British Major General Sir Henry Clinton and Commodore Sir Peter Parker attempted to capture Charleston (then the richest city in the US). Patriots repelled the British at the Battle of Fort Sullivan (later renamed Fort Moultrie for the Patriot commander who led the defense). South Carolina’s state flag would later be adopted from Moultrie’s flag, which included a crescent. A palmetto tree was added to the state flag to symbolize the British cannonballs being absorbed by the Palmetto logs used to construct Fort Sullivan.
