John Masters
| John Masters | |
|---|---|
| Born | 26 October 1914 Calcutta, India |
| Died | 7 May 1983 (aged 68) Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States |
| Occupation | Soldier and author |
| Nationality | British (Anglo-Indian) |
| Alma mater |
Wellington College, Berkshire Royal Military College, Sandhurst |
| Genre |
Historical fiction, Memoir |
| Years active | 1933–1983 |
| Spouse | Barbara Masters |
Lieutenant Colonel John Masters, DSO, OBE,(26 October 1914 – 7 May 1983) was a British officer of the Indian Army and later a novelist. His works are noted for their treatment of the British Empire in India.
Masters was the son of a regular soldier, a lieutenant-colonel whose family had a long tradition of service in the Indian Army. He was educated at Wellington and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. On graduating from Sandhurst in 1933, he was seconded to the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) for a year before applying to serve with the 4th Prince of Wales's Own Gurkha Rifles. He saw service on the North-West Frontier with the 2nd battalion of the regiment, and was rapidly given a variety of appointments within the battalion and the regimental depot.
In 1938, he organised a hunt for a leopard reported to be roaming the depot at Bakloh, only to find himself facing a full-grown tiger (which killed one of the Gurkhas acting as beaters). He later commented that whatever rank and decorations he was awarded, he was always known to the Gurkhas as "The Sahib who shot the Bakloh tiger".
In early 1939, he was appointed the Adjutant of the 2nd battalion of the 4th Gurkhas. During the Second World War his battalion was sent to Basra in Iraq, during the brief Anglo-Iraqi War. Masters subsequently served in Iraq, Syria, and Persia with the battalion, before being briefly seconded as a staff officer in a Line of Communications HQ. In early 1942, he attended the Indian Army's Staff College at Quetta. Here he met the wife of a fellow officer and they began an affair. Even though they later married, there was something of a scandal at the time.
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