The Governor-General of India was the highest-ranking official in British India, representing the British monarch in India. This position was established by the British East India Company in 1773, and later, the Governor-General became the head of the British administration in India until India gained independence in 1947. Below is a list of notable Governor-Generals of India with brief information about their contributions.
Governor Generals of India
The British territories in India were divided into three administrative units called Presidencies: Bengal, Madras, and Bombay, each governed by a Governor. The supreme authority was the Governor-General, with Warren Hastings being the first Governor-General of Bengal. This article covers the Governors-General of India, their achievements, and key reforms during their tenures, a topic often featured in competitive exams like the IAS Exam. General awareness, crucial yet often overlooked by candidates, plays a significant role in many entrance exams, accounting for around 25% of the questions.
List of Governor-Generals of India
The list of Governor-Generals of India includes important leaders who governed British India. From Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General, to Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, the last, each played a significant role in shaping policies, reforms, and administration during their respective tenures.
| Governor-Generals & Viceroys | Term | Events During Regime |
| Warren Hastings | 1773- 1785 | ·        Regulating Act of 1773
·        Pitt’s India Act of 1784 ·        The Rohilla War of 1774 ·        The First Maratha War in 1775-82 and the Treaty of Salbai in 1782 ·        Second Mysore War in 1780-84 |
| Lord Cornwallis | 1786 – 1793 | ·        Third Mysore War (1790-92) and Treaty of Seringapatam (1792)
·        Cornwallis Code (1793) ·        Permanent Settlement of Bengal, 1793 |
| Lord Wellesley | 1798 – 1805 | ·        Introduction of the Subsidiary Alliance System (1798)
·        Fourth Mysore War (1799) ·        Second Maratha War (1803-05) |
| Lord Minto | 1807 – 1813 | ·        Treaty of Amritsar with Ranjit Singh (1809) |
| Lord Hastings | 1813 – 1823 | ·        Anglo-Nepal War (1814-16) and the Treaty of Sagauli, 1816
·        Third Maratha War (1817-19) and dissolution of Maratha Confederacy ·        Establishment of Ryotwari System (1820) |
| Lord Amherst | 1823 – 1828 | ·        First Burmese War (1824-1826) |
| Lord William Bentick | 1828 – 1835 | ·        Abolition of Sati System (1829)
·        Charter Act of 1833 |
| Lord Auckland | 1836 – 1842 | ·        First Afghan War (1838-42) |
| Lord Hardinge | 1844 – 1848 | ·        First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-46) and the Treaty of Lahore (1846).
·        Social reforms like the abolition of female infanticide |
| Lord Dalhousie | 1848 – 1856 | ·        Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848-49)
·        The annexation of Lower Burma (1852) ·        Introduction of the Doctrine of Lapse ·        Wood’s Despatch 1854 ·        Laying down of first railway line connecting Bombay and Thane in 1853 ·        Laying down of first railway line connecting Bombay and Thane in 1853 ·        Establishment of PWD |
| Lord Canning | 1856 – 1862 | ·        Revolt of 1857
·        Establishment of three universities at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay in 1857 ·        Abolition of East India Company and transfer of control to the Crown by the Government of India Act, 1858 ·        Indian Councils Act of 1861 |
| Lord John Lawrence | 1864 – 1869 | ·        Bhutan War (1865)
·        Establishment of the High Courts at Calcutta, Bombay and Madras (1865) |
| Lord Lytton | 1876 – 1880 | ·        The Vernacular Press Act (1878)
·        The Arms Act (1878) ·        The Second Afghan War (1878-80) ·        Queen Victoria assumed the title of ‘Kaiser-i-Hind’ or Queen Empress of India |
| Lord Ripon | 1880 – 1884 | ·        Repeal of the Vernacular Press Act (1882)
·        The first Factory Act (1881) ·        Government resolution on local self-government (1882) ·        The Ilbert Bill controversy (1883-84) ·        Hunter Commission on education (1882) |
| Lord Dufferin | 1884 – 1888 | ·        The Third Burmese War (1885-86).
·        Establishment of the Indian National Congress (1885) |
| Lord Lansdowne | 1888 – 1894 | ·        Factory Act (1891).
·        Indian Councils Act (1892). ·        Setting up of Durand Commission (1893) |
| Lord Curzon | 1899 – 1905 | ·        Appointment of Police Commission (1902)
·        Appointment of Universities Commission (1902) ·        Indian Universities Act (1904). ·        Partition of Bengal (1905) |
| Lord Minto II | 1905 – 1910 | ·        Swadeshi Movements. (1905-11)
·        Surat Split of Congress (1907) ·        Establishment of Muslim League (1906) ·        Morley-Minto Reforms(1909) |
| Lord Hardinge II | 1910 – 1916 | ·        Annulment of Partition of Bengal (1911)
·        Transfer of capital from Calcutta to Delhi (1911). ·        Establishment of the Hindu Mahasabha (1915) |
| Lord Chelmsford | 1916 – 1921 | ·        Lucknow pact (1916)
·        Champaran Satyagraha (1917) ·        Montagu’s August Declaration (1917) ·        Government of India Act (1919) ·        The Rowlatt Act (1919) ·        Jallianwalla Bagh massacre (1919) ·        Launch of Non-Cooperation and Khilafat Movements |
| Lord Reading | 1921 – 1926 | ·        Chauri Chaura incident (1922)
·        Withdrawal of Non-Cooperation Movement (1922) ·        Establishment of Swaraj Party(1922) ·        Kakori train robbery (1925) |
| Lord Irwin | 1926 – 1931 | ·        Simon Commission to India (1927)
·        Harcourt Butler Indian States Commission (1927) ·        Nehru Report (1928) ·        Deepavali Declaration (1929) ·        Lahore session of the Congress (Purna Swaraj Resolution) 1929 ·        Dandi March and the Civil Disobedience Movement (1930) ·        First Round Table Conference (1930) ·        Gandhi-Irwin Pact (1931) |
| Lord Willingdon | 1931 – 1936 | ·        Communal Award (1932)
·        Second & Third Round Table Conference (1932) ·        Poona Pact (1932) ·        Government of India Act of 1935 |
| Lord Linlithgow | 1936 – 1944 | ·        Resignation of the Congress ministries after the outbreak of the Second World War (1939)
·        Tripuri Crisis & formation of Forward Bloc (1939) ·        Lahore Resolution of the Muslim League (demand for a separate state for Muslims) 1940 ·        ‘August Offer’ (1940) ·        Formation of the Indian National Army (1941) ·        Cripps Mission (1942) ·        Quit India Movement (1942) |
| Lord Wavell | 1944 – 1947 | ·        C. Rajagopalachari’s CR Formula (1944)
·        Wavell Plan and the Simla Conference (1942) ·        Cabinet Mission (1946) ·        Direct Action Day (1946) ·        Announcement of end of British rule in India by Clement Attlee (1947) |
| Lord Mountbatten | 1947 – 1948 | ·        June Third Plan (1947)
·        Redcliff commission (1947) ·        India’s Independence (15 August 1947) |
| Chakravarti Rajagopalachari | 1948 – 1950 | ·        Last Governor-General of India, before the office, was permanently abolished in 1950 |
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