Guy Griffiths
Encyclopedia
Captain Guy Griffiths (6 June 1915 – 12 July 1999) was a Royal Marine Pilot from 1938 to 1953.
where his father was a senior Admiralty Civil Servant. Commissioned in the Royal Marines
on 1 September 1934, ‘Griff’ was on HMS Resolution off the coast of Spain during the Spanish Civil War. In 1938 his elder brother was killed in the Indian Army. He took up flying in January that year and was eventually assigned to 803 Naval Air Squadron
flying Blackburn Skua
dive-bombers aboard HMS Ark Royal (91)
.
Eleven days into World War II
, HMS Ark Royal picked up an S.O.S from the merchant ship SS Fanad Head
under attack from U30. Three Skuas, including one piloted by Griffiths conducted the first British Naval bombing of the war. Due to the incorrect fuse arming in relation to the height of attack, the bomb explosions of Griff’s aircraft and that of Lt Thurstan RN damaged the tails of both planes, and they crashed into the sea with the loss of each air observer. Griff and Thurstan were the first Naval Officers captured in the war.
At the time of their capture, the POW camp infrastructure was only just developing; those in captivity found their conditions relatively relaxed. Griff was placed in a number of POW camps – including Spangenburg Castle (Oflag IX-A/H
) and Dulag luft
– before incarceration in Stalag Luft III
.
Stalag Luft III achieved world wide notoriety thanks to the The Great Escape (film)
released in 1963. During Griff’s time in captivity there, he put his considerable artistic skills to good use. He was a forger, producing fake documents as required, and he also produced detailed paintings of aeroplanes based on aspects of those in current production, to provide misinformation to the enemy.
Griff was also in contact with MI9
(British Military Intelligence Section 9) - his letters to the Globe & Laurel (the Royal Marines Corps’ publication) contained encrypted details for MI9 of identities of personnel in the camp.
Griff spent the remainder of the war in Stalag Luft III. In 1945 he led the captives of his camp out to the Americans after being mistaken by Germans as being a Hungarian Officer.
Following World War II, Griff underwent significant re-training to fly the latest aircraft. Once flying again, he served aboard HMS Glory (R62)
. During the Korean War
, he was instrumental in providing the first visual confirmation of a downed MiG 15 jet, which led to the first capture of this type by the west.
In later years, from 1953 to 1958, Griff became the Editor of the Globe & Laurel publication. He also ran the Bolero coffee shop in Chichester
(West Sussex, England). Between 1969 and 1980, he was domestic superintendent for the Royal West Sussex Hospital, and subsequently the whole Chichester district. Griff died from a heart attack on July the 12th, 1999 aged 84.
Biography
Guy Griffiths was born in 1915 at Pembroke DockPembroke Dock
Pembroke Dock is a town in Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales, lying north of Pembroke on the River Cleddau. Originally a small fishing village known as Paterchurch, the town was greatly expanded from 1814 onwards following the construction of a Royal Naval Dockyard...
where his father was a senior Admiralty Civil Servant. Commissioned in the Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
on 1 September 1934, ‘Griff’ was on HMS Resolution off the coast of Spain during the Spanish Civil War. In 1938 his elder brother was killed in the Indian Army. He took up flying in January that year and was eventually assigned to 803 Naval Air Squadron
803 Naval Air Squadron
803 Naval Air Squadron was a Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm squadron.-Interwar:803 NAS was formed on 3 April 1933 by promoting No 409 Flight to the status of a squadron, with nine Ospreys...
flying Blackburn Skua
Blackburn Skua
The Blackburn B-24 Skua was a carrier-based low-wing, two-seater, single-radial engine aircraft operated by the British Fleet Air Arm which combined the functions of a dive bomber and fighter. It was designed in the mid-1930s, and saw service in the early part of the Second World War...
dive-bombers aboard HMS Ark Royal (91)
HMS Ark Royal (91)
HMS Ark Royal was an aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy that served during the Second World War.Designed in 1934 to fit the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, Ark Royal was built by Cammell Laird and Company, Ltd. at Birkenhead, England, and completed in November 1938. Her design...
.
Eleven days into World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, HMS Ark Royal picked up an S.O.S from the merchant ship SS Fanad Head
SS Fanad Head
The SS Fanad Head was a British cargo steamer. She was torpedoed and sunk in the Second World War.-Early history:The Fanad Head was built by Workman, Clark & Co Ltd, Belfast for G. Heyn & Sons Ltd. She was completed in 1917 and homeported in Belfast...
under attack from U30. Three Skuas, including one piloted by Griffiths conducted the first British Naval bombing of the war. Due to the incorrect fuse arming in relation to the height of attack, the bomb explosions of Griff’s aircraft and that of Lt Thurstan RN damaged the tails of both planes, and they crashed into the sea with the loss of each air observer. Griff and Thurstan were the first Naval Officers captured in the war.
At the time of their capture, the POW camp infrastructure was only just developing; those in captivity found their conditions relatively relaxed. Griff was placed in a number of POW camps – including Spangenburg Castle (Oflag IX-A/H
Oflag IX-A/H
Oflag IX-A/H was a German Prisoner of War camp at Spangenberg castle in Germany during the Second World WarIt was used from 1939 to 1945, and housed mainly British POWs but also some French Air Force personnel early in the war....
) and Dulag luft
Dulag luft
thumb|right|Sgt. Edward Hill of [[Manchester, England]], freed from five years of captivity at Dulag Luft, by the American Seventh Armored Division, First Army, circa 29 March 1945...
– before incarceration in Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
.
Stalag Luft III achieved world wide notoriety thanks to the The Great Escape (film)
The Great Escape (film)
The Great Escape is a 1963 American film about an escape by Allied prisoners of war from a German POW camp during World War II, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough...
released in 1963. During Griff’s time in captivity there, he put his considerable artistic skills to good use. He was a forger, producing fake documents as required, and he also produced detailed paintings of aeroplanes based on aspects of those in current production, to provide misinformation to the enemy.
Griff was also in contact with MI9
MI9
MI9, the British Military Intelligence Section 9, was a department of the British Directorate of Military Intelligence, part of the War Office...
(British Military Intelligence Section 9) - his letters to the Globe & Laurel (the Royal Marines Corps’ publication) contained encrypted details for MI9 of identities of personnel in the camp.
Griff spent the remainder of the war in Stalag Luft III. In 1945 he led the captives of his camp out to the Americans after being mistaken by Germans as being a Hungarian Officer.
Following World War II, Griff underwent significant re-training to fly the latest aircraft. Once flying again, he served aboard HMS Glory (R62)
HMS Glory (R62)
HMS Glory was a Colossus-class aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy laid down on 8 November 1942 by Stephens at Govan. She was launched on 27 November 1943 by Lady Cynthia Brookes, wife of the Prime Minister of Northern Ireland...
. During the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, he was instrumental in providing the first visual confirmation of a downed MiG 15 jet, which led to the first capture of this type by the west.
In later years, from 1953 to 1958, Griff became the Editor of the Globe & Laurel publication. He also ran the Bolero coffee shop in Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
(West Sussex, England). Between 1969 and 1980, he was domestic superintendent for the Royal West Sussex Hospital, and subsequently the whole Chichester district. Griff died from a heart attack on July the 12th, 1999 aged 84.