Sir Francis Charles Griffith (9 November 1878 – 16 November 1942) was a British police chief. He served as Inspector-General, Bombay Police and later became Chief Constable,

New Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

. Griffith was born in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, the son of British civil servant Francis Robert Griffith (1828 – 1901) and his wife Henrietta (née Sherman). He was the older brother of Sir Ralph Griffith, who served as governor of the

North West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November 1901 from ...

. He was educated at

Blundell's School Blundell's School is an Private schools in the United Kingdom, independent co-educational boarding school, boarding and Day school, day school in the English Public School (United Kingdom), public school tradition, located in Tiverton, Devon, T ...

in Tiverton before joining the

Indian Police Service The Indian Police Service (IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became Partition of India, independent from the British Empire. Along with the Indian Admini ...

at age 20. He worked nine years as a district officer in the Bombay Presidency, then served as assistant to the Inspector-General of the Presidency. In 1919, he was appointed

Police Commissioner of Bombay The Police Commissioner of Mumbai is the chief of the Mumbai Police, and an officer of the Indian Police Service. The Mumbai Police Commissioner is appointed by the Maharashtra State Government on the recommendation by the Establishment Board, ...

and three years later became Inspector-General of Bombay. Griffith was made an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1917 and a Companion of the

Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander ( GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointments ...

1923 In Greece, this year contained only 352 days as 13 days was skipped to achieve the calendrical switch from Julian to Gregorian Calendar. It happened there that Wednesday, 15 February ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Thursday, 1 March ' ...

. He was knighted in

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

before retirement from the Bombay Police. He returned to England and was appointed as Chief Constable,

. He was subsequently transferred to the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

for special work during the Second World War, but was forced to retire due to ill health. He died in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

in 1942, a week after his 64th birthday. He was survived by his wife, Ivy Morna (''née'' Jacob; whom he married in 1906 in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

), a son and daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffith, Francis Charles 1878 births 1942 deaths People educated at Blundell's School Companions of the Order of the Star of India Knights Bachelor Officers of the Order of the British Empire Chief Constables in the Metropolitan Police Indian Police Service officers in British India Police commissioners of Mumbai Indian justices of the peace