After being repulsed twice trying to take Fort Wagner by storm, Maj. Gen. Quincy Adams Gillmore decided on a less costly approach and began laying siege to the fort. In the ensuing siege Union forces besieged the Confederate works on Morris Island with an array of military novelties. Union gunners made us of a new piece of artillery known as the Requa gun: 25 rifle barrels mounted on a field carriage. While sappers dug zig-zag trenches toward Fort Wagner a second novelty was used; the calcium floodlight. Bright lights were flashed upon the defenders blinding them enough to decrease accurate return fire while the Union gunners fired safely behind the lights. This article is becoming very long. ... August 17 is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... September 7 is the 250th day of the year (251st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1863 (MDCCCLXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Morris Island in South Carolina, USA, is an 840 acre (3. ... Fort Sumter, located in Charleston, South Carolina, was named after General Thomas Sumter. ... Motto Deo Vindice (Latin: Under God, Our Vindicator) Anthem God Save the South (unofficial) Dixie (traditional) The Bonnie Blue Flag (popular) Capital Montgomery, Alabama (until May 29, 1861) Richmond, Virginia (May 29, 1861–April 2, 1865) Danville, Virginia (from April 3, 1865) Language(s) English (de facto) Government Republic President... Civil War–era portrait of Gillmore. ... Rear Admiral John Adolph Dahlgren, USN, (1809-1870), son of the Swedish Consul in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, made his career in the United States Navy. ... Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard (BO-rih-gahrd) (May 28, 1818 – February 20, 1893), best known as a general for the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, was also a writer, civil servant, and inventor. ... X Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War. ... This article presents an overview of major military and naval operations in the Lower Seaboard Theater of the American Civil War. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Robert Anderson P.G.T. Beauregard Strength 85 soldiers 500 soldiers Casualties 1 dead 5 injured 4 injured The Battle of Fort Sumter (April 12 – April 13, 1861), was a relatively minor military engagement at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... The Battle of Fort Pulaski was fought on April 11, 1862, between Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. ... The Battle of Forts Jackson and St. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Officer David G. Farragut and Maj. ... The Battle of Secessionville occurred on June 16, 1862 in the American Civil War. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America Commanders Lt. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders A.J. Drake J.W. Pearson Strength 1 gunboat Osceola Rangers, company Casualties 0 0 The Battle of Tampa was a minor engagement of the American Civil War fought June 30–July 1, 1862, between the United States Navy and... Combatants Confederate States of America United States of America Commanders John C. Breckinridge Thomas Williams† and Thomas W. Cahill Strength 2600 2500 Casualties 478 dead 371 dead The Battle of Baton Rouge (or Magnolia Cemetery) was a ground and naval battle in the American Civil War fought in East Baton... Combatants Confederate States of America United States of America Commanders Capt. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America Commanders John M. Brannan Charles F. Hopkins Strength 2 infantry regiments, 1 artillery battery, and 1 cavalry company (1,500) 1 artillery battery, and 1 cavalry company Casualties Unknown Unknown The Battle of Saint Johns Bluff (also called St. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Capt. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Nathaniel P. Banks Richard Taylor Strength Department of the Gulf, XIX Corps Army of Western Louisiana Casualties 234 (estimated) 450 (estimated) The Battle of Fort Bisland was fought between Union Major General Nathaniel P. Banks against Confederate Major General Richard... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Nathaniel Prentice Banks Richard Taylor Strength Army of the Gulf, XIX Corps Army of Western Louisiana Casualties 350 (estimated) unknown The Battle of Irish Bend, also known as Niersons Wood or Franklin, was fought between Union Major General Nathaniel... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Nathaniel Prentice Banks Richard Taylor Strength Department of the Gulf, XIX Corps Army of Western Louisiana Casualties unknown unknown The Battle of Vermillion Bayou was fought on April 17, 1863, the third battle in a series of running battles between... The First Battle of Fort Wagner was fought on July 11, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces. ... The Storming of Fort Wagner Fort Wagner (also called Battery Wagner) was a fortification on Morris Island, South Carolina, that covered the southern approach to Charleston harbor. ... The Second Battle of Fort Sumter was fought on September 8, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Christopher C. Augur Frank W. Powers William R. Miles Strength 1st Division, XIX Army Corps, Army of the Gulf  ? Casualties 150 100 The Battle of Plains Store or the Battle of Springfield Road was fought May 21, 1863 in East... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Nathaniel P. Banks Franklin Gardner Strength XIX Army Corps, Army of the Gulf Confederate forces, 3rd District, Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana, Port Hudson Casualties 5,000 7,208 The Siege of Port Hudson occurred in the summer of... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America Commanders A.A. Semmes John Westcott Strength USS Tahoma, USS Adela 2nd Florida Infantry, Company A Casualties 16 Unknown The Battle of Fort Brooke was a minor engagement fought October 12 through October 18, 1863, near Tampa, Florida, during the... Gainesville, site of a crucial railroad junction and depot in north central Florida, was the scene of small-scale fighting during the Civil War. ... The Battle of Olustee was a battle in the American Civil War which took place near Lake City, Florida on February 20, 1864. ... The Battle of Natural Bridge was a battle during the American Civil War, fought near Tallahassee, Florida on March 6, 1865. ... Civil War–era portrait of Gillmore. ... Morris Island in South Carolina, USA, is an 840 acre uninhabited island in Charleston Harbor, accessible only by boat. ...

The Confederate defenders had advantages also. The ground the Union sappers were digging through was shallow sand with a muddy base. The trenching efforts also began to accidentally uncover Union dead from the previous assaults on Fort Wagner. Despite this, by mid August Gillmore had his siege guns within range of Fort Sumter. On August 17th he opened fire and during the first day of the bombardment nearly 1,000 shells were fired upon Fort Sumter. By August 23rd the masonry had been turned to rubble and General Pierre Beauregard removed as many of the fort's guns as possible. Gillmore wired the War Department that "Fort Sumter is a shapeless and harmless mass of ruin". Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard (BOH-rih-gahrd) (May 28, 1818 – February 20, 1893), best known as a general for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War, was also a writer, civil servant, and inventor. ...

Gillmore's attention returned to Fort Wagner. Despite the marshy conditions on Morris Island, Union forces had constructed powerful batteries to combat Fort Wagner. One such battery officially known as the Marsh Battery, was dubbed the "Swamp Angel". This 200-pound parrott rifle hurled 35 shots into the city of Charleston itself, but on the 36th shot the gun exploded. Conditions within Fort Wagner were becoming intolerable and the garrison commander informed General Beauregard that he now had only 400 men capable of defending the fort. Therefore on the evening of September 6-7, Beauregard ordered Confederate forces to abandon their positions on Morris Island. On September 7 Union troops occupied Fort Wagner. A 200-pound Parrott rifle in Fort Gregg on Morris Island, South Carolina, 1865. ...

Fort Wagner had withstood 60 days of constant bombing and held off a much larger Union army. The Union army and navy had captured an important position at the mouth of Charleston Harbor and reduced it's most notorious fortress into rubble. However the city of Charleston and Fort Sumter itself would remain in Confederate control until William T. Sherman's armies marched through South Carolina in 1865. Portrait of William Tecumseh Sherman by Mathew Brady William Tecumseh Sherman (February 8, 1820 – February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, and author. ...