Sir Spencer Harcourt Butler (1 August 1869 – 2 March 1938) was an officer of the

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British Raj, British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 3 ...

who was the leading British official in Burma for much of his career, serving as Lieutenant-Governor (1915–17 and 1922–23) and later Governor of Burma (1923–27). He also served as

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

of the

United Provinces of Agra and Oudh The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was a province of India under the British Raj, which existed from 22 March 1902 to 1937; the official name was shortened by the Government of India Act 1935 to United Provinces (UP), by which the province ...

from 1918 to 1921 and later was the first governor of

from 1921 to 1922.

Life and career

Butler was born on 1 August 1869 in Middlesex, England and died on 2 March 1938 in London, at age 68. He was the brother of Montagu Sherard Dawes Butler and Geoffrey G. Butler. Educated at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

and

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

, Butler entered the Indian Civil Services soon afterwards, in 1890. He served as governor of United Provinces from 3 January 1921 to 21 December 1922, and was followed by Sir William Sinclair Marris. Butler later went on to serve as Governor of

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

from 2 January 1923 to 20 December 1927; he had already been lieutenant-governor of Burma from 28 October 1915 to 22 September 1917, and held the title briefly again from 21 December 1922 to 2 January 1923. On that date, the position became that of "Governor". The Government of India in 1910 had appointed Butler as the first Member for Education with a seat on the

Viceroy's Executive Council The Viceroy's Executive Council, formerly known as Council of Four and officially known as the Council of the Governor-General of India (since 1858), was an advisory body and cabinet of the Governor-General of India, also known as Viceroy. It exis ...

. He was also the first president of Delhi Gymkhana, founded in 1913. Butler was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander ( GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointments ...

(CSI) in 1909, knighted as a Knight Commander (KCSI) of the same order in 1911, and promoted to Knight Grand Commander (GCSI) of the order in 1928. He was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander (:Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire, ...

(CIE) in November 1901, and was promoted to a Knight Grand Commander (GCIE) of the same order in 1923. The Harcourt Butler Technological Institute,

Kanpur Kanpur (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), originally named Kanhapur and formerly anglicized as Cawnpore, is the second largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow. It was the primary ...

established in 1921 was named after him which was granted a university status in September 2016. Also Harcourt Butler Higher Secondary School (now known as Harcourt Butler Sr. Sec. School), New Delhi was also named after him in 1917. Harcourt Butler Sr. Sec. School It was earlier called Bengali Boys School. Butler helped the opening of the University of Medicine 1, Yangon, on 2 February 1927. From 1927 to 1929 he chaired the Butler Committee on the governance of the British Raj in relation to the princely states.

Family

Butler married Florence Katherine Wright in London in 1894. They had one son, Victor Spencer, born in 1900.

References

Links

*
Myanmar (Burma)
worldstatesmen.org. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
Speeches 1921
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Harcourt 1869 births 1938 deaths Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Knights of the Order of St John Administrators in British Burma Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Indian Civil Service (British India) officers People educated at Harrow School People from Kanpur British people in colonial India Harcourt Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Fellows_of_the_Zoological_Society_of_London