Tucker was born on Mattoax Plantation in Chesterfield County, Virginia on December 29, 1780 to St. George Tucker and Frances Bland, the daughter of Theodorick Bland of Cawsons. He was thus the half-brother through his mother of U.S. Representative and Senator John Randolph of Roanoke. As a young man, he pursued classical studies at the College of William & Mary; he graduated in 1798. Tucker stayed in Williamsburg, Virginia to study law at William and Mary as well as under his father who was an established Virginia lawyer. He excelled in the study of law, obtaining his law degree in 1801. After being admitted to the Virginia bar, Tucker commenced a legal practice in Winchester, Virginia. Notably, Tucker was appointed to the law faculty at the College of William & Mary and later was captain of Cavalry in the War of 1812. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives and served for two terms, from 1815 to 1819. During his tenure, Tucker was a supporter of the American System, including the establishment of the Second Bank of the United States and the passage of the Tariff of 1816. In 1823 he had a son, John Randolph Tucker. From 1824 to 1831 he operated the Winchester Law School. He went on to be judge and president of the Court of Appeals of Virginia and then became a professor of law at the University of Virginia. As a law professor, Tucker authored Commentaries on the Law of Virginia as well as several treatises on natural law and on the formation of the Constitution of the United States. He is widely known for adding a mandatory pledge to the student honor code while a professor at the University of Virginia. On July 4, 1842, St. George Tucker offered the following resolution as a gesture of confidence in students: "...resolved, that in all future examinations... each candidate shall attach to the written answers... a certificate of the following words: I, A.B., do hereby certify on my honor that I have derived no assistance during the time of this examination from any source whatsoever." Tucker's pledge was adopted and soon became the following: "I do hereby certify on honor that I have derived no assistance during the time of this examination from any source whatever, whether oral, written or in print." This basic pledge has, in one form or another, been adopted at many American universities. Tucker resigned in July, 1845 due to ill health. He died in Winchester, Virginia in 1848.
Electoral history
1815; Tucker was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives with 71.5% of the vote, defeating Federalist Griffin Taylor and Independent Robert Bailey.
1817; Tucker was re-elected with 67.84% of the vote, defeating fellow Democratic-Republican William Carlson.
Legacy and honors
The papers of the Tucker-Coleman family, including the papers of Henry St. George Tucker, are held by the Special Collections Research Center at the College of William & Mary.
