Governor Generals & Viceroys of India: Name List, Evolution & Power (1600-1947)

Governor Generals & Viceroys of India

Rise of British Power: Viceroys of India’s Destiny (1600-1947)

When the East India Company got a Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, British dominion over Viceroys of India began as a trading entity. The British transformed from a commercial power to one of the world’s most powerful nations in a span of about three centuries. Britain, despite being a small island nation, was able to build one of the biggest empires in history. The expression “the empire on which the Sun never sets” can be used to describe the size of the empire. Britain’s establishment of a robust and effective administration in its colonies served as the foundation for this amazing feat. Through the Viceroys of India, the British were able to establish this control in Viceroys of India.

List Of Viceroys of India: Shaping History from Colonial Rule to Independence (1858-1947)

Viceroys of India	Significant Events
Lord Canning (1856- 1862)	The Government of India Act of 1858 removed the East India Company’s rule and transferred authority to the Crown. During his tenure, three universities were founded in Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay; the Revolt of 1857; and the 1861 Indian Councils Act.
Lord Elgin (1862-1863)	He was in power when the Wahabi Movement began.
Lord John Lawrence (1864-1869)	During his service, the Bhutan War (1865) took place, and 1865 saw the establishment of the High Courts at Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras.
Lord Mayo (1869-1872)	The financial distribution between the federal government and the state was established. In 1872, India conducted its first census. The establishment of the Mayo College for the royal elite; and the creation of the India Statistical Survey. Lord Mayo was the only Governor-General to pass away in India. He was assassinated in Port Blair by Sher Ali Afridi.
Lord Northbrook (1872-1876)	In 1872, the Universal Marriage Act introduced civil marriage. Inter-caste marriage was permitted by this law, and Arya Samaj was founded. In Punjab, the Kuka Movement was seen.
Lord Lytton (1876 -1880)	The Vernacular Press Act (1878) and the Arms Act (1878) were among the laws that were passed; the Second Afghan War lasted from 1878 to 1880; Kaiser-i-Hind became the title of Queen Viceroys of india. which means “Queen Empress of India”
Lord Ripon (1880 -1884)	The Vernacular Press Act (1882) was abolished in response to criticism. 1881 saw the introduction of the first Factory Act. The Ilbert Bill dispute (1883–1844), the Hunter Commission on Education (1882), and a government resolution on the formation of local self-governance were all passed in 1882.
Lord Dufferin (1884 -1888)	The Third Burmese War (1885–1866). The founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885 was among the most notable occasions.
Lord Lansdowne (1888 -1894)	Indian Councils Act, 1892. Another Factory Act was introduced in 1891. In 1893, the Durand Commission was established.
Lord Elgin II (1894 -1899)	The first British officer, Rands, was killed by the Chapekar brothers, Ramkrishna and Damodar. It was India’s first political assassination under British rule.
Lord Curzon (1899 -1905)	The Universities Commission was established in 1902, while the Police Commission was established the same year. The 1904 Indian Universities Act was introduced. Curzon’s masterful contribution to the British Policy of Divide and Rule was the partition of Bengal in 1905.
Lord Minto II (1905 -1910)	Congress split in Surat (1907), The Muslim League was founded in 1906, and Morley-Minto Reforms were implemented in 1909.
Lord Hardinge II (1910-1916)	The Hindu Mahasabha was established in 1915, the Partition of Bengal was revoked in 1911, and the British capital moved from Calcutta to Delhi in the same year.
Lord Chelmsford (1916 -1921)	India in Chelmsford experienced much upheaval and tragedy. In 1916, the Lucknow Pact was concluded. In 1917, the Champaran Satyagraha began. The August Declaration of Montagu (1917). The Introduction of the Government of India Act (1919). The Black Laws or the Rowlatt Act (1919) were put into effect. protests were held across the country. The Jallianwalla Bagh Massacre (1919), one of the most horrific incidents in Indian history, resulted from this. Beginning of the Khilafat and non-cooperation movements
Lord Reading (1921 -1926)	The Chauri Chaura event, which forced Mahatma Gandhi to end the Non-Cooperation Movement in 1922, the founding of the Swaraj Party, the Kakori Conspiracy the train robbery of 1925 all took place.
Lord Irwin (1926 -1931)	In 1927, the Simon Commission visited India. Indian States Commission, Harcourt Butler (1927). 1928 Nehru Report 1929 Deepavali Declaration The Purna Swaraj Resolution was adopted during the 1929 Congress session in Lahore. The Civil Disobedience Movement was effectively launched that same year as a result of the revolutionary Dandi March, which took place from March 12 to April 6, 1930. 1930 saw the first Round Table Conference. 1931 Gandhi-Irwin Pact
Lord Willingdon (1931-1936)	Second and Third Round Table Conferences (1932). creation of the Communal Award (1932). The disagreements between Mahatma Gandhi and Dr BR Ambedkar about separate Dalit electorates were settled by the Poona Pact in 1932. 1935 Government of India Act Passed.
Lord Linlithgow (1936-1944)	Resignation of ministers of Congress (1939), following the start of the Second World War. 1939 Tripuri Crisis and the founding of the Front bloc. Muslim League Resolution of Lahor, 1940, calling for a Muslim-only state. 1940’s August Offer. The Indian National Army was founded in 1941. 1942’s Cripps Mission. 1942 Quit India Movement.
Lord Wavell (1944 -1947)	The Wavell Plan and the Simla Conference (1942). C. Rajagopalachari’s CR Formula (1944). 1946 Cabinet Mission The Muslim League declared January 31 as Direct Action Day (1946). Clement Attlee’s announcement of the end of British sovereignty in India (1947)
Lord Mountbatten (1947 -1948)	Redcliff Commission (1947), the June Third Plan or Mountbatten Plan (1947), and India’s Independence (15 August 1947)

#PW-OnlyIAS Edge
After the Government of India Act of 1858 was enacted, the Governor-General acting on behalf of the Crown was referred to as the Viceroys of India.

Conclusion

Following the country’s independence in August 1947, the Viceroys of India was disbanded. The governor-general took the place of the representative of the British Sovereign. As the first Indian governor-general, C. Rajagopalachari.

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