“Too funny! Thousands of troops? Such hyperbole! You do know, I assume, that there were more federal troops — which includes federal naval assets — in the vicinity of Ft. Sumter than CSA troops, don’t you? And I’m talking about formal military troops, not civilians with their dander up.”
Your above comments are such extreme lies added to your previous stream of lies, they give you the appearance of a delusional and perhaps pathological liar indistinguishable from many Democrats. For example, you lied horrendously by denying there were thousands of South Carolina troops engaged in the military operations around Charleston Harbor during the Confederate attack against the U.S. Army forces garrisoning Fort Sumter. You falsely described the description of thousands of such Confederate troops as being, “Such hyperbole!” In fact, far from being hyperbole, they were grossly lower than the more than 7,000 Confederate troops in and around Charleston Harbor, Charleston, and Fort Sumter.
So, where did these “thousands” of Confederate troops come from? Answer, the South Carolina legislature appropriated funds on 17 December 1860 for the organization and recruitment of ten regiments to fight in the upcoming civil war. On 6 March 1861 the state adjutant general reported to Major General M. L. Bonham that his division command now had 104 companies organized into ten regiments in four brigades, with 8,836 officers and enlisted men. Much of Maj. Gen. Bonham’s division was located around Charleston Harbor, and they were variously reported to have numbered not less than 7,000 out of the 8,836 serving during the Confederate bombardment of Fort Sumter.
“You do know, I assume, that there were more federal troops — which includes federal naval assets — in the vicinity of Ft. Sumter than CSA troops, don’t you?”
No, on the contrary, I know you have lied outlandishly; because the “federal troops” were very few and were vastly outnumbered by the 7,000 or more Confederate troops and 120 cannon. Major Anderson had only 85 troops under his command at Fort Sumter. The relief expedition only carried 200 recruits when it departed. The relief expedition subsequently failed to arrive intact outside the Charleston bar at the harbor entrance, because many of the ships and the tug boats became separated during the a strong storm. On of the ships was re-directed by Presidential order as it departed New York Harbor with its recruits to man another fortress being threatened by Confederate troops. Even if the expedition had brought all of the 200 recruits, the storm at sea delayed their arrival until it was too late, and they had no ability to get past the hulks the Confederates sunk at the harbor entrance to stop just such a reinforcement of Fort Sumter. So, the reality is that Maj. Anderson’s command of only 85 men were vastly outnumbered by more than 7,000 Confederate troops and 120 cannon with no substantial reinforcements in the vicinity.
Not only were there NOT more “federal troops” in “the vicinity” of Fort Sumter and Charleston, South Carolina, the Confederate troops in South Carolina vastly numbered all of the U.S. Army troops in the Eastern United States east of the Mississippi River! The U.S. Army at the time was organized into 21 regiments composed from 197 companies. Some 179 companies of the total of 197 companies were stationed at 79 forts, garrisons, and outposts scattered across the wide expanses of the Western United States. This left only 18 companies to man 18 garrisons across the entire Eastern United States, with many of them in garrisons along the border with British Canada. It normally required 20 companies to compose 2 regiments of troops, so the entire U.S Army forces in the Eastern United States amounted to slightly less than two regiments. South Carolina had more companies and regiments than that just on a couple of the islands bombarding Maj. Anderson and his 85 men in Fort Sumter. So, not only were there not any significant U.S. Army troops available in the vicinity to reinforce Fort Sumter, the Confederate troops in South Carolina had five times the number of U.S. Army regiments east of the Mississippi River, making the Union states extremely vulnerable to Confederate attacks.
From: CWSAC
Fort Sumter
Other Names: None
Location: Charleston County
Campaign: Operations in Charleston Harbor (April 1861)
Date(s): April 12-14, 1861
Principal Commanders: Maj. Robert Anderson [US]; Brig. Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard [CS]
Forces Engaged: Regiments: 580 total (US 80; CS est. 500)
Estimated Casualties: None
Description: On April 10, 1861, Brig. Gen. Beauregard, in command of the provisional Confederate forces at Charleston, South Carolina, demanded the surrender of the Union garrison of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. Garrison commander Anderson refused. On April 12, Confederate batteries opened fire on the fort, which was unable to reply effectively. At 2:30 pm, April 13, Major Anderson surrendered Fort Sumter, evacuating the garrison on the following day. The bombardment of Fort Sumter was the opening engagement of the American Civil War. Although there were no casualties during the bombardment, one Union artillerist was killed and three wounded (one mortally) when a cannon exploded prematurely while firing a salute during the evacuation on April 14.
Result(s): Confederate victory
CWSAC Reference #: SC001
Preservation Priority: III.1 (Class A)