Daniel Ammen, Confederate Military History, a library of Confederate States Military History: Volume 7.2, The Atlantic Coast
Clement Anselm Evans, Ed.

Headquarters naval and land forces, Charleston, S. C., January 31, 1863.

At the hour of five o'clock this morning the Confederate States naval forces on this station attacked the United States blockading fleet off the harbor of the city of Charleston, and sunk, dispersed, or drove off and out of sight, for the time, the entire hostile fleet. Therefore, we, the undersigned commanders, respectively, of the Confederate States naval and land forces in this quarter, hereby formally declare the blockade by the United States of the said city of Charleston, S. C., to be raised by a superior force of the Confederate States, from and after this 31st day of January, A. D. 1863.

G. T. Beauregard, General Commanding. D. N. Ingraham, Commanding Naval Forces in South Carolina. Official: Thomas Jordan, Chief-of-Staff.

The results of the engagement are: two vessels sunk, four set on fire, and the remainder driven away.

Yesterday afternoon General Beauregard placed a steamer at the disposal of the foreign consuls to see for themselves that no blockade existed. The French and Spanish Consuls accepted the invitation. The British Consul, with the commander of the British war-steamer Petrel, had previously gone five miles beyond the usual anchorage of the blockaders, and could see nothing of them with their glasses.

Late in the evening four blockaders reappeared, keeping far out. This evening a large number of blockaders are in sight, but keep steam up ready to run. The foreign consuls here held a meeting last night. They are unanimously of the opinion that the blockade of this port is legally raised. [This information appended is not attested.]

In relation to this extraordinary proclamation, Colonel Leckler and others wrote Admiral Dupont as follows: