Jacques David Martin de Campredon (Montpellier, 13 January 1761 – Montpellier, 11 April 1837)
Jacques-David Martin de Campredon was the son of a noble secretary to the King and chancellor at Montpellier. He entered as a second lieutenant at the Mézières school in 1780 and was licensed engineer and lieutenant 2nd class in 1782. He was promoted to lieutenant 1st class in 1785, to captain in 1791. He was an assistant teacher of fortification at the École Centrale des Travaux Publics from December 1794 to June 1795, then being promoted to battalion chief. On his promotion to brigade chief in 1797, he became chief of staff of the engineers at the Armée d’Italie, replacing Chasseloup when the latter was absent. He became a brigadier at the end of 1799. In 1806 he was named commander-in-chief of the engineers of the Armée de Naples. Campredon directed the siege of Gaeta, after which he was promoted to lieutenant general. He was the Neapolitan War Minister in 1809 and was the first director of the corps of roads and bridges. In 1812 he participated in the Russian campaign, in 1813 he was besieged at Dantzig, was wounded in October and taken prisoner at the capitulation on 2 January 1814. He went back to France in June, was created a baron, then a member of the conseil de perfectionnement of the École polytechnique. He was appointed inspector general of studies in military schools in 1818. He was decorated with the order of the Two Sicilies (Grand dignitary in 1808), that of Saint Louis (Grand Cross in 1827) and the Legion of Honour (Grand Cross in 1814), and was also created a Peer of France in 1835. (Cf. SHD, 7Yd 435, De Mattia, Fausto and Felicita de Negri, 1988. Il Corpo di Ponti e Strade dal decennio francese alla riforma del 1826, in Il Mezzogiorno preunitario. Economia, società, istituzioni, ed. Angelo Massafra. Bari, Dedalo: 449-458, Foscari, Giuseppe. 2000. Dalla Scuola al Corpo: l’ingegnere meridionale nell’Ottocento preunitario, in Amministrazione, formazione e professione: gli ingegneri in Italia tra Sette e Ottocento, ed. Luigi Blanco. Bologna: Il Mulino: 379-396).