 but decisive indeed ; they were very cool and took care not to fire except their guns were exceedingly well directed . "   General Clinton began movements to cross over to the northern end of Sullivan 's Island . Assisted by two sloops of war , the flotilla of longboats carrying his troops came under fire from Colonel William Thomson 's defenses . Facing a withering barrage of grape shot and rifle fire , Clinton abandoned the attempt .   Around noon the frigates Sphinx , Syren , and Actaeon were sent on a roundabout route , avoiding some shoals , to take a position from which they could enfilade the fort 's main firing platform and also cover one of the main escape routes from the fort . However , all three ships grounded on an uncharted sandbar , and the riggings of Actaeon and Sphinx became entangled in the process . The British managed to refloat Sphinx and Syren , but Acteon remained grounded , having moved too far onto the submerged sandbar . Consequently , none of these ships reached its intended position , a piece of good fortune not lost on Colonel Moultrie : " Had these three ships effected their purpose , they would have enfiladed us in such a manner , as to have driven us from our guns . "   At the fort , Moultrie ordered his men to concentrate their fire on the two large man @-@ of @-@ war ships , Bristol and Experiment , which took hit after hit from the fort 's guns . Chain shot fired at Bristol eventually destroyed much of her rigging and severely damaged both the main- and mizzenmasts . One round hit her quarterdeck , slightly wounding Parker in the knee and thigh . The shot also tore off part of his britches , leaving his backside exposed . By mid @-@ afternoon , the defenders were running out of gunpowder , and their fire was briefly suspended . However , Lee sent more ammunition and gunpowder over from the mainland , and the defenders resumed firing at the British ships ; Lee even briefly visited the fort late in the day , telling Colonel Moultrie , " I see you are doing very well here , you have no occasion for me , I will go up to the town again . " Admiral Parker eventually sought to destroy the fort 's walls with persistent broadside cannonades . This strategy failed due to the spongy nature of the palmetto wood used in its constructions ; the structure would quiver , and it absorbed the cannonballs rather than splintering . The exchange continued until around 9 : 00 pm , when darkness forced a cessation of hostilities , and the fleet finally withdrew out of range .   At one point during the battle , the flag Moultrie had designed and raised over the fort was shot down . Sergeant William Jasper reportedly ran to the battlement and raised the flag again , holding it up and rallying the troops until a flag stand could be provided . He was credited by Moultrie with reviving the troops ' spirits , and later given commendations for bravery . A painting of this event ( pictured above ) depicts Jasper 's actions .   Counting casualties , Parker reported 40 sailors killed and 71 wounded aboard Bristol , which was hit more than 70 times with much damage to the hull , yards , and rigging . Experiment was also badly damaged with 23 sailors killed and 56 wounded . Active and Solebay reported 15 casualties each . The Americans reported their casualties at only 12 killed and 25 wounded . The following morning , the British , unable to drag the grounded Acteon off the sandbar , set fire to the ship to prevent her from falling into enemy hands . Patriots in small boats sailed out to the burning ship , fired some of its cannons at the British ships , took what stores and loot they could , and retreated shortly before the ship 's powder magazine exploded .   = = Aftermath = =   The British did not attempt to take the fort again . Within days of the battle , Charlestonians learned of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia . The British troops were reembarked on their transports , and on July 21 the British fleet withdrew northward to help the main British army in its campaign against New York City . To add insult to injury , one of the British transports grounded off Long Island and was captured by Patriot forces .   The British did not return to Charleston until 1780 , when General Clinton successfully besieged the city and captured an entire army . Until the South again became a focus of the war in late 1778 , its states provided military supplies to the northern war effort and produced trade goods that brought in valuable hard currency to fund the war effort .   Admiral Parker and General Clinton engaged in a war of words after the battle , each seeking to cast the blame on the other for the expedition 's failures . Although Clinton was not blamed by the government , popular opinion held him responsible , and Parker was lauded for his personal bravery .   = = Legacy = =   Fort Sullivan was renamed Fort M
Ġbut Ġdecisive Ġindeed Ġ; Ġthey Ġwere Ġvery Ġcool Ġand Ġtook Ġcare Ġnot Ġto Ġfire Ġexcept Ġtheir Ġguns Ġwere Ġexceedingly Ġwell Ġdirected Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠGeneral ĠClinton Ġbegan Ġmovements Ġto Ġcross Ġover Ġto Ġthe Ġnorthern Ġend Ġof ĠSullivan Ġ' s ĠIsland Ġ. ĠAss isted Ġby Ġtwo Ġsl oops Ġof Ġwar Ġ, Ġthe Ġfl ot illa Ġof Ġlong boats Ġcarrying Ġhis Ġtroops Ġcame Ġunder Ġfire Ġfrom ĠColonel ĠWilliam ĠThomson Ġ' s Ġdefenses Ġ. ĠF acing Ġa Ġw ithering Ġbarrage Ġof Ġgrape Ġshot Ġand Ġrifle Ġfire Ġ, ĠClinton Ġabandoned Ġthe Ġattempt Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAround Ġnoon Ġthe Ġfrig ates ĠSph inx Ġ, ĠSy ren Ġ, Ġand ĠAct ae on Ġwere Ġsent Ġon Ġa Ġround about Ġroute Ġ, Ġavoiding Ġsome Ġsho als Ġ, Ġto Ġtake Ġa Ġposition Ġfrom Ġwhich Ġthey Ġcould Ġen fil ade Ġthe Ġfort Ġ' s Ġmain Ġfiring Ġplatform Ġand Ġalso Ġcover Ġone Ġof Ġthe Ġmain Ġescape Ġroutes Ġfrom Ġthe Ġfort Ġ. ĠHowever Ġ, Ġall Ġthree Ġships Ġgrounded Ġon Ġan Ġunch arted Ġsand bar Ġ, Ġand Ġthe Ġr igg ings Ġof ĠAct ae on Ġand ĠSph inx Ġbecame Ġentangled Ġin Ġthe Ġprocess Ġ. ĠThe ĠBritish Ġmanaged Ġto Ġref lo at ĠSph inx Ġand ĠSy ren Ġ, Ġbut ĠAct eon Ġremained Ġgrounded Ġ, Ġhaving Ġmoved Ġtoo Ġfar Ġonto Ġthe Ġsubmerged Ġsand bar Ġ. ĠConsequently Ġ, Ġnone Ġof Ġthese Ġships Ġreached Ġits Ġintended Ġposition Ġ, Ġa Ġpiece Ġof Ġgood Ġfortune Ġnot Ġlost Ġon ĠColonel ĠM oult rie Ġ: Ġ" ĠHad Ġthese Ġthree Ġships Ġeffected Ġtheir Ġpurpose Ġ, Ġthey Ġwould Ġhave Ġen fil aded Ġus Ġin Ġsuch Ġa Ġmanner Ġ, Ġas Ġto Ġhave Ġdriven Ġus Ġfrom Ġour Ġguns Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠAt Ġthe Ġfort Ġ, ĠM oult rie Ġordered Ġhis Ġmen Ġto Ġconcentrate Ġtheir Ġfire Ġon Ġthe Ġtwo Ġlarge Ġman Ġ@ - @ Ġof Ġ@ - @ Ġwar Ġships Ġ, ĠBristol Ġand ĠExperiment Ġ, Ġwhich Ġtook Ġhit Ġafter Ġhit Ġfrom Ġthe Ġfort Ġ' s Ġguns Ġ. ĠChain Ġshot Ġfired Ġat ĠBristol Ġeventually Ġdestroyed Ġmuch Ġof Ġher Ġrigging Ġand Ġseverely Ġdamaged Ġboth Ġthe Ġmain - Ġand Ġm iz zen m asts Ġ. ĠOne Ġround Ġhit Ġher Ġquarter deck Ġ, Ġslightly Ġwounding ĠParker Ġin Ġthe Ġknee Ġand Ġthigh Ġ. ĠThe Ġshot Ġalso Ġtore Ġoff Ġpart Ġof Ġhis Ġb rit ches Ġ, Ġleaving Ġhis Ġback side Ġexposed Ġ. ĠBy Ġmid Ġ@ - @ Ġafternoon Ġ, Ġthe Ġdefenders Ġwere Ġrunning Ġout Ġof Ġgun powder Ġ, Ġand Ġtheir Ġfire Ġwas Ġbriefly Ġsuspended Ġ. ĠHowever Ġ, ĠLee Ġsent Ġmore Ġammunition Ġand Ġgun powder Ġover Ġfrom Ġthe Ġmainland Ġ, Ġand Ġthe Ġdefenders Ġresumed Ġfiring Ġat Ġthe ĠBritish Ġships Ġ; ĠLee Ġeven Ġbriefly Ġvisited Ġthe Ġfort Ġlate Ġin Ġthe Ġday Ġ, Ġtelling ĠColonel ĠM oult rie Ġ, Ġ" ĠI Ġsee Ġyou Ġare Ġdoing Ġvery Ġwell Ġhere Ġ, Ġyou Ġhave Ġno Ġoccasion Ġfor Ġme Ġ, ĠI Ġwill Ġgo Ġup Ġto Ġthe Ġtown Ġagain Ġ. Ġ" ĠAdmiral ĠParker Ġeventually Ġsought Ġto Ġdestroy Ġthe Ġfort Ġ' s Ġwalls Ġwith Ġpersistent Ġbroad side Ġcannon ades Ġ. ĠThis Ġstrategy Ġfailed Ġdue Ġto Ġthe Ġsp ong y Ġnature Ġof Ġthe Ġpal met to Ġwood Ġused Ġin Ġits Ġconstruct ions Ġ; Ġthe Ġstructure Ġwould Ġqu iver Ġ, Ġand Ġit Ġabsorbed Ġthe Ġcannon balls Ġrather Ġthan Ġspl inter ing Ġ. ĠThe Ġexchange Ġcontinued Ġuntil Ġaround Ġ9 Ġ: Ġ00 Ġpm Ġ, Ġwhen Ġdarkness Ġforced Ġa Ġcessation Ġof Ġhostilities Ġ, Ġand Ġthe Ġfleet Ġfinally Ġwithdrew Ġout Ġof Ġrange Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAt Ġone Ġpoint Ġduring Ġthe Ġbattle Ġ, Ġthe Ġflag ĠM oult rie Ġhad Ġdesigned Ġand Ġraised Ġover Ġthe Ġfort Ġwas Ġshot Ġdown Ġ. ĠSergeant ĠWilliam ĠJasper Ġreportedly Ġran Ġto Ġthe Ġbatt lement Ġand Ġraised Ġthe Ġflag Ġagain Ġ, Ġholding Ġit Ġup Ġand Ġrallying Ġthe Ġtroops Ġuntil Ġa Ġflag Ġstand Ġcould Ġbe Ġprovided Ġ. ĠHe Ġwas Ġcredited Ġby ĠM oult rie Ġwith Ġrev iving Ġthe Ġtroops Ġ' Ġspirits Ġ, Ġand Ġlater Ġgiven Ġcommend ations Ġfor Ġbravery Ġ. ĠA Ġpainting Ġof Ġthis Ġevent Ġ( Ġpictured Ġabove Ġ) Ġdepicts ĠJasper Ġ' s Ġactions Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠCount ing Ġcasualties Ġ, ĠParker Ġreported Ġ40 Ġsailors Ġkilled Ġand Ġ71 Ġwounded Ġaboard ĠBristol Ġ, Ġwhich Ġwas Ġhit Ġmore Ġthan Ġ70 Ġtimes Ġwith Ġmuch Ġdamage Ġto Ġthe Ġhull Ġ, Ġyards Ġ, Ġand Ġrigging Ġ. ĠExperiment Ġwas Ġalso Ġbadly Ġdamaged Ġwith Ġ23 Ġsailors Ġkilled Ġand Ġ56 Ġwounded Ġ. ĠActive Ġand ĠSole bay Ġreported Ġ15 Ġcasualties Ġeach Ġ. ĠThe ĠAmericans Ġreported Ġtheir Ġcasualties Ġat Ġonly Ġ12 Ġkilled Ġand Ġ25 Ġwounded Ġ. ĠThe Ġfollowing Ġmorning Ġ, Ġthe ĠBritish Ġ, Ġunable Ġto Ġdrag Ġthe Ġgrounded ĠAct eon Ġoff Ġthe Ġsand bar Ġ, Ġset Ġfire Ġto Ġthe Ġship Ġto Ġprevent Ġher Ġfrom Ġfalling Ġinto Ġenemy Ġhands Ġ. ĠPatriots Ġin Ġsmall Ġboats Ġsailed Ġout Ġto Ġthe Ġburning Ġship Ġ, Ġfired Ġsome Ġof Ġits Ġcannons Ġat Ġthe ĠBritish Ġships Ġ, Ġtook Ġwhat Ġstores Ġand Ġloot Ġthey Ġcould Ġ, Ġand Ġretreated Ġshortly Ġbefore Ġthe Ġship Ġ' s Ġpowder Ġmagazine Ġexploded Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠAfter math Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠThe ĠBritish Ġdid Ġnot Ġattempt Ġto Ġtake Ġthe Ġfort Ġagain Ġ. ĠWithin Ġdays Ġof Ġthe Ġbattle Ġ, ĠCharleston ians Ġlearned Ġof Ġthe Ġsigning Ġof Ġthe ĠDeclaration Ġof ĠIndependence Ġin ĠPhiladelphia Ġ. ĠThe ĠBritish Ġtroops Ġwere Ġre emb ark ed Ġon Ġtheir Ġtransports Ġ, Ġand Ġon ĠJuly Ġ21 Ġthe ĠBritish Ġfleet Ġwithdrew Ġnorth ward Ġto Ġhelp Ġthe Ġmain ĠBritish Ġarmy Ġin Ġits Ġcampaign Ġagainst ĠNew ĠYork ĠCity Ġ. ĠTo Ġadd Ġinsult Ġto Ġinjury Ġ, Ġone Ġof Ġthe ĠBritish Ġtransports Ġgrounded Ġoff ĠLong ĠIsland Ġand Ġwas Ġcaptured Ġby ĠPatriot Ġforces Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe ĠBritish Ġdid Ġnot Ġreturn Ġto ĠCharleston Ġuntil Ġ17 80 Ġ, Ġwhen ĠGeneral ĠClinton Ġsuccessfully Ġbesieged Ġthe Ġcity Ġand Ġcaptured Ġan Ġentire Ġarmy Ġ. ĠUntil Ġthe ĠSouth Ġagain Ġbecame Ġa Ġfocus Ġof Ġthe Ġwar Ġin Ġlate Ġ17 78 Ġ, Ġits Ġstates Ġprovided Ġmilitary Ġsupplies Ġto Ġthe Ġnorthern Ġwar Ġeffort Ġand Ġproduced Ġtrade Ġgoods Ġthat Ġbrought Ġin Ġvaluable Ġhard Ġcurrency Ġto Ġfund Ġthe Ġwar Ġeffort Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠAdmiral ĠParker Ġand ĠGeneral ĠClinton Ġengaged Ġin Ġa Ġwar Ġof Ġwords Ġafter Ġthe Ġbattle Ġ, Ġeach Ġseeking Ġto Ġcast Ġthe Ġblame Ġon Ġthe Ġother Ġfor Ġthe Ġexpedition Ġ' s Ġfailures Ġ. ĠAlthough ĠClinton Ġwas Ġnot Ġblamed Ġby Ġthe Ġgovernment Ġ, Ġpopular Ġopinion Ġheld Ġhim Ġresponsible Ġ, Ġand ĠParker Ġwas Ġlauded Ġfor Ġhis Ġpersonal Ġbravery Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠLegacy Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠFort ĠSullivan Ġwas Ġrenamed ĠFort ĠM