Subseries 2a. Correspondence and papers

The bulk of items in this subseries relate to John Campbell's role as commander in chief of British forces in colonial North America during the Seven Years' War, from 1756 to 1758. Subjects include British defeats at Fort Oswego and Fort William Henry; Campbell's failed expedition in 1757 to Nova Scotia to attack Fort Louisbourg; British outposts at Fort Edward and Fort No. 4; relationships with colonial governors, military, and assemblies; troop recruitment; frontier defenses; Campbell's commander in chief predecessors Edward Braddock and William Shirley, and his successors James Abercormby and Jeffrey Amherst; and military discipline and court martials, including the trial of Lord Charles Hay, 1759 to 1760. Also present is a small amount of material relating to the Revolutionary War, including letters from American loyalists and British officers; several written in spring 1775 detail the military actions at Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, Massachusetts.

Material consists of correspondence and circular letters, memorials, petitions, warrants for payments, returns (of officers and troops, recruits, artillery and supplies), memoranda, accounts, reports, minutes of councils and courts of inquiry, depositions, intelligence reports, and communications with British officials and cabinet members including the Secretary at War, the Secretary of State, the Board of Trade, and the royal family. Persons who appear frequently in this subseries are listed below.

This subseries contains several plans and maps of forts, roads, battle plans and lines, especially for expeditions in Nova Scotia against Fort Louisbourg on Cape Breton in 1757 (LO 6605, LO 3997) and 1758 (LO 5869, LO 5880).

A number of items pertain to British relations and interactions with Native American leaders and nations, especially the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy (the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora), the Delaware, the Shawnee, the Cherokee, and the Stockbridge. Material includes correspondence and reports of Major General William Johnson, who served as Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the northern colonies as well as Colonel of the Six Nations; Edmond Atkin, Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the southern colonies; and Peter Wraxall, Captain of New York Independent Company and Secretary of Indian Affairs. Also present are records of proceeding, councils, and treaties; intelligence reports from Native Americans; and accounts of gifts for tribes. Individuals documented include Teedyuscung, Delaware chief (including minutes of the Philadelphia council, August 1757), Dyaderowane, Cayuga chief; Ogaghradarisha, Six Nations chief; Canajageya, alias Old Kettle, sachem of the Onondaga, and of the chief of Nanticokes; and Captain Jacob Cheeksaunkun, Lieutenant Jacob Neva Nautphtonk (Naunuhptaung), and Sachem Benjamin of the Stockbridge Community; among others. Please note that period-specific language has been retained with some Native American materials, especially in titles of British personnel and in reports; spellings of some Indigenous peoples' names are based on original descriptions and may not be accurate.

Military personnel found in this subseries include Major Generals James Abercromby, Peregrine Thomas Hopson, Daniel Webb, and Edward Braddock; Adjutant General John Forbes; Rear Admiral Francis Holburne; John Calcraft, regimental agent; Lieutenant Colonel George Monro; John Winslow, general of provincial troops; Lieutenant Colonel John Bradstreet; James Gabriel Montresor, chief engineer; and a few items of French Lieutenant-general Louis-Joseph, marquis de Montcalm de Saint-Veran. Also present are letters of Lieutenant Colonel James Abercrombie, including several sent from Massachusetts in 1775.

Members of the 60th or Royal American Regiment represented include John Stanwix, colonel commandant 1st Battalion; Henry Bouquet, lieutenant colonel 1st Battalion, 60th Regiment; and James Prevost, colonel 4th Battalion. Other military personnel include Nathaniel Meserve, colonel of New Hampshire troops; Thomas Gage, lieutenant colonel, 44th Regiment; Robert Monckton, lieutenant colonel, 47th Regiment; Ralph Burton, lieutenant colonel, 48th Regiment; Major Charles Craven, 51st Regiment; Robert Rogers, ranging company captain; William Pepperrell, regiment colonel; and secretary to John Campbell, John Appy. Also present are numerous accounts of and warrants for payments to Abraham Mortier, deputy paymaster general at New York. This subseries contains correspondence and documents for numerous colonial governors and leaders including Robert Dinwiddie, William Shirley, Thomas Pownall, Horatio Sharpe, Benning Wentworth, William Denny, William Henry Lyttelton, Charles Hardy, and James De Lancey.

British royalty and political leaders present include Secretary at War William Wildman Barrington, 2nd Viscount Barrington; Secretary of State Robert D'Arcy, 4th Earl of Holderness; Secretary of State, Secretary at War, and Paymaster Henry Fox, 1st Baron Holland; and Secretary of State Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham. Also present is correspondence with William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, including a letter book; and appointments, orders, and instructions of King George II.

Autographed and/or signed items of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin in this subseries were removed during twentieth century processing to the George Washington collection or the Benjamin Franklin collection (see lists in Separated Materials notes); some contemporary copies or letters to Washington and Franklin remain in this collection.

A small amount of material included in this subseries during twentieth century processing does not relate to North America, especially from 1759 on. Some items present relate to the 30th Regiment of Foot, which was not deployed to North America.

Many documents in this subseries are contemporary copies, often with multiple copies present.

See also Stanley M. Pargellis, "Loudoun Papers: Colonial, 1756-58," The Huntington Library Bulletin, No. 3, Feb. 1933.