Sub-Lieutenant T. L. G. Griffith, 2nd Battalion, 24th Foot 

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Copyright John Young Collection.

"Thomas Llewelyn George Griffith was born at Chadlington,
Oxfordshire, on 8 October 1857, eldest son of the Reverend Thomas
Llewelyn Griffith, M.A., of Pen-yNant, near Ruabon, North Wales, and
Rector OD Deal, Kent, and Mary Moncrieff, his wife, daughter of Brevet
Major George St Vincent Whitmore, Royal Engineers.

He was educated at Marlborough College and at the Priory at Croydon,
passing his Army examination as well as those at Sandhurst and
Edinburgh, where for a period he was attached to the 78th Highlanders.
On 14th August 1877 he was gazetted as a Sub-Lieutenant into the 2nd
Battalion, 24th Foot, his commission being antedated to 11 November
1876.

He joined the battalion at Chatham in October 1877, and on 1 February
1878 embarked with the regiment for the Cape of Good Hope. He was
present during many operations during the Kaffir War and saw much
service with his battalion. In November 1878, he joined the force
preparing for the invasion of Zululand, and took part in the
subsequent advance into that country, being present at the storming of
Sirayo’s stronghold in the Bashee Valley, afterwards proceeding to
Isandhlwana.

On the morning of 22nd January 1879, Griffith left Isandhlwana with
the main body of the column under Lord Chelmsford, but subsequently
rode back on special service with Major Smith, Captain Gardner and
Lieutenant Dyer, to convey the General’s orders to advance the camp.
Colonel Black, visiting the battlefield five months afterwards, for
the purpose of burying the dead, found the bodies of some sixty
officers and men lying in a group, giving evidence of their having
gathered together and fought desperately to the last. Among them were
the remains of Captain Wardell, Lieutenant Dyer and a captain and
subaltern of the 2-24th, the latter, it is believed, being the body of
young Griffith."

A memorial lectern in the parish church of St Leonard’s, Deal, marks
the estimation in which he was held by those round his own home,
having been placed there by friends in his father’s parish and the
neighbourhood. His South Africa medal with clasp 1877-8-9, incorrectly
named ‘Griffiths’, was issued on 30 June 1882. The above information
was extracted from The South African Campaign of 1879, by J. P.
Mackinnon and S. H. Shadbolt, and The Noble 24th, by Norman Holme.

Youngest of the battalion’s five officers killed at the battle of
Isandlwana.


http://1879zuluwar.forumotion.com/t2184-sub-lt-t-griffith-2nd-btn-24th-2nd-warwickshire-regiment?highlight=Griffith

A RARE medal won by a Oxfordshire-born soldier killed in the battle that inspired the film Zulu Dawn is set to fetch up to £28,000.

The silver South African Campaign Medal was awarded to Sub-Lieutenant Thomas Llewelyn George Griffith, from Chadlington, who was 21 when he was killed at the Battle of Isandhlwana on January 22, 1879. Griffith was among 2,300 men killed in the battle, which was the first major clash in the Anglo-Zulu War between the British and the Zulus.

The film Zulu Dawn, a prequel to the film Zulu, was released in 1979 on the 100th anniversary of the battle.

Sub-Lt Griffith, son of the Rev Thomas Griffith, was born at Chadlington on October 10, 1857, and train-ed at Sandhurst before he joined the 2nd Battalion, 24th foot.

He was the youngest of the battalion’s five officers killed at the battle. His silver medal – desc-ribed as being in a “virtually mint state” with an image of Queen Victoria – will be auctioned at Spink in Bloomsbury, London, on Thursday.

The Battle of Isand-hlwana was fought between 20,000 Zulus led by King Cetsh-wayo and 1,700 British and Colonial troops.

The Zulus were armed mainly with traditional Assegai iron spears and cow hide shields, although some had muskets and old rifles.

The British and Colonial troops were equipped with the then state-of-the-art Martini-Henry breech-loading rifles along with two seven pounder artillery pieces, as well as a rocket battery.

Despite a disadvantage in weapon technology, the numerically superior Zulus eventually overwhelmed the poorly-led and deployed British force. The battle was a decisive victory for the Zulus.

According to Spink: “On the morning of 22nd January, 1879, Griffith left Isandhlwana with the main body of the column under Lord Chelmsford, but subsequently rode back on special service with Major Smith, Captain Gardner and Lieutenant Dyer, to convey the general’s orders to advance the camp.

“Arriving at the very crisis of the tragedy which was being enacted, Lieutenant Griffith joined his company and fell in the discharge of his duty.”

The British Army returned to the battlefield five months later to bury their dead.

They found the bodies of 60 officers and men lying in a group, which suggested that they had gathered together and fought desperately to the last. Among them was thought to be Griffith.

Hi All.
i'm fairly certain there is a picture of the Griffith Medal on the forum from when it was auctioned fairly recently ?.
cheers 90th.

Sold for £28,000

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Among them were the remains of Captain Wardell, Lieutenant Dyer and a captain and
subaltern of the 2-24th, the latter, it is believed, being the body of
young Griffith."

So his body was, most likely found, even if the identity wasn't ascertained for certain.

Black found in a clump of 68 dead, Wardle 1/24th, Dyer 2/24th. I would say the Lt would most likly be Actkinson, the only Lt in H company.

"Griffith left Isandhlwana with the main body of the column under Lord Chelmsford, but subsequently
rode back on special service with Major Smith, Captain Gardner and Lieutenant Dyer, to convey the General’s orders to advance the camp"

That is an excellent suggestion DB14, can't fault your logic. One would expect young Griffith's remains to have been found with these officers, mentioned above.

Hi Tasker

Smith died on the trail, SD saw it and Curling helped buried him.
Gardner survied Isandlwana.

I would have thourght Griffith would have been with Pope ??


Cheers

Why?

I would have thought he would have been sent back to Chelmsford with a reply to the message he brought, as opposed to have being ordered to join Pope's company.

Hi Tasker

Gardner was sent with the message, Griffith, Dyer, Smith and McDowell returned to help their units pack the camp. Clearly they couldn't do that as the fight started, so would have gone to their places, Smith to the guns, Dyer and Griffith to the 2/24th men.


Cheers

So in that case, if you are saying Griffith rejoined his unit the 2/24th at the camp, why do you contradict Norman Holme and others and suggest that the body of the unidentified sub-altern found with Dyer, of the 2/24th, was Lt Atkinson? Atkinson was 1/24th.
Far more likely to have been Griffith.

Hi Tasker

The clump of 60 dead we are talking about were found behind the first battalions tents, they were H company 1/24th. Captain Wardle the officer commanding H company was found their.How Dyer ended up in that clump is anyone's geuss.
It being H company i would say the Lt would be Ackinson not Griffith.



Cheers

Since people are mentioning the "Dyer clump" can anyone point me to the source of Mr Snook's statement that Dyer had been assegaeid through the heart?
By the way - I was reading the old "History of the Anglo Saxons" (a Victorian book), and referring to the death of some anglo saxon king it mentioned him being despatched by the "hazagays" of the enemy, suggesting a derivation from a Spanish word along the lines of alzagay - presumably like kaffir an arabic word that entered the Bantu language from the slavers.
Sorry to randomly change the subject!

DB14, thanks understand your reasoning. It is just as likely that it the body could have been that of Griffith also, for the same reason??? that Dyer was there. But either way, that still leaves either Atkinson's or Griffith's body unaccounted for.
I would tend to go for it being Griffith, as that is what is suggested by at least 2 eminent historians in their works.

Quint, you can ask this Q to Mike directly on the Victorianwars forum - he is a member. If you get an answer, please share!

Surly it being H company you would expect the Lt to be from that Company ?

The historians are just geussing.



Cheers

Drummer Boy 14 wrote:

Surly it being H company you would expect the Lt to be from that Company ?

The historians are just geussing.



Cheers

Of course. As are you. But the hisrorians' guesses are more educated than yours or mine, aren't they?

Its a Lt body

It could be Ackinson or Griffith.

Ackinson should be thier, its his company

Griffith shouldn't be their, he did have any men.


Cheers

quint wrote:

Since people are mentioning the "Dyer clump" can anyone point me to the source of Mr Snook's statement that Dyer had been assegaeid through the heart?

Hi Quint

I believe its in the South African campain of 1879.


Cheers

Thanks DB14
Is that a modern book or some sort of contemporary report?
And where did they get the fact from?
All the best
Q

Hi

Its a book about all the officers that were killed in the Zulu War with photo's and a
short account of them. Apparently Dyer was found transfixed to the heart by a spear.

90th, got a link for this book ?




Cheers

Hi Quint

I don't have the book, but i think it might be Wilson Black, as they most likly
spoke to people who were there.



Cheers

Hi DB.
I had a poke around and the second one down is as cheap as I could find .


http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/1853672033/ref=sr_1_1_up_1_main_olp?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332283517&sr=1-1&condition=used
cheers 90th.