320–331.
Hugh T.Lefler/a. r.
See alsoRevolution, American: Military History ; Southern Campaigns .