Guy Thompson Griffith, FBA (7 January 1908 – 10 September 1985) was an English ancient historian and classicist. He was a

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

, from 1931 to his death, and the Laurence

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in Classics at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

between 1951 and 1975. The Griffith family had become wealthy through making locomotive springs in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

. Guy attended

The Leys School The Leys School is a co-educational independent school in Cambridge, England. It is a day and boarding school for about 574 pupils between the ages of eleven and eighteen, and a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. Histo ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

and then

, where he read

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

and was taught by W. T. Vesey and

Bertrand Hallward Bertrand Leslie Hallward (24 May 1901–17 November 2003) was a British educationalist who served as Headmaster of Clifton College and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nottingham.Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. In 1931, he was elected to a research

fellowship A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

at Gonville and Caius. Initially, he studied ancient Greek soldiers; two years later, he won the Hare Prize for an essay on the topic and in 1935 he published ''Mercenaries of the Hellenistic World''. Appointed a university

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

in 1937, he began focusing on fourth-century Greek history but his work at Cambridge was interrupted by service in the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF ...

from 1941 to 1945. At the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he returned to teaching at the university and his college, and was appointed co-editor of ''

The Classical Quarterly ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' in 1947 (remaining in office until 1951). He was appointed the Laurence Reader in Classics in 1951. The following year, he co-edited (with Tarn) the third edition of W. W. Tarn's ''Hellenistic Civilisation''. Having turned some attention to

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

, he edited ''Alexander the Great: The Main Problems'' (1966). In 1975, he retired from his readership and lectureship, though remained a fellow of his college. He had been elected a

fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom # C ...

in 1952. Griffith died in 1985."Griffith, Guy Thompson"
''Who Was Who'' (online ed., Oxford University Press, 2007). Retrieved 12 March 2021.

References

1908 births 1985 deaths English classical scholars Historians of antiquity Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Fellows of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Fellows of the British Academy Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II {{England-historian-stub