"C" is for Council of Safety

"C" is for Council of Safety. In June 1775, prompted by rumors of British-sponsored slave and Indian attacks and news of hostilities at Lexington and Concord, the Provincial Congress of South Carolina created a thirteen-member Council of Safety to act as the supreme executive authority in the province. Once the threat of slave revolt in the lowcountry subsided, the Council turned its attention to the backcountry. In addition to the Indian threat, a strong loyalist presence was emerging. The Council sent a delegation to meet with backcountry leaders, but without much success. By mid-November fighting erupted between Tories and Patriots and the Council directed military operations. In November 1775, the Provincial Congress elected a new Council of Safety that constituted the executive power of the province until the adoption of a permanent government in March 1776.