At the age of 20, on July 17, 1830, he enlisted as a volunteer in the ranks of the then 22nd Battalion of Hunters, based in the Fortress of Nossa Senhora de Assunção, commissioned as an ensign on May 20, 1839, and being confirmed on September 2, 1839, and a lieutenant on December 2, 1839.

He was then given command of the Police Corps of the Court of Rio de Janeiro and was promoted to colonel on December 2, 1861, and to brigadier general on February 18, 1865.

His son, Olegário Antônio de Sampaio, was an infantry brigadier general in the Brazilian Army and played a prominent role in the repression of the Revolta da Armada and the War of Canudos.

His grandson, Antônio Paiva de Sampaio, also pursued a military career, having distinguished roles in various conflicts in the first half of the 20th century, such as the São Paulo Revolt of 1924 and the Constitutionalist Revolution.

On May 24, 1966, during the centenary of his death and the Battle of Tuyutí, his remains were removed to a mausoleum on Avenida Bezerra de Menezes in Fortaleza where they remained until May 24, 1996, when he was permanently buried in the Brigadeiro Sampaio Pantheon, erected in front of the Nossa Senhora da Assunção Fortress, headquarters of the 10th Military Region.

In 1996, the Brigadeiro Sampaio Pantheon was opened in Fortaleza in front of the Fortress of Nossa Senhora da Assunção , with the transfer of his remains to the site.