Lincoln and Fort Sumter
Another anniversary which passed this week was the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Fort Sumter, which began on April 12, 1861 when the first shots were fired in the Civil War. It began just over 6 weeks into the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln and it was the first test for Lincoln as a wartime president.
Lincoln, who was inaugurated on March 4th of 1861, was surprised to learn that Major Robert Anderson, Commander of Fort Sumter, had only six weeks of rations left and that a similar crisis existed at Pensacola, Florida, where Confederates threatened another U.S. fort, Fort Pickens. Lincoln struggled with the decision of whether to reinforce the forts, and how. He was concerned about whether taking action might start open hostilities and which side would be perceived as the aggressor as a result. A similar debate was going on inside the Confederacy as some believed that the capture of the fort was rightly a matter for the State of South Carolina, while others believed that it was the job of the national Confederate government. Jefferson Davis also believed that the first side to use force would lose support in the border states.
The South sent delegations to Washington, D.C., and offered to pay for the Federal properties and enter into a peace treaty with the United States, but Lincoln rejected any negotiations with the Confederate agents on the grounds that the Confederacy was not a legitimate nation, and that making any treaty with it would be tantamount to recognition of it as a sovereign government. Secretary of State William H. Seward was in the minority that wished to give up Fort Sumter as a good will gesture.
On April 4, as the supply situation on Sumter became critical, President Lincoln ordered a relief expedition, to be commanded by former naval captain Gustavus V. Fox. Fox's orders were to land at Fort Sumter with supplies only, and if he was opposed by the Confederates, to respond with the U.S. Navy vessels following and to then land both supplies and men. On April 6, Lincoln notified Governor Pickens of South Carolina that "an attempt will be made to supply Fort Sumter with provisions only. Lincoln notified the governor of South Carolina, not the new Confederate government. Jefferson Davis ordered General Pierre Beauregard to demand Fort Sumter's surrender, and if it did not, to capture the fort before the relief expedition arrived.
Beauregard dispatched aides to Fort Sumter on April 11 to issue the ultimatum. Major Anderson refused and at 1 a.m. on April 12, the aides brought Anderson a message from Beauregard: "If you will state the time which you will evacuate Fort Sumter, and agree in the meantime that you will not use your guns against us unless heart shall be employed against Fort Sumter, we will abstain from opening fire upon you." After consulting with his senior officers, Maj. Anderson replied that he would evacuate Sumter by noon, April 15, unless he received new orders from his government or additional supplies. Confederate Colonel Chesnut wrote a reply, which he handed to Anderson at 3:20 a.m.: "Sir: by authority of Brigadier General Beauregard, commanding the Provisional Forces of the Confederate States, we have the honor to notify you that he will open fire of his batteries on Fort Sumter in one hour from this time."
Bombardment of the fort began on April 12, 1861 at 4:30 a.m. The Union garrison surrendered the fort to Confederate personnel at 2:30 p.m., April 14. No one from either side was killed during the bombardment. Anderson carried the Fort Sumter Flag with him North, where it became a widely known symbol of the battle, and rallying point for supporters of the Union.
The bombardment of Fort Sumter was the first military action of the American Civil War. Following the surrender, northerners rallied behind Lincoln's call for all of the states to send troops to recapture the forts and preserve the Union. With the scale of the rebellion apparently small so far, Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers for 90 days. The call for 75,000 troops triggered the secession of four additional states to join the Confederacy.
Lincoln, who was inaugurated on March 4th of 1861, was surprised to learn that Major Robert Anderson, Commander of Fort Sumter, had only six weeks of rations left and that a similar crisis existed at Pensacola, Florida, where Confederates threatened another U.S. fort, Fort Pickens. Lincoln struggled with the decision of whether to reinforce the forts, and how. He was concerned about whether taking action might start open hostilities and which side would be perceived as the aggressor as a result. A similar debate was going on inside the Confederacy as some believed that the capture of the fort was rightly a matter for the State of South Carolina, while others believed that it was the job of the national Confederate government. Jefferson Davis also believed that the first side to use force would lose support in the border states.
The South sent delegations to Washington, D.C., and offered to pay for the Federal properties and enter into a peace treaty with the United States, but Lincoln rejected any negotiations with the Confederate agents on the grounds that the Confederacy was not a legitimate nation, and that making any treaty with it would be tantamount to recognition of it as a sovereign government. Secretary of State William H. Seward was in the minority that wished to give up Fort Sumter as a good will gesture.
On April 4, as the supply situation on Sumter became critical, President Lincoln ordered a relief expedition, to be commanded by former naval captain Gustavus V. Fox. Fox's orders were to land at Fort Sumter with supplies only, and if he was opposed by the Confederates, to respond with the U.S. Navy vessels following and to then land both supplies and men. On April 6, Lincoln notified Governor Pickens of South Carolina that "an attempt will be made to supply Fort Sumter with provisions only. Lincoln notified the governor of South Carolina, not the new Confederate government. Jefferson Davis ordered General Pierre Beauregard to demand Fort Sumter's surrender, and if it did not, to capture the fort before the relief expedition arrived.
Beauregard dispatched aides to Fort Sumter on April 11 to issue the ultimatum. Major Anderson refused and at 1 a.m. on April 12, the aides brought Anderson a message from Beauregard: "If you will state the time which you will evacuate Fort Sumter, and agree in the meantime that you will not use your guns against us unless heart shall be employed against Fort Sumter, we will abstain from opening fire upon you." After consulting with his senior officers, Maj. Anderson replied that he would evacuate Sumter by noon, April 15, unless he received new orders from his government or additional supplies. Confederate Colonel Chesnut wrote a reply, which he handed to Anderson at 3:20 a.m.: "Sir: by authority of Brigadier General Beauregard, commanding the Provisional Forces of the Confederate States, we have the honor to notify you that he will open fire of his batteries on Fort Sumter in one hour from this time."
Bombardment of the fort began on April 12, 1861 at 4:30 a.m. The Union garrison surrendered the fort to Confederate personnel at 2:30 p.m., April 14. No one from either side was killed during the bombardment. Anderson carried the Fort Sumter Flag with him North, where it became a widely known symbol of the battle, and rallying point for supporters of the Union.
The bombardment of Fort Sumter was the first military action of the American Civil War. Following the surrender, northerners rallied behind Lincoln's call for all of the states to send troops to recapture the forts and preserve the Union. With the scale of the rebellion apparently small so far, Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers for 90 days. The call for 75,000 troops triggered the secession of four additional states to join the Confederacy.