ASSAULTS.
Assault on Fort Sumter,
September 8, 1863.
At 10 p.m., September 8th, a landing party of 300 sailors and 100 marines was put in boats, taken in tow by a tug-boat, and towed to within 1000 yards of the breach at Fort Sumter. One division of 20 men was sent to the north-east face to make a feint, while the main body landed at the breach. Through a general misunderstanding the boats went in irregularly, but a few boats’ crews landed, and, no support being given, they were captured. The expedition was a total failure, no assault being made. Casualties: 3 killed, 27 wounded, 130 prisoners, 11 missing.
Assault on Fort Fisher,
January 15, 1865.
The assaulting column, composed of 1600 sailors and 400 marines, formed about a mile from the face of the fort (the fire of the fort being kept under by a heavy bombardment from the fleet) in four lines. The, marines forming the first line, were deployed as skirmishers, and advanced along the beach to a line of rifle-pits and occupied them within 600 yards of the sea-face of the fort. The other three lines advanced by the left flank (parallel to each other) along the beach, reaching the marines, and the column lay down while the fleet shelled the works, the marine line coming abreast the second line of sailors. At the word “Charge,” the column rose and charged by the flank to the stockade, extending from the salient of the fort to the water’s edge. Instead of keeping on past the stockade and then charging by the right flank up to the ditch, which would have brought the lines in proper position, the heads of the column turned up at the stockade and became mixed together. The charge was continued to the parapet, but the confusion of the wrong movement caused a break, ending in a panic, and the whole column retreated under a heavy fire from the fort, leaving about 60 men under the protection of the head of the stockade, who entrenched themselves there and stayed until the fort was taken by the troops entering at the other end of the fort. The assault was a failure in everything except as far as deceiving the besieged, who mistook it for the main assault, and thus permitted the 8000 troops at another point to gain a foothold. Casualties: killed, 80; wounded, 228; missing, 22.
Assault on the Corean Forts,
June 11, 1871.
The Monocacy (10 guns) and Palos (4 guns) steamed up the Salée River and disembarked a landing party of 546 sailors and 105 marines, taking with them a battery of seven boat-guns. Five forts were to be captured, situated at distances of from half a mile to three miles. The Monocacy, taking position abreast the first fort, shelled it vigorously, protecting the landing party and driving the Coreans from the earthworks and stone fort in about one hour. The landing party entered without resistance, capturing and destroying two 32-pdrs., six 18-pdrs., and twenty smaller pieces, 2 and 4 pdrs. The advance stopped for the night, the landing party going into camp outside of the fort. At daylight of the 11th the advance recommenced, the Monocacy keeping abreast and shelling the Coreans out of the second fort, which was occupied and dismantled. The citadel about three miles farther up the river was the next point to be captured, and had to be taken by assault. Marching to the crest of a hill within 150 yards of the citadel, the storming party were ordered to lie down for a rest, the skirmishing line of marines keeping up a fire on the parapet. A detachment of men and guns was sent to occupy a commanding position and hold a large body of Coreans in check that was forming in rear, while another detachment was sent to cut off the retreat from the citadel. A deep ravine lay between the storming line and the fort, and the walls of the citadel were twelve feet high, the only entrance being through a small breach made by the fire of the Monocacy. The citadel was stormed, and a foothold gained without a halt, and after a hard hand-to-hand fight, was captured. With the fall of the citadel the other forts were abandoned, whilst the detachment commanding the road of retreat of the Coreans put them under a severe fire. The assault was a complete success. Loss of the Coreans: killed, 243; wounded, unknown; prisoners, 22; five stone forts and 481 pieces of ordnance, comprising eleven 32-pdrs., fourteen 24-pdrs., two 20-pdrs., and the remainder 2 and 4 pdrs.; fifty flags, including the standard of the Generalissimo. Loss of United States: killed, 3; wounded, 10.
RÉSUMÉ.
Number of assaults noted, 3. Failures, 2. Success, 1. Of the failures, the first was too hastily planned to even make a commencement. Everything was confusion from the time that the boats were cast off from their tows. The second was primarily due to confusion of the assaulting columns at the most critical moment, followed by a panic.