Matthew Chitty Darby, later Darby-Griffith, (1772–1823) was a British soldier and Major-General.

He was a son of Vice-Admiral George Darby

George Darby

Vice Admiral George Darby was an officer in the Royal Navy. He was the second son of Jonathan Darby III Esq. , of Leap Castle, in King's County, Ireland.-Early career:Darby joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer...

 and Mary daughter of Sir William St Quintin, 4th Baronet

Sir William St Quintin, 4th Baronet

Sir William St Quintin, 4th Baronet , of Harpham and Scampston in Yorkshire, was an English landowner and Member of Parliament.He was the eldest son of Hugh St Quintin Sir William St Quintin, 4th Baronet (c. 1700 – 9 May 1770), of Harpham and Scampston in Yorkshire, was an English landowner and...

. He took the additional name of Griffith upon inheriting the estate of Padworth

Padworth College

Padworth College is an independent co-educational senior school at Padworth, between Burghfield Common and Tadley in the English county of Berkshire....

 in the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county of Berkshire

Berkshire

Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...

.

Darby's thirty years' service in the Grenadier Guards

Grenadier Guards

The Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...

 included much action during the Napoleonic Wars

Napoleonic Wars

The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...

. He lost his leg at the Battle of Corunna

Battle of Corunna

The Battle of Corunna refers to a battle of the Peninsular War. On January 16, 1809, a French army under Marshal Soult attacked the British under Sir John Moore...

 in Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 in 1809, and was awarded the War Medal with one clasp for the part he played there.

He died on 7 August 1823 at Padworth House. He had married Lousia, daughter of Thomas Hankey Esq. of Fetcham Park

Fetcham Park

Fetcham Park House is a Grade II listed, Queen Anne mansion designed by the English architect William Talman with internal murals by the renowned artist Louis Laguerre and grounds originally landscaped by Capability Brown...

, 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 they became the parents of three sons and one daughter, including Christopher Darby-Griffith, MP and General Henry Darby-Griffith, CB.