Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 8th earl of and 1st marquess of, British And Irish History, Biographies

Related Category: British And Irish History, Biographies

Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 8th earl of and 1st marquess of 1607–61, Scottish statesman. He became chief of the powerful Campbell clan at the death (1638) of his father, the 7th earl. A staunch Presbyterian, he was a leading opponent of Charles I's attempt to strengthen episcopacy in Scotland. Charles sought to win his support by making him a marquess (1641), but after the outbreak of the English civil war Argyll represented the Covenanters in negotiating (1643) the alliance with the English parliamentarians. He commanded the Covenanter army against the earl of Montrose and was repeatedly defeated (1644–45). In 1646, Argyll negotiated with both the defeated Charles and the English Parliament, attempting to secure a Presbyterian settlement in England. He later supported Oliver Cromwell but suffered a serious loss of influence because of the revulsion of feeling in Scotland at the king's execution (1649). Hoping that Charles II could be restored as a Presbyterian king, Argyll turned from Cromwell and crowned (1651) Charles II in Scotland. He opposed the disastrous Scottish invasion of England in that year and submitted to the English Commonwealth in 1652. He was executed for treason at the Restoration.

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