Early life and career of Rab Butler (1902–1929)
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Richard Austen Butler (9 December 1902 – 8 March 1982), generally known as R. A. Butler and familiarly known from his initials as Rab, was a prominent British Conservative politician.
R. A. Butler | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Born | Richard Austen Butler (1902-12-09)9 December 1902 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 8 March 1982(1982-03-08) (aged 79) Great Yeldham, Essex, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nationality | British | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other names | Rab | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alma mater | Pembroke College, Cambridge | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Political party | Conservative | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse |
Sydney Elizabeth Courtauld
(m. 1926; died 1954) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Parent | Montagu Sherard Dawes Butler (father) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Member of Parliament for Saffron Walden | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 30 May 1929 – 19 February 1965 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | William Mitchell | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Peter Kirk | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Butler was born in British India to a family of distinguished Cambridge University academics. As a child, his right hand was permanently disabled in a riding accident. He was educated at Marlborough College and at Cambridge, where he was president of the Cambridge Union Society and, after initially reading French and German, graduated with an outstanding first-class degree in History.
After graduating, he taught briefly as a Cambridge don and married into the wealthy Courtauld family. Butler was elected to Parliament for Saffron Walden in Essex at the 1929 general election and held the seat until his retirement from the House of Commons in 1965.