Originally posted by JimL
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He was told to hold the three forts, and an attack would be seen as aggression, hostilities. The orders also acknowledged that his force was too small for the task, and that concentrating his forces in one fort was probably the prudent move.
His orders were clear, he was to hold the harbor, and the initiative was left to Anderson (how he should execute the orders).
So two points: How he was to deploy his paltry force was up to Anderson, and if fired on, it would be seen as hostile, he would need to respond.
In my opinion, the Confederates opened fore to spark hostilities to prevent the (unlikely) resupply of the fort. Men on both sides recognized the gravity of firing on the fort. It was really small battle, not much to study compared to other battles of the war. But the interesting part is the behind the scenes negotiations, and how it affect the actions of the principle actors in the drama, the men on the ground, especially Beauregard and Anderson, who had been close friends.
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