Camden in Kershaw County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

Maj. Gen. Baron Johann de Kalb's Original Gravesite

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2017

1. Maj. Gen. Baron Johann de Kalb's Original Gravesite Marker

Inscription. Johann de Kalb (1721 - 1780) had a distinguished career in the French army and later served as a spy for the French Court, touring the British American colonies in 1768. He returned to America with the Marquis de Lafayette in 1777 to assist the American revolutionaries, and Congress appointed him a major general in the Continental Army. Having led the Maryland and Delaware Continental troops to the South in 1780, he fought heroically at the Battle of Camden, where he received 11 gunshot and bayonet wounds. He was treated at the British military hospital at Camden by Lord Cornwallis’s own surgeons, and reportedly told a British officer: “I die the death I always prayed for: the death of a soldier fighting for the rights of man.” He died on August 19 and was buried at this location with full military honors. Disinterred in 1825, his body was reburied at Bethesda Presbyterian Church on DeKalb Street.

“Too much honor cannot be paid by Congress, to the memory of the Baron De Kalb. He was every thing an excellent officer should be, and in the cause of the United States, he has sacrificed his life.” Gen. Horatio Gates

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, US Revolutionary. A significant historical year for this entry is 1768.

Location. 34°

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14.039′ N, 80° 36.453′ W. Marker is in Camden, South Carolina, in Kershaw County. It is at the intersection of Meeting Street and Church Street, on the right when traveling west on Meeting Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Camden SC 29020, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Midlands

and in the Olde English District. It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Deep South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Presbyterian Meeting House (a few steps from this marker); The Camden Oak (within shouting distance of this marker); Revolutionary War Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Southwest Redoubt (within shouting distance of this marker); Agnes of Glasgow 1760 ~ 1780 (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); West Redoubt (about 700 feet away); a different marker also named West Redoubt (about 700 feet away); Quaker Burying Ground (about 700 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Camden.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Southwest Redoubt (was about 300 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Photographed by Mark Parker, April 7, 2024

2. Maj. Gen. Baron Johann de Kalb's Original Gravesite Marker

Photographed by Anna Inbody, November 8, 2011

3. Maj. Gen. Baron Johann de Kalb's Original Gravesite Marker

Photographed by Anna Inbody, November 8, 2011

4. Overview

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, November 5, 2017

5. Maj. Gen. Baron Johann de Kalb's Original Gravesite Marker

Picture on the marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Anna Inbody, November 8, 2011

6. Picture on the marker

Battle of Camden, So Ca Death of Genl De-Kalb Engraving by Adam B. Walter. Private collection W. Polk.

Photographed by Anna Inbody, November 8, 2011

7. Picture on the marker

"The Death of DeKalb" colored by B. Caroline Baxley from an engraving of a painting by Alonzo Chappel.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 11, 2024. It was originally submitted on November 9, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 2,198 times since then and 90 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 7, 2017, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. 2. submitted on April 10, 2024, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. 3, 4. submitted on November 9, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. 5. submitted on November 7, 2017, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. 6, 7. submitted on November 9, 2011, by Anna Inbody of Columbia, South Carolina. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.