Butler was born in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, on 20 December 1888 to Lieutenant Colonel Francis John Paul Butler and the Honorary Elspeth Butler (née Gifford), daughter of Robert Gifford, 2nd Baron Gifford. In February 1907, Butler was commissioned into the King"s Royal Rifle Corps.
Butler was thus the nephew of fellow Victoria Cross recipient Edric Gifford, 3rd Baron Gifford. Butlerwas 25 years old, and a lieutenant in The King"s Royal Rifle Corps, attached to Pioneer Company, Gold Coast Regiment, West African Frontier Force, and was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions on 17 November 1914 in the Cameroons, Nigeria.
