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18th March 2003

Digby Willoughby By John Young Having touched on this character in a question about C.L. Norris-Newman, I decided to search some of my old Rhodesian papers, for anything Norris-Newman, but to no avail. What did come up with regard Digby Willoughby is worthy of note. This is from 'Black & White' for 5th December, 1896, from the pen of Norman Garstin: 'Perhaps the most extravagant football of fortune was one who was a frequent guest, Digby Willoughby, diamond buyer, digger, Colonel of Horse through the Zulu war, auctioneer, victorious Generalissimo of the Queen of Madagascar's Army through the first French war, Minister Plenipotentiary, shipwrecked, degraded, imprisoned, his head in perilous jeopardy; his life, with its kaliedoscope vicissitudes, would set up any ordinary writer of romance with copy enough for years. ...' That being so with a track record that would rival "The Flashman Papers", does anyone know whether a biography of Digby Willoughby was ever produced? Willoughby appears to have stretched the truth as regards to his rank in the Anglo-Zulu War, I can only find him as a Lieutenant, later Captain in the 2nd Battalion, 1st Regiment, Natal Native Contingent, alter the 2nd Regiment of the reformed N.N.C. (John R., I wonder if this is the Captain Willoughby who claims to have been wounded at Hlobane?) John Y.