William Augustus Bowles

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"Bowles was born in Maryland in 1763. He joined the British forces in America at an early age, but was dismissed from his post. He took refuge with the Creek Indians, learned their language, married a chief’s daughter, and lived the life of an adventurer. The unorthodox and romantic dress he wears in the portrait is illustrative of this unconventional life.
In 1781 he was reinstated by the British forces, and commanded the Creeks in General Arthur Campbell’s defence of Pensacola. Later, in 1790, he came to England, where he was to promote a mad-cap scheme for the invasion of Mexico. He was twice captured by the Spanish: the first time he escaped to Sierra Leone, but the second time, in 1799, was fatal. He was imprisoned in the Moro Castle at Havana and died there in 1805." *