On 12 April 1861 Confederate batteries under Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard opened fire on Major Robert Anderson's small Union garrison in Fort Sumter, Charleston Harbor. After about thirty-four hours Anderson surrendered the fort. No one was killed in the bombardment, yet those first shots opened the American Civil War.
The bombardment
Batteries all around the harbor thundered against the fort before dawn. Anderson's garrison, short of supplies, could not reply for long, and on 13 April he surrendered.1
The surrender of a fort with no deaths in the fighting became the signal of a war that would prove the deadliest in the nation's history. Our article on the Battle of Fort Sumter covers the bombardment and its aftermath. › Battle of Fort Sumter, 1861
Also on this day
1796: Battle of Montenotte. Near Montenotte in northwest Italy, the French Army of Italy under Napoleon Bonaparte attacked Austrian troops in the opening battle of his Italian campaign.
Frequently asked questions
When did the battle of Fort Sumter take place?
It took place on 12 and 13 April 1861, when Confederate batteries bombarded the Union-held fort in Charleston Harbor for roughly thirty-four hours.
Who fought at Fort Sumter?
Confederate forces under General P.G.T. Beauregard against the small Union garrison commanded by Major Robert Anderson.
Why is Fort Sumter important?
The bombardment of the fort in April 1861 is regarded as the opening battle of the American Civil War, the conflict that would become the bloodiest in the nation's history.
Notes
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