18
The War Cry | JULY 2015
150
YEARS
Marching
forward...
One Army, One Mission,
One Message
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Marching
forward...
One Army, One Mission,
One Message
F
rederick St. George de Lautour Booth-Tucker did not always
have a name that long. Interestingly, it was another name he
cherished most: Fakir Singh, meaning "Lion of God," which was
given to him by the Indian people to whom he dedicated most of his
life's work as a Salvation Army officer.
Born in Monghyr, India, in 1853, Booth-
Tucker was five years old when the Indian
Mutiny broke out. His family was prominent
and wealthy, in contrast to those in the poor
castes of society. His father, William Thornhill
Tucker, was the deputy-commissioner in the
Indian Civil Service (ICS) and the author of
an English-Persian dictionary.
Booth-Tucker would follow in his father's
lucrative footsteps. He went to Cheltenham
College, and in 1874, a year after graduation,
he was granted an assistant commissioner posi-
tion with the ICS in 1874, and served as an
assistant magistrate in Dharamsala.
While visiting London in 1875, he was con-
verted to Christianity during evangelistic cam-
paigns by Dwight L. Moody and Ira D. Sankey.
Two years later, he married Louisa Mary Bode,
who was 18 years his senior. Louisa left her
home on the Isle of Wight to join her husband
in Amritsar, India.
Booth-Tucker's future as a statesman in the
land he loved seemed certain, but that all
changed in 1880 when he read an article in a
Christian journal about The Salvation Army's
novel evangelistic methods. Impressed, he sent a
donation to the Army's headquarters in London.
A few weeks later, Booth-Tucker received a
post containing a receipt for his donation and
a copy of the Christmas War Cry with a per-
sonal message from the Army's founder, General
William Booth. The note impressed Booth-Tucker
so much that he took four months of leave to sail
to London to meet the General. He joined the
Army immediately, resigning from his prestigious
ICS position. In doing so, he forfeited his high
Victorian salary and fringe benefits for an offi-
cer's allowance of a few shillings. Taking advan-
tage of Tucker's law degree, Booth appointed
him to the legal department at Headquarters.
Eventually, Tucker's passion for his home
country persuaded Booth to allow him to
transfer to India, joined by a team of five
other Salvationists.
Indian newspapers blazoned the headlines:
"Salvation Army Invading India!" So when the
team disembarked from its ship in Mumbai on
September 19, 1882, they saw a large contin-
gent of police ready to act should the team
and/or the crowd get out of hand. Expecting
an "invading army" to consist of more than
six people, Police Superintendent Harry
Brewin asked, "When will the other members
of your party land?"
Frederick Booth-Tucker
A Heart for India
by
MAJOR FRANK DURACHER
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6/15/15 4:37 PM