He was born the son of Herbert Augustus and Anna (née Grove, daughter of William Robert Grove) Hills in High Head Castle, Cumberland and educated at Winchester College until 1882, after which he entered the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.
Winchester College.
He adopted the surname Grove-Hills. He left the army around 1905 and attempted unsuccessfully to enter politics. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1911, his candidacy citation reading:
He developed an interest in astronomy, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.
He took part in observations of eclipses of the sun in 1896 (Japan) and 1898 (India).
He was recalled from a similar exercise in Russia at the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and appointed Assistant Chief Engineer of Eastern Command. He was awarded Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1918.
He served as president of the Royal Astronomical Society from 1913 to 1915. He is buried in Kensal Green Cemetery, London.
Royal Society]
He received a commission in the Royal Engineers and worked as an instructor at the Royal School of Military Engineering at Chatham, later transferring to surveying duties as a member of the General Staff.
