Civil war at begins Fort Sumtter South Carolina
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Edwin Ruffin was called a fire eater,as were many,because of the firey speech they spoke.He was though to have shot the first shot of the war,but it was accually the first shot to hit Fort Sumtter. I here declare my unmitigated hatred to Yankee rule -- to all political, social and business connection with the Yankees and to the Yankee race. Would that I could impress these sentiments, in their full force, on every living Southerner and bequeath them to every one yet to be born! May such sentiments be held universally in the outraged and down-trodden South, though in silence and stillness, until the now far-distant day shall arrive for just retribution for Yankee usurpation, oppression and atrocious outrages, and for deliverance and vengeance for the now ruined, subjugated and enslaved Southern States! ...And now with my latest writing and utterance, and with what will be near my latest breath, I here repeat and would willingly proclaim my unmitigated hatred to yankee rule--to all political, social and business connections with Yankees, and the perfidious, malignant and vile Yankee race. |
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Placed in charge of the South Carolina troops in Charleston Harbor, he won the nearly bloodless victory at Fort Sumter. "The Little Creole" was hailed throughout the South. Ordered to Virginia, he commanded the forces opposite Washington and created the Confederate Army of the Potomac. April 12 1861 The first shots of the Civil War ring out, as Confederate troops—under the command of Pierre Beauregard, open fire upon Ft. Sumter. Confederates batteries fire for 34 straight hours and the Union colors fall. No Union soldiers died during the actual battle, although a Union soldier bled to death due to a wound from a misfiring cannon during a 100 gun salute that the Union troops were allowd before thier retriet. |
 
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As far back as the Declaration of Independence in 1776, slavery and states rights were issues. While drafting the Declaration, Thomas Jefferson fought against slavery and his initial draft blamed King George III for it being in the colonies. On July 13, 1787 the Continental Congress adopted the Northwest Ordinance banning slavery in territories northwest of the Ohio River. The early fight for State’s Rights began in South Carolina in the 1820s. John Calhoun wrote about “Nullification.” The point of nullification was to give states the right to nullify or void, any acts by Congress or the Federal Government that transgressed upon ANY right the state considered its own. |
 
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Events such as the Dred Scott Decision infuriated the people of the North. In this decision, the US Supreme Court in 1857 declared slaves as property with no rights to citizenship. Then came the election of 1860 when Abraham Lincoln was elected president without the majority vote. This Republican President from Springfield, Illinois was the eventual catalyst for the secession of the Southern states. On December 20, 1860 South Carolina voted an ordinance of secession from the Union. In doing so it was repealing its 1788 ratification of the Constitution. December 24, 1860 marked the official day of secession. |
 
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"First shot of the Civil War" was NOT fired at Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. The first shot was actually the Firing on the Union Ship "Star of the West" off Morris Island on January 10, 1861. Lieutenant George S. James was ordered to make the shot,he ordered Roger Prior to make the shot and he declined,Lieutenent Farly was the one that shot the true first shot,but he missed the target. Reference |