Up until a few weeks before the attack, a food arrangement had been made and they were being fully fed.
"Up until a few weeks before.." One of the last messages that the Lincoln administration had from Major Anderson warned that he didn't have enough supplies to hold out for more than a few weeks. Without any reason to doubt his warnings then Lincoln quite rightly launched a resupply effort, making it clear to the Davis regime through a message to Governor Pickens that the effort was meant to land food only, and would only land men and munitions if opposed. And had Davis been interested in a peaceful solution then he would have held his fire and that is what would have happened.
...yeah, on a fleet of heavily armed warships with explicit directions to fire upon anything and everything that denies them access to Charleston harbor.
A prudent decision, given the confederate propensity to fire on anything and everything flying the U.S. flag.
Lincoln's orders to fight their way into the harbor say differently.
U.S. actions say different. In the three months leading up to the southern attack, and inspite of a number of provocations, the Lincoln administration had not made a single aggressive action.
South Carolina revoked that deed with their secession ordinance. Since the land was in their state and since they were no longer governed by the United States government, they had every right to revoke the deed as they saw fit. Of course the north had a competing claim that SC was still a state thereby making the land theirs, but that is the nature of the dispute itself. You may choose to argue that side, but other is still there. The fact is it simply wasn't as clear cut as you would have us believe.
Even if the southern secession had been legal, that did not automatically transfer title to Sumter or any other federal facility to them.
It sure did when the SC government voided all the previous acts tying it to the US govt.
Without any reason to doubt his warnings then Lincoln quite rightly launched a resupply effort
Though there is nothing inherently wrong about sending food, much does depend upon the manner of delivery he intended. It is the difference between ringing the doorbell and showing up at 2am with a shotgun. Lincoln, being the reckless warmonger that he was, chose the shotgun route.
making it clear to the Davis regime through a message to Governor Pickens that the effort was meant to land food only, and would only land men and munitions if opposed.
False. Lincoln did not say he would land men if opposed. Nor did he say that he would fight his way in if opposed, though those are the exact orders he gave to his fleet. He said only that he was coming with food and that he would NOT land men if his ships were recieved. His memo to Pickens was a carefully phrased message - Clintonesque really - designed to decieve and provoke. Besides, even if Lincoln said he wasn't going to land men both his manner of delivery and past experience gave Pickens more than ample reason to oppose it. The same yankees who had tried to sneak arms into Sumter previously sent a naval fleet this time to accomplish their goal. It's just like the guy at the door with a shotgun demanding entry - I don't care how many times he promises that he won't shoot it at me, my house, or my family. The fact is he's standing there with a shotgun while simultaneously making threats of breaking the door down and that is reason enough for me to deny him entry.
And had Davis been interested in a peaceful solution then he would have held his fire and that is what would have happened.
Davis was interested in a peaceful solution. That is why over a month earlier he sent representatives to Washington to negotiate the dispute over Sumter with Lincoln. Lincoln refused to even meet with them and instead went ahead plotting his war.