Anton Butti?ie? was born in Qala, Gozo, on the 19th February, 1912. He graduated Bachelor of Arts in 1934 and Doctor of Laws in 1940 at the University of Malta. He embarked on a political career and was first elected to the House of Representatives in the Labour Party interest in 1955. He was re-elected in all subsequent elections and held his seat in Parliament up to the time of his resignation in October 1976. From 1959 to 1961 he was President of the Malta Labour Party and from 1962 to 1976 its Deputy Leader. When the labour administration took office in 1971, he served his country as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. He was a delegate to the Malta Constitutional Conferences held in London in 1958 and 1964. He was also a representative to the Consultative Assembly in the Council of Europe (1967 - 1971), where he was elected Vice-President. In October 1976 he resigned from the House of Representatives and on 27th December, 1976 he was elected as the second President of the Republic of Malta. Dr Anton Butti?ie? also distinguished himself in the field of literature. He was one of the founder members of the University Students "Society for the Maltese Language".
In 1944 he married the late Carmen Bezzina and had three children. In 1953 he married the late Connie Scicluna. The death of his two wives seems to have been the major tragedies of his life and they have been reflected in his poetry. In 1975 he married Margery Patterson. Dr Butti?ie? died on May 5, 1983.