The Horn Work on Marion Square

Marion Square was once the site of the Horn Work, an extensive fortress whose name came from the two half-bastions flanking its King Street gateway that resembled the horns of a bull. Built to defend Charleston during the French and Indian War, it was left unfinished after the threat passed, then construction resumed in 1775 when the Revolutionary War reached the city, and the fortification became the tactical center of Patriot defenses. From April 1 through early May 1780, British troops, 12,500 men commanded by Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton, laid siege to Charleston while laborers directed by French engineers, including many enslaved people, hastily built earthworks to enclose the Horn Work's exposed south side, and eighteen large cannons stood on elevated platforms in its northern wall. By May 11, 1780, Major General Benjamin Lincoln knew surrender of the American forces was inevitable. After the war, in 1784, Charleston began demolishing the Horn Work as the city expanded, and in 1882 the park was named for Revolutionary War hero Brigadier General Francis Marion.

Charleston, South Carolina · United States