Dame Elizabeth Anne Griffiths (; 2 November 1932 – 3 March 2017) was a British librarian and

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

. She served as the personal archivist of

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

Early life and education

Griffiths was born as Elizabeth Anne Stevenson on 2 November 1932 in

Harrow on the Hill Harrow on the Hill or Harrow-on-the-Hill is a locality and historic village in the borough of London Borough of Harrow, Harrow in Greater London, England. The name refers to Harrow Hill, ,Mills, A., ''Dictionary of London Place Names'', (2001) ...

, London, as the oldest of four children. Her father was William Hugh Stevenson (1897–1972), who was a house master at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

and a former international rugby player. Her mother was Elizabeth Margaret Wallace (1902–1985). One of her brothers is the investment banker Sir Hugh Stevenson. From the age of 13, she was educated at

St Leonards School St Leonards School is a co-educational private boarding and day school for pupils aged 4–19 in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. Founded in 1877 as St Andrews School for Girls Company, it adopted the St Leonards name upon moving to its current pre ...

, a

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

, Scotland. She then trained at Mrs Hoster's Secretarial College in London.

Career

In 1952, at the age of 19, Griffiths began working as a lady clerk in the

Office of the Duke of Edinburgh The Royal Households of the United Kingdom are the collective departments that support members of the British royal family. Many members of the royal family who undertake public duties have separate households. They vary considerably in size, f ...

. Her initial appointment was temporary, and was expected to end after the

coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. Elizabeth acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon th ...

, but the high quality of her work led to a full-time position. In the course of her role, Griffiths became one of the first two British women to cross the

Antarctic Circle The Antarctic Circle is the most southerly of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of Earth. The region south of this circle is known as the Antarctic, and the zone immediately to the north is called the Southern Temperate Zone. So ...

, when she joined

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

aboard the

royal yacht A royal yacht is a ship used by a monarch or a royal family. If the monarch is an emperor the proper term is imperial yacht. Most of them are financed by the government of the country of which the monarch is head. The royal yacht is most often c ...

to travel to the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. She left Philip's office in 1960, when she married David Griffiths, and was appointed

Member of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

(MVO) in recognition of her service. Griffiths returned to work at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

in 1983 after her husband's death. She served as a librarian and archivist until 2017. Griffiths worked in an office next to Philip's

drawing room A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained, and an alternative name for a living room. The name is derived from the 16th-century terms withdrawing room and withdrawing chamber, which remained in use through the 17th ce ...

. Her role included cataloguing his collection of books and papers, conducting research for his speeches, answering enquiries, and liaising with journalists. Her service was recognised with a number of honours: in the Royal Victorian Order, she was promoted to lieutenant (LVO) in 1988 and commander (CVO) in 1995, and finally made a dame commander (DCVO) in 2005. In 2011, she was one of the few non-royal guests invited to

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

for Philip's 90th birthday lunch. She continued working until a month before her death in 2017.

Personal life

She married David Latimer Griffiths on 22 September 1960. During their marriage they lived in

Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; ) is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council claimed it to be about ...

, Zimbabwe, and in Australia. They had five children: Peter, Edward, Sarah, Michael and Caroline. Anne and David remained married until David's death in 1983. Caroline died in 1986. Griffiths had interests in several sports. She supported

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

, and was a season ticket holder for many years. She also enjoyed watching rugby, cricket, golf and tennis. Griffiths was a Christian and was actively involved in her local church, St Mark's Regents Park, where she served as a

churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion, Lutheran Churches or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' mem ...

. She was also a supporter of the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

Death and memorials

Griffiths died on 3 March 2017, at the age of 84, from

duodenal cancer Duodenal cancer is a cancer in the first section of the small intestine known as the duodenum. Cancer of the duodenum is relatively rare compared to stomach cancer and colorectal cancer. Its histology is usually adenocarcinoma. Familial adenomatou ...

. Her memorial service was held at St Mark's Regents Park in May, and was attended by Philip as one of his final public appearances before his retirement. A

stained glass window Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

was installed in her memory in St Mark's Church in 2018. The window was created by Graham Jones and depicts a flying dove, on a background of green, blue and red.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Anne 1932 births 2017 deaths British archivists British librarians British women librarians Dames Commander of the Royal Victorian Order People educated at St Leonards School 20th-century British women 21st-century British women People from Harrow on the Hill British Anglicans