Welborn Griffith

Welborn Barton Griffith Jr. (November 19, 1901 – August 16, 1944) was an American officer who served during

World War II 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 ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the Class of 1925. Colonel Griffith is best remembered for being instrumental in saving France's

Chartres Cathedral Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...

, one of the most important monuments of medieval civilization, during the battle of Chartres (August 16–18, 1944) in World War II. As Operations Officer (G-3) with Headquarters, for XX Corps, Griffith and his driver searched the cathedral, and climbed to the top of its

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

. Finding no Germans there, he was able to rescind the order to shell the monument. Eugene Schulz, an operations officer serving under Griffith, described the event as follows: "Nobody knows why he riffithpersonally went into Chartres. He had to go through ... a few enemy lines there; he went into the Cathedral, and he checked it out—he went through the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, he climbed the bell tower and he did not find any German snipers at all. So he immediately said to the artillery, 'Rescind that order to shell and destroy'." Later that day, he was killed in the neighboring town of

Lèves Lèves () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in Northern France. Population International relations Lèves is twinned with the English town of Nailsworth, Gloucestershire. See also *Communes of the Eure-et-Loir department The fol ...

,Site_officiel_de_la_Ville_de_

Site_officiel_de_la_Ville_de_Lèves
">Lèves">Site_officiel_de_la_Ville_de_Lèves
/ref>_3.5 km_north_of_Chartres._The_people_of_Lèves_set_up_a_plaque_on_a_building_next_to_the_spot_where_Griffith_was_killed. On_October_21,_1944,_Griffith_was_awarded,_wikt:posthumous">posthumous_ Posthumous_may_refer_to: *_Posthumous_award_-_an_award,_prize_or_medal_granted_after_the_recipient's_death *_Posthumous_publication_–_material_published_after_the_author's_death *_Posthumous_(album),_''Posthumous''_(album),_by_Warne_Marsh,_1987 *_...

ly,_the_Distinguished_Service_Cross_(United_States).html" "title="wikt:posthumous.html" "title="Lèves
.html" ;"title="Lèves">Site officiel de la Ville de Lèves
">Lèves">Site officiel de la Ville de Lèves
/ref> 3.5 km north of Chartres. The people of Lèves set up a plaque on a building next to the spot where Griffith was killed. On October 21, 1944, Griffith was awarded, wikt:posthumous">posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ...

ly, the Distinguished Service Cross (United States)">Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is a military decoration awarded to ...

References