Russia, Imperial. A Superb Order of the White Eagle, Grand Cross Set by Keibel, in Gold, Awarded to Field Marshal The Lord Grenfall, King’s Royal Rifle Corps: Commander-in-Chief of the Egyptian Army, ADC to Queen Victoria, Governor of Malta

(О́рден Бе́лого Орла́). Instituted 1 November 1705 by Augustus II. Re-instituted 1831 by Tsar Nicholas I. A beautiful sash badge, in Gold, featuring a black enameled double-headed Romanov Imperial Eagle with hand etched detailing, overlaid by a red enamelled Maltese Cross with white borders and ball finials, in turn bearing a Polish-style imperial eagle in Gold with white well executed enamel feathers, reverse with intricate black enameled feathers, overlaid by a red and white enameled cross with central MARIA monogram, the heads of the Romanov eagle each bearing a loop accommodating a suspension apparatus in the form of a Gold crown with blue, red, and white enamels, marked on the reverse of the eagle’s claw with a 56 zolotniki mark denoting Gold fineness, AK mark denoting Albert Keibel manufacture, also marked with AK and the court stamp on the integral suspension, the badge measures 61.1 mm (w) x 90.7 mm (h), weighs 86.13 grams, notable enamel damage to the blue pendilia, accompanied by a small segment of the grand cross sash in dark blue silk, an exquisite and rare decoration in extremely fine condition. 

The Star of the Order, in silver gilt, consisting of an eight-pointed radiant star with ribbed borders, obverse bearing a central applique featuring a red and white enameled Cross Pattée on a gilded background, inside a gilded ring, in turn surrounded by a ring of blue enamel featuring a raised gilt order motto of “PRO FIDE REGE ET LEGE” (“FOR FAITH, KING, AND LAW”), within a final ribbed gilt ring, reverse with a barrel hinge and tapering vertical pinback meeting a flat wire catch, maker marked Keibel, with 84 zolotniki silver mark, and 1865-96 assay office mark and court stamp on the base and underside of the pin, measures 89.9 mm (w) x 91.2 mm (h), enamel chip in the blue enamel ring, lovely toning, in extremely fine condition. 

Provenance:
Spink, July 2024, Auction: 24002. 
Spink, November 2011, when sold alongside his other Orders, Decorations, Medals & Field Marshal's Baton.'

Footnote:
As per Spink, July 2024: 

Field Marshal Francis Wallace, 1st Baron Grenfell, G.C.B., G.C.M.G. (1841-1925), was the son of Pascoe St. Leger Grenfell, M.P., and was educated at Milton Abbas School, Dorset and by the Reverend Warner, Torquay in preparation for the Army. He was commissioned 2nd Lieutenant into the 60th Rifles in 1859 and joined the 1st Battalion at Dover, recently returned from the Indian Mutiny. After a posting to Ireland, he left for Malta with the battalion in H.M.S. Simoom, March 1866. Whilst stationed in Malta:

'I had an alarming adventure which nearly cost me my life. I was training for a swimming match, and the trial was arranged to take place at night, so that the opponents could not take the time in which I did the distance. I jumped off a rock, and swam to a boat which had a lantern in the bows. When I had completed half the course I was seized by an enormous octopus. The weight and the horror were so great that I sank. I rose again, however, and yelled for the boat, fighting the monster, and tearing great pieces off it. I was nearly beat when the boat reached me, and I was so exhausted that I could not get into it. When a boat with a lantern approached, the creature flopped off and disappeared, leaving a number of torn tentacles round my body… I was towed into land and taken to Floriana Barracks, where I was very ill for three days with fever and exhaustion' (Memoirs of Lord Grenfell, refers).

Posted with the Battalion to Canada, September 1867, he was invalided home just before the Red River Expedition, after contracting severe rheumatism in the eyes as a consequence of a sledding expedition. Having taken medical advice Grenfell sought a transfer to a warmer climate, and exchanged with Captain Morris into the 2nd Battalion, then stationed at Benares, India and arrived in India in 1869:

'After some months at Benares, I left for Calcutta for the inauguration of the Order of the Star of India which took place there in the winter of 1870. The great Independent Princes, Rajahs and men of eminence - European and native - collected to receive their decorations. The Duke of Edinburgh was charged by the Queen with the duty of holding a Durbar of Investiture on the Maidan at Calcutta, Lord Mayo being Viceroy, Lord Sandhurst Commander-in-Chief, and I was fortunate enough to be appointed extra A.D.C. to the Commander-in-Chief for the ceremony... The scene was a remarkable one, hundreds of decorated elephants, thousands of natives: troops, European and native, lining the road from the river to Government House. On the day of the installation, Lord Marcus Beresford (7th Hussars) and I were told off as pages to Scindia, a very unpleasant and highly scented potentate. Our remarks, I fear, were not complimentary as we marched behind him with drawn swords, and we regretted to learn afterwards that he understood English thoroughly' (Ibid).

Returned to Benares after three months in Calcutta, before being posted to Darjeeling; whilst taking part in a hunting expedition Grenfell contracted fever and was invalided back to the England; he was posted to the 4th Battalion at Winchester in 1871 and, 'in 1873 having been twelve years a subaltern, and seeing no prospects of either promotion or active service, I had determined, with my father's approval, to leave the Service. I had sadly left my battalion at Portland; I had given away my uniform to my brother officers, and had been on leave for about a month, when I received an offer to accompany General Sir Arthur Cunynghame to South Africa as his A.D.C.'

South Africa in the 'Seventies
Grenfell embarked for Cape Town in S.S. Teuton, October 1873; however, he was plagued by his eye problem over the next two years, having to return to England twice during that period; on the last occasion Grenfell again considered a return to civilian life, but the thought of active service in the increasing turbulent area carried the day, 'and so against all advice, especially of my family, I decided I must start. I had been eighteen years in the Army and had never seen active service, and I felt that my destiny was now in my own hands. I ran down to Nottingham and said good-bye to my father, whom I was never to see again, and left by the Dunrobin Castle. At St. Helena the news was decidedly warlike, and when I landed at Cape Town, I heard that Kreli, Chief of the Galekas, was on the war-path. A column was ordered into his country and I received orders to join it as a Staff Officer. My presentiment was true. This was the tide which led (if not to fortune) at least to active service in the Galeka, Gaika, and Zulu Campaigns, the Transvaal Expedition, and the Egyptian Campaign including Tel-El-Kebir and the capture of Cairo. At the close of 1878 I was still a Captain, in September 1882 I was a full Colonel, and Aide-de-Camp to the Queen, whereas, had I hesitated to return, another officer would have gone in my place, and I might have missed the campaign and lost my promotion to Brevet-Major, I should not then have received my Lieutenant-Colonelcy at the close of the Zulu War.'

Operations Against the Galekas and the Gaikas, 1877-78
On 18 December 1877 Grenfell left King William's Town for the Transkei, and arrived at Ibeka (Cunynghame's HQ), two days later; Fingoes and a small force of Frontier Armed and Mounted Police had fought the Galekas on the site:

'I went over the ground covered with unburied bodies. Feldtman, the Fingo Chief, exhibited with pride to the General the head of the female witch, which he kept in a sack'; there were no pitched battles until the New Year, when Kreli's Galekas joined forced with Sandilli's Gaikas and attacked the fortified supply depot at Quintana in Galekaland; Grenfell had been despatched at the last minute by Cunynghame to assume command of the defence, 'when I got into camp in the early morning, I found the garrison at their posts, mounted men saddled up, and the Gaikas and Galekas reported about four miles out. Our total force was four hundred white men and five hundred and sixty Fingoes.

I was in a difficult position. I was aware that the General had sent me because he thought an officer senior to those with the small force should command… At the same time, I had only just arrived. I had not reconnoitered the ground, and the attack was almost in progress. So I decided under the circumstances, I would not assume command, and told Captain Upcher of the 24th I would serve under him. He then desired me to take command of the mounted men - the Frontier Horse under Carrington, the Mounted Police, and a detached company of the 24th, to work on the flank of the enemy... I venture to say there is no reminiscence so vivid as that of the first time of going into action... My little force galloped up to the left flank of the enemy's advance, and by my order, dismounted, and fired at the advancing Kaffirs, who came on with loud shouts, some in the open, some creeping up the kloofs, taking advantage of the long grass and the rocks; Sandilli's men attacked on the right, Kreli's on the left, meeting us with the discharge of motley weapons - rifles, blunderbusses, sporting guns, with slugs, potlegs, and bullets as ammunition; many armed with spears and assegais came pluckily on; but my object was not to stop the advance, but to bring the rebels under the infantry fire; so having inflicted severe punishment, we retired on the camp followed by hundreds of the enemy... The Kaffirs advanced steadily, singing their war song, constantly reinforced by fresh men who swarmed up the hill and through the bush. Their total strength was about four thousand men.

When well in the open and committed to the attack, the guns, a Naval Rocket Tube and entrenched infantry opened fire on them; many fell, and the others, after a plucky rush, broke and retired, throwing off their blankets, pursued by my men, the Fingo levy and the guns. About three hundred were found dead on the ground, while our loss was insignificant. Thus ended my first action... From this defeat the Galekas never recovered'

The following was addressed by Cunynghame to the Secretary of State for War:

'Captain Grenfell, 60th Rifles, my Senior A.D.C., has rendered during my command in S. Africa constant good service. In this war he has exerted himself most zealously: he has performed various duties - Commissary of Ordnance, and Staff Officer to Col. Glyn during his late successful campaign in Galekaland - he has accompanied the various columns for the last 3 months, and has commanded many useful Patrols. In the late decisive battle of Quintana he commanded the Cavalry, in pursuit - and contributed materially to the great success of the engagement. I beg most strongly to recommend him for a brevet Majority.'

Grenfell was promoted Major; reinforcements arrived and with them came Cunynghame's replacement - Lieutenant-General The Hon. F. Thesiger; in March 1878, 'the Staff of the new General consisted of Colonel North Crealock as his Military Secretary, Captains Gosset and Molyneux as A.D.C.'s, Evelyn Wood and Redvers Buller and others as Special Service Officers - the former to command his regiment, the 90th, the latter to raise the celebrated Frontier Light Horse which commanded in the Zulu war. I heard to my great joy from Buller that my services were to be retained in South Africa, and that I was to join the Headquarters Staff as D.A.A.G.'; and he was present for the drive of the Gaikas from the Gwili Gwili Mountains, April 1878; by the end of the following month the Gaikas were completely broken up, with Sandilli and most of the leading Chiefs killed.

Zulu War 1879
Having spent most of the summer of 1878 being occupied with the growing tensions emanating from Cetewayo's Zulus, Thesiger (now Lord Chelmsford) moved British forces into Zululand in January 1879; three columns were intended to effect a junction at the royal capital Ulundi, while two other bodies were positioned to prevent Zulu incursions into Natal and the Transvaal; Grenfell, in his capacity as D.A.A.G., 'was detained on the Headquarters Staff at Pietermaritzburg to forward all the troops as they landed to join their several columns'; the disaster at Isandhlwana occurred, and 'some three months after, when I was sent to accompany the first party which returned to Isandhlwana after the reorganisation of the force at Pietermaritzburg, I found dead bodies of about two companies of the 24th, lying with hundreds of cartridge cases around them, and their officers, who were then perfectly recognisable, lying with them... At the time this dreadful tragedy occurred, I, who had been left to bring up the last remnants of the force from Pietermaritzburg, having fulfilled my duty, had started on the 19th with orders to join Lord Chelmsford's Headquarters Staff wherever they might be... It was about 80 miles from Pietermaritzburg to Help Makaar, which was the first place where I could hope to rest. When I had got about half way, one of my horses fell lame; this delayed me for some time and I did not get to my destination till the evening after the defeat of our forces at Isandhlwana had taken place... The delay caused by my horse breaking down probably saved my life, as if it had been sound, I calculated I should have arrived at the camp of Isandhlwana after Lord Chelmsford's force had started, and before the Zulu attack in the morning…. On the 23rd January, having heard of the attack and gallant defence of Rorke's Drift, I rode with about two or three companies, which were all that could be spared from Help Makaar, towards Rorke's Drift.'

Death of the Prince Imperial
Having rejoined Lord Chelmsford Staff, Grenfell moved with the latter 'on May 24th… to Landmansdrift, and on June 1st the whole Division, under Lord Chelmsford, crossed the Blood River and marched to the Itelizi Hill, on this, practically first day of our advance into Zululand, occurred the dreadful tragedy of the death of the Prince Imperial. On March 27th the Prince Imperial joined the Force at Ladysmith, and I soon became fairly well acquainted with him... Reserved, self-restrained, yet longing for his chance, proud, brave and reckless, the blue blood of the Montijos was strongly developed… His craving for effect was shown in various ways. He seldom used his stirrup to mount his horse, but generally vaulted into the saddle, a practice which in all probability caused his death… In a reconnaissance with Buller's Horse, the Zulus gathered, and a fight seemed imminent, but when, on the advance of the detachment, they dispersed he charged them at full gallop. Buller, having reported this recklessness, refused to be responsible for him in future; he was therefore detailed to work with the Quartermaster-General, Colonel Harrison, who received a written order that the Prince should not be permitted to quit the camp without the express orders of the Commander-in-Chief… On the morning of June 1st the Prince begged Colonel Harrison to give him an escort and allow him to make a sketching expedition beyond the ground covered by the cavalry… For the escort six white men and six Basutos were told off, and placed (according to Colonel Harrison) under the command of Lieutenant Carey. That morning I had ridden with Colonel Harrison to the Itelizi and marked out the camp. After completing this duty, I was about to return to meet the advancing column, when I saw the Prince and Lieutenant Carey, accompanied by the escort of white men; Colonel Harrison had told me that there were also Basuto scouts, and I concluded that they were far away covering the party. As my work for the morning was over until the arrival of the column, which would not take place for some two or three hours, I told the Prince I would ride with him part of the way and look at the position of the camp in the Ityotyozi Valley, and we rode away - the Prince and I together, Carey behind. We rode seven or eight miles on a ridge which runs out into the Valley… We had a long talk, and before reaching the crest of the hill descending into the Ityotyozi Valley I thought I could hear the whips of the teams approaching the camp we had just left, I therefore said "Good-bye" to the Prince, and turned my horse round to return to the camp. The last words I said were "Take care of yourself, Prince, and don't get shot." He replied, pointing to Carey, "Oh no! he will take very good care that nothing happens to me."

What happened then is well known. There was no Basuto escort, the Prince having refused to wait for it; there were only a few white men, none of them English, and Carey with the Prince.' The Prince insisted on inspecting some seemingly deserted kraals, hidden within which were approximately 40 Zulu warriors who attacked the small party, 'what happened then is doubtful, two men were killed on the spot, and there is little doubt that Carey and the remainder mounted their horses and fled. The Prince must have got to his horse, as it came in in the evening with one holster torn and hanging. He had evidently attempted to vault into the saddle, and the holsters had ripped, and he fell to the ground… Orders were given that the next morning a strong cavalry escort should leave at dawn to recover the body. I joined General Fred Marshall, who was in command of the cavalry, and rode over the same road that I had gone over the day before. As the scene of the tragedy approached, I advanced with General Marshall… we saw in the distance a white object on the ground. We rode to it, and it was the Prince Imperial lying in a donga. He had been stripped of everything except one sock, and a broken spur lay by his side… He was assegaied in seventeen places, his arms were crossed over his chest, and his face which was beautiful in death, was disfigured by the destruction of the right eye from an assegai wound… His body was raised from the ground, wrapped in a cavalry cloak, and carried by the officers up the hill to the ambulance.'

Ulundi
Most of June was occupied with the advance on the Zulu capital and by the 3rd of July Ulundi was in sight, 'the Zulu Sharpshooters opened fire on our watering parties, and I, who had taken a bucket to the river to have a wash, had to retire ignominiously behind a tree, leaving my clothes temporarily on the ground, till Buller, with the Frontier Light Horse, crossed the river and drove the Zulus away… An attack was expected, there were two or three alarms, native pickets running in, horses and cattle getting loose, and Lane and I were up nearly all night. I only got about an hours' rest and at daylight the force started to ford the river… At 7.30 we formed a huge square, the native contingent, ammunition and tool carts inside, the 17th Lancers and Buller's Horse covering the square… As I belonged to the Quartermaster-General's department, I was riding in advance of the square and came suddenly on the body of one of Buller's men, Private Peacock, who had been taken prisoner the day before and horribly mutilated. It was not an encouraging spectacle for men just going into action, so I sent back to ask Lord Chelmsford to send me a chaplain, which he did; as the body lay near a wall, we pushed the loose stones of the wall on to it, the chaplain read a few lines of the Burial Service and the column resumed its march, the general direction being north-east, passing the Great Nodwengu Kraal and halting on the position which had been selected by Buller, Ulundi being about a mile to the east.

The Zulus now appeared in great numbers on all sides of us and soon came into collision with our mounted men who, after firing a few volleys, retired rapidly into the square. The Zulus (who numbered about twenty thousand) following them up came within range of the guns, which did great execution, but did not check them, and they soon came under musketry fire. It was a dramatic sight, the small square of under four thousand men with the Zulus closing in on it, the great Amatola Mountains in the distance and the Zulu army manoeuvring in different regiments… had any panic occurred, we should have been lost, but the men stood well up to their rifles and their well sustained fire, supported by the guns and gatlings, soon told… falling in heaps, the Zulus began to falter… At about 9.30 the Zulus were sullenly retiring from all sides of the square.' After the battle of Ulundi Sir Garnet Wolseley replaced Lord Chelmsford, Redvers Buller and I both received very kind offers to remain on Sir Garnet Wolseley's Staff and complete the operations, but we neither of us anticipated the chance of any further fighting, and we had both been very hard worked, living in the open for the last two years, so we decided to return home, and obtaining leave to do so we rode down to Durban.'

Grenfell was a Brigade Major at Shorncliffe when the disaster at Majuba occurred in February 1881; he immediately volunteered for active service and found himself back in Cape Town by April; he was appointed to Sir Evelyn Wood's Staff as D.A.Q.M.G., however much to his and Wood's disgust, terms were arranged with the Boers in June 1881, 'on the signing of the Convention and the breakup of the camp at Newcastle, I was ordered to Durban to conduct the embarkations, but before doing so, I made a long ride with Buller, and Donald Browne into Zululand to see our old fighting ground at Ulundi. When we arrived, we found the old track across the Umfolozi River where the grass had grown up very high on the place where our square had stood. I stood at the place, which was still marked by the cartridges, at the corner of the square where the Zulus had made their last attack. I told Buller that I had seen a Zulu Induna shot in the head by Owen's machine-guns, of which there were two at this corner. He was leading his men on and got as close as eighteen yards from the square, for I had measured it after the action. I again paced the eighteen yards and came to my old friend, a splendid skeleton, his bones perfectly white, his flesh eaten off by the white ants. I felt I could not part with him, so I put his skull into my forage bag, and brought it home with me. It now adorns a case in my collection of curiosities.'

Egypt and the Soudan
Grenfell returned to his parent regiment for the first time in several years and 'in July 1882 I accompanied H.R.H. The Duke of Cambridge to a service at St. Anne's, Soho, a church H.R.H. was very fond of attending. Colonel Lane was with him as his A.D.C. The First Lesson ended with the words: "And now I will send thee into Egypt." This mandate was obeyed, as within a fortnight Lane and I, who at the time had known nothing of our chances of joining the Expedition, were sailing away to Alexandria, he was A.D.C. to the Duke of Connaught, commanding the Guards Brigade, and I as A.A.G. on Sir Garnet Wolseley's Staff, to remain in Egypt for over 12 years, first as second-in-command of the new Egyptian Army, and afterwards as Sirdar, and then with an interval of five years at the War Office in England, to return to Cairo for two years, commanding British troops in Egypt at the base during the expedition to Khartoum, which ended in the recon quest of the Soudan.'

Grenfell landed at Alexandria in August 1882, and was present at the battle of Tel-El-Kebir on the 13th September; he took part in the occupation of Cairo and the restoration of the Khedive to the capital, 'when the greater part of the Army had left Egypt, I remained behind as Assistant Adjutant-General on the Staff of Sir Archibald Alison, who commanded the troops who were left in the country'; Alison was commanding officer of the British troops and 'Evelyn Wood in command of 6,000 Egyptian troops. I accepted service under him and was second-in-command of the new army'; in 1883 the Egyptian Army was hit by an epidemic of Cholera, 'the Khedive showed the greatest courage and sympathy, in visiting, not only the soldiers, but also the civilians, and it fell to my lot to conduct him round the wards, where numerous men were dying. The astonishment at his presence, and alarm for the safety of his person that his dying officers and men showed, were very remarkable'; nearly 100,000 died during the epidemic and in September of the same year Sir Evelyn Baring arrived and began to organise the regeneration of Egypt.

The Nile Expedition 1884
Two expeditions, under the joint command of Sir Garnet Wolseley, were ordered to advance towards Khartoum in an effort to relieve Gordon; one, accompanied by Wolseley, advanced up the Nile; the second operated from Suakin; Grenfell 'was ordered to Assouan to superintend the transit of men and stores to Wady Halfa. As Assouan was to be my headquarters for an indefinite time, and there were no houses available, I hired a dahabieh, the Ounas, and in it I spent the best part of the next two years. On the 23rd September, my old friend Lord Charles Beresford arrived at Assouan and was very valuable in improving the working of the water transport and other matters connected with the naval part of the Expedition. He stayed a few days and then went on to Wady Halfa.

On the 3rd October Lord Wolseley arrived at Wady Halfa, Redvers Buller and Evelyn Wood, who was in charge of the communications, preceding him. On October 9th Colonel Butler with first Nile boats arrived at the foot of the Cataract. The launch Iris took them in tow… My work for many weeks was devoted to passing steamers, dahabiehs and whalers over the Cataract, with stores for the expedition, via narrow-gauge railway which ran to Philae from Assouan. About the middle of December, all the boats and most of the stores had passed Assouan which was the neck of the bottle, and I received orders to move onto Wady Halfa, which I did with joy, after having spent nearly five months at Assouan. The work had been very hard and the heat great, and the prospect of getting on towards the front was very agreeable.' Grenfell reported to Wolseley at Halfa in February 1885, 'He was having a very anxious time. Buller had been sent over the Desert to bring back the force which, after the battle of Abu Klea, was in camp at Metammeh, I took up position of Chief Acting Staff Officer. We had received the sad news of the failure of the small force sent up in steamers, commanded by Lord Charles Beresford, to relieve Gordon. News had also arrived of the dramatic incident of their arrival and finding the British flag no longer flying over the Palace, and of their marvellous escapes on their return up the Nile. Wolseley was naturally worried. He was sleepless and used to pass many hours of the night in pacing up and down the lines, generally smoking a cigar, and gradually his health began to suffer. His friend and medical adviser told him that he feared that smoking was doing him a great deal of harm, one morning he called me to his tent and gave me two boxes of excellent cigars, saying: "Take them away, Grenfell, I shall smoke no more." And from that day he never did. While I was with Lord Wolseley, Gordon's diaries arrived by a messenger, and I had the opportunity of reading hem in the original. Curious little pictures illustrated some of the pages, and they were characterised by a tone of apparent indifference to his own fate, but anxiety for his dependents and severe criticism of the British Government. After the failure of the Nile Expedition, the force was ordered back, and it was my duty, as General of Communications, to take over from General Brackenbury the last troops of that ill-fated force. I evacuated my station at Abri (between Sarras and Dongola) and returned to Wady Halfa. I strongly recommended that the frontier should be fixed at some distance up the Nile from Wady Halfa, Firket or Sarras being recommended, but the government decided to go right back and insisted on Wady Halfa being the frontier, Suakin being the only other garrison retained in the Eastern Soudan. Berber, Sennaar and Gedaref had fallen: Kassala was shortly to fall, most of the garrisons being massacred. The latest position to be evacuated was Dongola. A frontier force was established, with headquarters at Assouan, under my command, General Sir William Butler commanding the advance brigade of it at Wady Halfa, and on our joint report the retirement to Wady Halfa was cancelled and we were permitted to occupy outposts at Koshey, about forty-two miles south of the railway terminus at Akasha.'

Battle of Ginnis
The Mahdi died of small pox in June 1885, and following the withdrawal of the Nile Expedition sporadic fighting continued along the Soudan Egypt border; the latter culminated in the Battle of Ginnis, when a force of 4,500 British and Egyptian troops defeated 6,000 Sudanese, 'On December 30th, 1885, at Ginnis, between Dongola and Wady Halfa, a large force of Dervishes under Osman Azrak had pressed forward towards Wady Halfa. The small garrison at Ginnis was surrounded, but the Nile afforded communications with Wady Halfa. The Cameron Highlanders and one black battalion were cut off and an expedition became necessary to relieve them. Under the command of General Stephenson this was now organised. I commanded a Division, General Butler and Colonel Woodhouse Brigades. Before the arrival of General Stephenson on the 19th December, I had visited the various posts and had had several conferences with Butler, and proposals for attack were ready to submit to the General on his arrival. These he accepted… Before dawn on the 30th, the force moved out into the Desert, under a waning moon… and silently took up the positions assigned to them. No sound but the barking of dogs was heard in the village, and the Arabs seemed wholly unaware of the coming attack.

The General and staff took up their position on rising ground, opposite the village, from whence the whole panorama of action was visible… Groups of Dervish horse, camel-men and spearmen streaming out in the khors and rocks, to dispute the high ground with Butler's Brigade… The Brigade succeeded in gaining the position just in time… The English Screw Gun Battery opened from a crest about one thousand two hundred yards from the enemy's position between Koshey Fort and Ginnis, supported by the 2nd Brigade formed up directly opposite the village of Koshey… While viewing the fight from the Signal Station, Colonel Ardagh, with whom I was standing, was watching the Arab advance through a large telescope. He asked me to look through the telescope at a large creeping up a deep khor. I bent my head down till our helmets were nearly touching, when a stray bullet passed through his helmet, and unpleasantly near my head. It grazed his ear. He continued to direct me to pick out the khor, with his telescope, up which the Arabs were advancing, and when I had found them coolly took off his helmet and showed me the hole the bullet had passed through - a quarter of an inch nearer would have ended his career. It was the closest shave I ever saw. The village cleared, and Butler having repelled the attack on his Brigade, the Arabs fled by the right flank of the 1st Brigade towards Atab, and soon the whole force was in full retreat.'

Sirdarship of the Egyptian Army
On the departure of the Sirdar, 'Sir Evelyn Wood, for England, and on his relinquishing the Command of the Egyptian Army on the 19th April [1886], I was appointed Sirdar, and received a very kind letter from the Khedive saying that he entirely concurred in the appointment, and that he would do his best to assist me in the command of the Egyptian Army. This was a great promotion for me, then in my forty-fifth year. Though I was still only a Colonel and a Brigadier-General in the English Army, my rank in the Egyptian Army was a very high one. The Sultan, being Suzerain over Egypt, all the brevets of the commissions of the senior officers of the Army were obtained from Constantinople, and mine was that of "Ferrik", which ranks with a full General in the Army.'

Now based in Cairo, Grenfell received from the Khedive the Grand Cordon of the Mejedieh for his services in the Nile Campaign and at the battle of Ginnis; as A.D.C. to the Queen he returned to England in the Jubilee year of 1887, however, 'in January 1888 Osman Digna was giving great trouble round Suakin… I was home in July and had a long interview with Mr. Stanhope, Minister of War. I pointed out the difficult situation which existed in Egypt and that very shortly the Army would be called upon to repel a serious Dervish advance, besides raids on Suakin and the Eastern Soudan… Disturbances on the frontier and at Suakin necessitated my return to Egypt, where the situation was becoming serious.'

Gemaizah and Toski
Grenfell arrived with reinforcements at Suakin in December 1888; the position was under threat by Osman Digna again, and to combat this Grenfell made a sortie from Suakin and met with Digna's force at Gemaizah, on 20 December 1888, 'on the day of my arrival at Suakin I found that Colonel Holled Smith had arranged for a reconnaissance of the right flank of the trenches with Soudanese mounted infantry, a couple of companies of infantry and the horse battery. I told him to carry on, and I would come out as a spectator. His information was that the Arabs had no mounted men. I followed him into the bush, accompanied by Captain Paget, R.N., of H.M.S. Starling, and Captain Maxwell, and without escort. The guns were in action, firing at the trench, and we were covered by the mounted infantry. Osman had, however, received a reinforcement of horsemen in the night, who charged the mounted infantry, whom we saw retiring. Suddenly, when I was giving directions for the retirement of a gun, we were charged by about a dozen mounted Arabs and had to make an ignominious retreat. The ground was very bad with high tussocks and low thorn bushes; on our left we could see the mounted infantry horses falling, the men being immediately speared by the Dervishes. I called my Staff to "go slow", and we cantered away with the Arabs on each side of us. It was a most unpleasant situation. A horse in the gun team preceding us fell, and the men jumped off the gun; the Arabs, thinking the gun was coming into action, pulled up for a moment. "Now gallop!" said I, and we were soon out of danger; but several Soudanese mounted infantrymen who fell off their horses were speared, their bodies being brought in by their Soudanese comrades, who gallantly went back into the bush for them. We attacked the Dervish trenches on December 20th. The Dervish guns were taken and they lost heavily in the retreat, as, according to their usual custom, they walked leisurely away under a murderous fire, cavalry and mounted infantry following them up. Four Zaribas were hastily made and four small redoubts commenced. The 20th Hussars, in charging the enemy, got into difficulties in a donga, losing a few men killed and wounded, but the whole casualties on our side were under 50 killed and wounded, whereas the enemy's loss was estimated at four hundred. We spent a cheerful Christmas Day at Suakin, and returned a few days afterwards to Cairo.'

Having effectively dealt with Osman Digna, Grenfell's attention was next turned to Wad-el-Nejumi in August of the following year; the latter lead approximately 6,000 men over the Egyptian border; Grenfell met the Dervish at Toski, 3.8.1889; with the aid of a squadron of the 20th Hussars he routed the Dervishes and Wad-el-Nejumi was killed whilst trying to rally his men; this battle effectively ended the Mahdist threat to Egypt. The next three years were eventful for Grenfell, with a promotion to Major-General, and two royal audiences, firstly with Empress Eugenie and then with the Empress Frederick; in January 1891 Tokar was captured bringing about the entire collapse of Mahdists in the Suakin area; of greatest impact to Grenfell, however, was the death of the Khedive in January of the following year, 'I few weeks later I received a telegram from the War Office offering me the Deputy Adjutant-Generalship of the Reserve Forces, and I had to make up my mind whether to remain in my present position in Egypt, in command of the Army, or to return to England. I had now been ten years in the Egyptian Army, and though I was very loath to leave, I felt it would be for my future advantage to see the working of the great army machine from Headquarters. I had many friends there, and the Duke of Cambridge, the Commander-in-Chief, had always received me with great kindness. After careful consideration I determined to accept and telegraphed in that sense to the Military Secretary, accompanying my telegram with a letter to my old friend Redvers Buller, as I felt sure that it was his influence that had obtained this appointment for me.'

The War Office - Deputy Adjutant-General of Reserve Forces
In 1892 Grenfell took over the command of the Yeomanry, the Militia and the Volunteers, all of which were in decline and in need of drastic reform; in July 1894 he also took charge of the Recruiting Department, 'the recruiting centres had seldom been visited by the Inspector-General, and I made it my duty to travel a great deal in the provinces and to acquaint myself personally with the recruiting officers, many of whom I found quite unfit for their position, many of the staff being too old and lethargic. In the first year, with the concurrence of the Adjutant-General, I got rid of a large number and appointed more efficient men in their places. This resulted in an increase of recruits in the next year, and after two year's work the Departments greatly improved.'

The Tsar's Coronation in Moscow
Grenfell described this as the greatest spectacle that he had seen (and indeed offers a very descriptive narrative of May-June 1896 in his Memoirs), 'the great event of 1896 for me was my visit to Moscow for the coronation of Tsar Nicholas. The Duke of Connaught represented the Queen and I was selected to represent the Army'; he had an audience at the Petrovski Palace, where 'the Emperor wore the undress uniform of one of the regiments of the Guards… He reminded me of a parade I had for him of the Egyptian Army, and asked a good deal about the expedition and its prospects…. The Duke of Connaught had invested the Emperor with the Grand Cross of the Victorian Order, and he now presented a very fine silver-gilt cup as a present from the Queen. The confounded cup stuck in its case, and we all had to pull and tug and (mentally) swear at it before it would come out, at which the Royalties were amused.'

This was not to be only comical investiture that Grenfell was involved in, 'we were wonderfully well done in Moscow, I had five rooms, a carriage to myself, two pairs of horses, and a royal footman always ready to leap on the box… I received the… Order of the "White Eagle". After my tub, I was sitting in a bath towel dressing-gown, when in marched Prince Galitzin and two other Russian officers in full uniform with the decoration. I could not get up to thank the Prince, having to conceal my legs, and the situation was a somewhat difficult one. I was most grateful for the honour, but I feel sure that I am the only knight of the Order that has received it in a bath towel. The situation was such a ridiculous one, and my attempts to assume a dignified attitude so impossible that we all collapsed into roars of laughter. I produced cigarettes, and passed quite a pleasant half-hour.' Having returned to England on the 17th June, 'I received a command to proceed to Balmoral… The Queen asked me a great many questions about the Coronation… The Queen congratulated me on the success of the Egyptian Army… We dined at 9.15. The Queen sat between Princess Christian and Princess Leiningen, ten in all, and the dinner was very simple and good… After dinner on Sunday the Queen spoke to me about Egypt, the Soudan and Gordon. I told her I had dined with him and seen the last of him when he started for Khartoum. I thought Her Majesty had formed a very accurate estimate of his character.'

A Return to Egypt
Still employed at the War Office, Grenfell was informed on 11 June 1897, 'that the Secretary of State wished me to go to Egypt in command of the British troops to assist Kitchener in the campaign which had already been commenced… I again communicated with Coleridge Grove and told him that I was prepared to go to Egypt whenever the Government desired me to take up my duties. On the 22nd I rode in the Diamond Jubilee procession. We were not far from the Queen and the tremendous enthusiasm of the crowd was quite remarkable. We halted for the service at St. Paul's and, starting again, rode across the river and round by Southwark, back to the palace. The Queen passed us in entering the palace and looked quite well and cheerful, bowing right and left. The cheering was absolutely continuous and the enthusiasm extraordinary. On July 2nd I gave over my duties at the War Office and left without much regret, as I infinitely preferred an active command such as that of the troops in Egypt.'

Having spent five years at the War Office, Grenfell found himself back in Cairo in October 1897, 'early in January [1898] the Khartoum expedition was definitely settled and the greater part of the winter was taken up with arrangements I had to make at the base, receiving and forwarding troops, and so on. It was necessary to make an inspection of the various depots, and in the middle of February I proceeded with my staff to Assouan, and then on to Wady Halfa, where, after an inspection of stores at the railway head, and having a conference with the officer commanding and his staff, I returned to Cairo… As in the summer no more English troops were to be forwarded, I left for England, returning to Egypt in July for the contemplated advance on Khartoum in the autumn… On September 3rd I received news of the destruction of the forts at Omdurman. I read the telegram with joy and turning the page saw my nephew Robert's name among the killed… On the 25th I was in Khartoum. I dined with Kitchener to meet the Brigadiers. A very interesting evening, as we made out Gordon's rooms and the stairs at the head of which he died. Kitchener paraded the troops in my honour. It was very affecting to see my old command passing, I saw many of the Egyptian officers whom I had promoted and who had done well in the service.'

Further Commands in Malta and Ireland
In October 1898 Grenfell accepted the Governorship of Malta and took up the position at the start of the following year, 'in the early summer of 1902 I left Malta for the Coronation and arrived home on June 12th…. To my great astonishment I received two letters, one from Lord Salisbury, another from Mr. Chamberlain, announcing the fact that the King had been graciously pleased to confer a peerage on me.' Grenfell received a private audience with King Edward VII at Buckingham Palace the day after the Coronation.

In 1903 Grenfell's term as Governor of Malta came to an end and on April 1st he took command of the 4th Army Corps; this appointment was relatively short lived as on 'February 11th [1904], Lord Esher came to see me at my office. He said he had called to tell me that the King desired that I should succeed the Duke of Connaught in Ireland… I was gazette General in April and took over the Irish Command in May. My duties in Ireland were somewhat interfered with occasionally by my appointment as Gold Stick to the King and also from my being a member of the Selection Board at the War Office; both these caused me frequently to cross the water.'

An Audience with the Pope
In December 1904 Grenfell accompanied Prince Arthur of Connaught to Rome for the baptism of the King of Italy's eldest son, 'we had received orders from King Edward that we were to ask for an audience with the Pope and to give him a kindly message from the King… His Holiness welcomed the Prince, and thanked him for his visit to this "povera persona", spoke kindly of the King and his people, and expressed his gratitude for the full liberty of worship which in England was accorded to his Roman Catholic subjects. He said the dominions of our King were so great that he might be considered "il re de mondo". The prince then read the message. Luckily I had worked it up in Italian and was able to repeat it in this language to the Pope, who was surprised and smiled, and said: "Parlate Italiano, Generale?" And then in conversation with me he told me that he recalled with interest the fact that I had been connected with the two great strongholds of the faith, as Governor of Malta, and commanding, as I then was, in Ireland.'

In June 1906, 'I made my debut as Gold Stick at the first June Court. Before the Court began, I had an audience of the King and Queen and received the sacred gold stick of the 2nd Life Guards from his hands, and kissed hands on my appointment to the regiment. Then we walked in procession to the large drawing-room in Buckingham Palace where the Court was held, and I stood for an hour and a half in awful tight Life Guard's boots, close behind the King, which was my place.' Having returned to Ireland Grenfell received a Royal Visit from the King in July 1907, shortly afterwards strike riots occurred in Belfast, during which the troops had to be called out. They behaved remarkably well, very temperate and quiet under, sometimes, great provocation. On the day of the worst riot, it was found necessary to fire on the mob, three people being killed, all of them, however, leading rioters - the woman who was shot being one of the worst characters in Belfast.' Grenfell retired from the Irish Command on 29 April 1908 and returned to London where he had become Governor and Commandant of the Church Lads' Brigade, '1908 was a very happy year. We had now three children and although I had retired from the Army, by being made this year Field Marshal I was still on the active list.'

The Death of a King
Grenfell once again 'represented the Army in the suite that accompanied King Edward and Queen Alexandra to Berlin in February 1909… Decorations had been distributed to all of us, I receiving the Grand Cordon of the Red Eagle, and I wore that noble bird at the State banquet. The Emperor sent for me to consult me as to his dress as a British Field Marshal. As he insisted on carrying a baton, I had to condemn him to wear long boots, that being our rule. Before the end of the visit, I had a private conversation with the Emperor. He talked for half an hour to me about the British Army.'

During the State Visit King Edward had suffered a serious health scare, and he 'died in May 1910… having received orders from the Lord Chamberlain to accompany the funeral cortege for the removal of the body of the King from Buckingham Palace to Westminster, I went to the palace at 10.45 on May 17th, being on duty as Gold Stick. Queen Alexandra, followed by the King and Queen Mary, arriving, the body was placed on a gun-carriage by men of the Grenadier Guards, with the Crown and Orb placed on the coffin. The procession was formed and started at 11.30, I walking with Lord Dundonald and Admirals of the Fleet Seymour and Fremantle, just behind the great Officers of State, The silence and reverence of the crowd were very remarkable, all in black and uncovered… On arrival at Westminster the Queen Mother and the King and Queen… passed through us. As Gold Stick I had to accompany the King and stand near him as he knelt in front of the coffin. The interior of Westminster Hall was a remarkable sight, the Lords all gathered on the West side, the Commons on the east… It was a deeply impressive service and beautifully carried out in every way.'

The Great War and New Commitments
In September 1910 Grenfell, 'went with Rosebery to Vienna officially to announce the accession of King George to the Emperor', at the end of the trip, 'Rosebery and I visited the Emperor to say good bye. He said to me: "I am glad to have entertained in my palace a brother Field Marshal of the British Army - an Army which we Austrians have always considered as our hereditary comrades!" Then came 1914.'

With the advent of war Grenfell found himself busily employed on the Red Cross Council, and also became Chairman of the Royal Benevolent Association, but perhaps what gave him the greatest source of pride was arranging 'to raise a battalion of ex-members of the Church Lads' Brigade… In February [1915] the Archbishop of Canterbury inspected the battalion which I had raised… The battalion, camped at Denham, turned out one thousand one hundred strong… I and Lieutenant-Colonel Kindersley, late Coldstream Guards, who was in command of the battalion met the Archbishop, who was received with a salute. The battalion was now the 16th Service Battalion of the K.R.R. Corps… I felt that my labours had not been thrown away, and that by this ceremony the battalion was ready when properly armed and when accoutrements had been received for all the men, and it would be a most creditable addition to the forces which were shortly to take their place alongside the army in France.'

Grenfell resigned his duties as Gold Stick in 1920, but, was still actively involved in his parent regiment, as Colonel Commandant of the King's Royal Rifle Corps, right up until his death in 1925, 'the Public Funeral accorded to him in London by the Nation surely testified to the affection in which he was held by his relatives and friends, as also to the high opinion formed of his public career by hundreds who perhaps knew him only by name. By all his intimate and numberless friends in the Army he was known as "Dear Old G.", showing the esteem and affection in which he was held.' (Major-General Sir Ronald Lane, K.C.B., K.C.V.O., refers).