Samuel Cleaveland (ca. 1727-1794), a British artillery officer, assumed command of the First Royal Artillery Company in India in 1748, and served with the unit until 1762, when he was promoted to major following the successful capture of Havana. The same year, he transferred to the 4th Battalion of Royal Artillery; he served intermittently in North America until his permanent return to England in 1777. In 1781, Cleaveland commanded the 3rd Artillery Battalion, then stationed in England, and eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant general. He and his wife Mary had at least one son, who joined his father in North America during the war and was held prisoner at Philadelphia in 1776; Mary remained in London during the war.
From the guide to the Samuel and Mary Cleaveland letters, Cleaveland, Samuel and Mary letters, 1772-1776, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
