flock to the colors. However, in January 1779
he was reinforced and replaced by Gen. Au-
gustin Prevostof Florida. That same month
Campbell was detailed with 900 men and or-
dered to capture Augusta, Georgia, deep in
the interior of the state. He did so by the end
of January, but the anticipated influx of Loyal-
ist sympathizers never materialized. Ameri-
can guerrilla forces commenced attacking his
supply lines as the nearby Creek and Chero-
kee Indians remained aloof, so Campbell had
little recourse but to abandon Augusta and re-
turn to Savannah in February. He next sailed
back to England on administrative leave, re-
ceiving a promotion to colonel as well as the
hand of Amelia Ramsay, daughter of noted
artist Allan Ramsay.
In 1779, Campbell was transferred to Ja-
maica as a brigadier general and ordered to
prepare its defenses against an anticipated
French attack. He did so in quick order, even
going to great lengths to organize a regiment
of free African American slaves. Conse-
quently, the French squadron under the
Comte d’Estaing deliberately avoided Ja-
maica and attacked Campbell’s former base
at Savannah instead. Campbell continued ad-
ministering his affairs capably and with little
fanfare until 1784, when he was promoted to
major general. He resigned shortly thereafter
and returned to England to receive appoint-
ment in the prestigious Order of Bath in 1785.
The following year Campbell ventured
abroad as the new governor of Madras, India,
where he served under Governor-Gen.
Charles Cornwallis. There he secured a
controversial treaty with the Nabob of Arcot
regarding the payment of his debts, which
was criticized by the East India Company for
its overall tone of leniency. However, the
high-minded Cornwallis lent his official
weight to the document, which remained in
force. In 1789, a lengthy bout of illness in-
duced Campbell to sail for England one final
time. After serving a brief stint in Parliament,
he died in London on March 31, 1791, and
was buried at Westminster Abbey. Although
largely forgotten today, Campbell was an ef-
fective British soldier and administrator dur-
ing the American Revolution.Bibliography
Campbell, Colin, ed. The Journal of Lieutenant Colonel
Archibald Campbell During the Invasion of Geor-
gia, 1777–1779.Darien, GA: Ashantilly Press, 1981;
Cashin, Edward J. Augusta and the American Revo-
lution: Events in the Georgia Back Country,
1777–1783. Darien, GA: Ashantilly Press, 1975;
Davis, Robert S. “The British Invasion of Georgia in
1778.” Atlanta Historical Journal24 (1980): 5–25;
Davis, Robert S. “Portrait of a Governor.” Atlanta
Historical Journal 26 (1982): 45–48; Furlong,
Patrick J. “Civilian-Military Conflict and the Restora-
tion of the Royal Province of Georgia, 1778–1782.”
Journal of Southern History38 (1972): 415–422;
Howe, Archibald. “Letters and Memoirs of Sir
Archibald Campbell, Prisoner of War, Captured in
Boston Bay, June 17, 1776.” Bostonian Society Pub-
lications12 (1915): 63–95; Nunis, Doyce B., ed.
“Colonel Archibald Campbell’s March from Savan-
nah to Augusta, 1779.” Georgia Historical Quarterly
45 (1961): 275–286; Walcott, Charles H. Sir
Archibald Campbell of Inverneill; Sometime Pris-
oner of War in the Jail at Concord, Massachusetts.
Boston: Printed for the Author by T. Tood, 1898.CAMPBELL, ARCHIBALD