Francis Grenfell, 1st Baron Grenfell
Encyclopedia
Field Marshal
Francis Wallace Grenfell, 1st Baron Grenfell, GCB
, GCMG
, PC
(29 April 1841 – 27 January 1925) was a British Army
officer.
. He was born near Kilvey hill in Swansea
, the son of Pascoe St Leger Grenfell and Catherine Anne Grenfell (born Du Pre).
His parents paid for him to be educated at Milton Abbas School in Dorset
, but he left school early, and, rather than join his family's copper business in Upper and Middle Bank Works in the Lower Swansea Valley, he sat the army entrance examinations, and in 1859 purchased a commission in the 3rd Bn 60th Royal Rifles. In 1873 he purchased a commission as captain (in the last year in which purchase was allowed). After serving in various colonial campaigns in the 1870s, including the 9th Cape Frontier War
and the Zulu War
, he was made Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General in the Transvaal in 1881, being promoted Colonel
the following year. He was also, in 1882, made aide-de-camp
to Queen Victoria
as well as sent to fight in Egypt
, becoming Sirdar
of that country's army in 1885.
Appointed CB
in 1885, Grenfell was knight
ed as a KCB
the following year and promoted Major General
in 1889. He commanded the forces at Suakim and Toski
in 1889, and, in recognition of the transformation he had achieved in making the Egyptian Army
a successful fighting force, he was appointed GCMG
on leaving Egypt in 1892. Two years later he became Inspector General
of Auxiliary Forces at the War Office
, and in 1897 he returned to Egypt to command the British forces there during the expedition to Khartoum
, for which he became GCB
the following year. He then became Governor
of Malta
in 1899, a post he held for four years.
In 1902 he was created Baron Grenfell, of Kilvey in the County of Glamorgan
.
In 1904, after commanding the 4th Army Corps, Francis Grenfell was promoted General
. That same year he was made Commander in Chief of British forces in Ireland
, and retired four years later as a Field Marshal
.
He was a founding committee member of the Pilgrims Society
in 1902.
Lord Grenfell died aged 83 at Windlesham
in Surrey
, and was buried at Beaconsfield
in Buckinghamshire
.
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
Francis Wallace Grenfell, 1st Baron Grenfell, GCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, GCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, PC
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
(29 April 1841 – 27 January 1925) was a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer.
Military career
Francis Wallace Grenfell was descended from Pascoe GrenfellPascoe Grenfell
Pascoe St Leger Grenfell was a British business man and politician.-Biography:He was born at Marazion, in Cornwall. His father and uncle were merchants in the tin and copper business. Grenfell studied at Truro Grammar School before joining his father's business in London...
. He was born near Kilvey hill in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, the son of Pascoe St Leger Grenfell and Catherine Anne Grenfell (born Du Pre).
His parents paid for him to be educated at Milton Abbas School in Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, but he left school early, and, rather than join his family's copper business in Upper and Middle Bank Works in the Lower Swansea Valley, he sat the army entrance examinations, and in 1859 purchased a commission in the 3rd Bn 60th Royal Rifles. In 1873 he purchased a commission as captain (in the last year in which purchase was allowed). After serving in various colonial campaigns in the 1870s, including the 9th Cape Frontier War
Xhosa wars
The Xhosa Wars, also known as the Cape Frontier Wars, were a series of nine wars between the Xhosa people and European settlers, from 1779 to 1879 in what is now the Eastern Cape in South Africa....
and the Zulu War
Anglo-Zulu War
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom.Following the imperialist scheme by which Lord Carnarvon had successfully brought about federation in Canada, it was thought that a similar plan might succeed with the various African kingdoms, tribal areas and...
, he was made Deputy Assistant Quartermaster General in the Transvaal in 1881, being promoted Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
the following year. He was also, in 1882, made aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
as well as sent to fight in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, becoming Sirdar
Sirdar (Egypt)
Sirdar - a variant of Sardar, a long-standing of Indo-Aryan rank - was assigned to the British Commander-in-Chief of the nineteenth century Egyptian Army...
of that country's army in 1885.
Appointed CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
in 1885, Grenfell was knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
ed as a KCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
the following year and promoted Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
in 1889. He commanded the forces at Suakim and Toski
Battle of Toski
The battle of Toski took place on August 3rd, 1889 in Egypt between the Anglo-Egyptian forces and the Mahdist Sudanese.Since 1882, the British had taken control of Egypt and found themselves involved in the Sudan war. For this reason, they decided to reform and rearm the Egyptian Army...
in 1889, and, in recognition of the transformation he had achieved in making the Egyptian Army
Egyptian Army
The Egyptian Army is the largest service branch within the Egyptian Armed Forces and holds power in the current Egyptian government. It is estimated to number around 379,000, in addition to 479,000 reservists for a total of 858,000 strong. The modern army was created in the 1820s, and during the...
a successful fighting force, he was appointed GCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
on leaving Egypt in 1892. Two years later he became Inspector General
Inspector General
An Inspector General is an investigative official in a civil or military organization. The plural of the term is Inspectors General.-Bangladesh:...
of Auxiliary Forces at the War Office
War Office
The War Office was a department of the British Government, responsible for the administration of the British Army between the 17th century and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the Ministry of Defence...
, and in 1897 he returned to Egypt to command the British forces there during the expedition to Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
, for which he became GCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
the following year. He then became Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
in 1899, a post he held for four years.
In 1902 he was created Baron Grenfell, of Kilvey in the County of Glamorgan
Glamorgan
Glamorgan or Glamorganshire is one of the thirteen historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It was originally an early medieval kingdom of varying boundaries known as Glywysing until taken over by the Normans as a lordship. Glamorgan is latterly represented by the three...
.
In 1904, after commanding the 4th Army Corps, Francis Grenfell was promoted General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
. That same year he was made Commander in Chief of British forces in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and retired four years later as a Field Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
.
He was a founding committee member of the Pilgrims Society
Pilgrims Society
The Pilgrims Society, founded in 1902, is a British-American society established, in the words of American diplomat Joseph Choate, 'to promote good-will, good-fellowship, and everlasting peace between the United States and Great Britain'...
in 1902.
Lord Grenfell died aged 83 at Windlesham
Windlesham
Windlesham is a village in the Surrey Heath district of Surrey in South East England. It is also the name of the parish that covers Bagshot and Lightwater, in addition to Windlesham...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, and was buried at Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield is a market town and civil parish operating as a town council within the South Bucks district in Buckinghamshire, England. It lies northwest of Charing Cross in Central London, and south-east of the county town of Aylesbury...
in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
.
Further reading
- "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography"
- "The Times", 1925 January 28
- "Memoirs of Lord Grenfell" (1925)