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In 1644, Gabriel Boughton procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them to build a factory at Hughli, without fortifications. Various chief agents, Governors and presidents were appointed to look after company affairs in the Bengal region. In 1765, the Treaty of Allahabad granted the diwani of Bengal subah to the EIC. In 1772, Warren Hastings was appointed as the Governor-General of Fort William in Bengal which ended the title of Governor of Bengal.[1]
The Saint Helena Act 1833 enacted that the Governor-General of India shall also act as the Governor of the Bengal presidency. From this time the Governors-General of India held also the separate office of Governor of Bengal, until the year 1854.[2]
The Section 56 of Act 16 & 17 Victoria in 1853 empowered the Court of Directors of EIC to declare that the Governor-General of India shall not be Governor of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal, but that a separate Governor shall be appointed for such Presidency. Until then, the Governor-General of India in Council will be directed to appoint a Lieutenant Governor of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal. In 1854, F. J. Halliday was appointed as the first lieutenant governor of the Bengal presidency.[3]
At the Delhi Durbar on 12 December 1911, King George V announced the transfer of the seat of the Government of India from Calcutta to Delhi, the reunification of the five predominantly Bengali-speaking divisions into a Presidency (or province) of Bengal under a governor, the creation of a new province of Bihar and Orissa under a lieutenant-governor, and that Assam Province would be reconstituted under a chief commissioner. On 21 March 1912, Thomas Gibson-Carmichael was appointed the Governor of Bengal. On 22 March the provinces of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa and Assam were constituted.[4]
In 1947, India gained independence from the British Raj, and the new state of West Bengal was formed following the partition of India. C. Rajagopalachari was appointed as the first Governor of West Bengal. When the constitution of India came into effect on 26 January 1950, the office of Governor of West Bengal become a ceremonial position.
Precursors (1650–1758)
[edit]Agents, Chiefs and Governors (1650-1699)
[edit]In 1644 Gabriel Boughton, procured privileges for the East India Company which permitted them to build a factory at Hughli, without fortifications. In 1650, the factories of Balasor and Hughli were united. On 14 December 1650, James Bridgman was appointed as the chief of the factories. However, in 1653, Bridgman left suddenly and Powle Waldegrave assumed his charge.
On 27 February 1657, the company resolved its holdings into four agencies:- Fort St. George, Bantam, Persia, and Hughli. George Gawton was appointed as the Agent of Hughly. Additional three factories in Ballasore, Cassambazar and Pattana were put under the Hughly agency. In 1658, Johnathan Trevisa was appointed as the second to Gawton and was meant to succeed him after the latter's death. On 6 February 1661, the company reduced the Hughly agency under the Fort St. George, and then agent Trevisa was made the "Chief of Factories in the Bay of Bengal". On 24 November 1681, William Hedges was appointed as the "Agent and Governor for the affairs of the East India Company in the Bay of Bengal". On 21 December 1684, William Gyfford who was the President and Governor of Fort St. George was given the additional charge of Bengal due to increasing mismanagement. John Beard was appointed as the "Agent and Chief in the Bay of Bengal" and become the subordinate to Gifford.
| Chief of the factories of Balasore and Hughli | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Portrait | Took Office | Left Office | Remarks |
| James Bridgman | 14 December 1650 | 1653 | ||
| Powle Waldegrave | 1653 | 1657 | ||
| Agent of Hughly Agency | ||||
| George Gawton | 27 February 1657 | 11 September 1658 | ||
| John Trevisa | 11 September 1658 | 6 February 1661 | ||
| Chief of Factories in the Bay of Bengal | ||||
| John Trevisa | 6 February 1661 | 31 January 1662 | ||
| William Blake | 31 January 1662 | 24 January 1668 | ||
| Shem Bridges | 24 January 1668 | 7 December 1669 | ||
| Henry Powell | 7 December 1669 | ? | ||
| Walter Clavell | ~June 1672 | 7 August 1677 | Died in office | |
| Matthias Vincent | 7 September 1677 | ~July 1682
(position superseded) |
Deposed in July 1682 | |
| Agent and Governor
for the affairs of the East India Company in the Bay of Bengal | ||||
| Sir William Hedges | 24 November 1681 | ~ August 1684 | Deposed in August 1864 | |
| Agent and Chief in the Bay of Bengal | ||||
| John Beard | 21 December 1863 | 28 August 1865 | Died in office | |
| Job Charnock | ~ April 1686 | 10 January 1693 | Died in office | |
| Francis Ellis | 10 January 1693 | January 1694 | ||
| Charles Eyre | 25 January 1694 | 1 February 1699 | Left for England in 1699 | |
| John Beard | 1 February 1699 | 20 December 1699
(position superseded) |
Second to Eyre | |
President and Governor of Fort William, in Bengal (1699-1705)
[edit]On 20 December 1699, the Court of Directors (London East India Company) declared Bengal a Presidency, and then Agent Charles Eyre was made the " President and Governor of Fort William, in Bengal". The President or Chief in the Bay of Bengal for the English East India Company was Sir Edward Littleton in whose commission and instructions, dated 12 January 1698, it was also stated that power had been obtained from his Majesty to constitute him the "Minister or Consul for the English Nation" with all powers requisite thereunto.” Littleton was later deposed by the Court of Directors in 1703.
The union of the two East India Companies took place on 23 July 1702. For united trade in Bengal, a Council was appointed, of which Nathaniel Halsey and Robert Hedges were to take chair each in their week alternatively as per the dispatch from United Company on 26 February 1702. In a dispatch of 12 February 1704, it was ordered that if Beard shall die, no one will be appointed as President to succeed him. After the departure of John Beard to Madras, Ralph Sheldon assumed the position of Chief of Council, and his appointment was confirmed in a dispatch of 7 February 1706.
| President and Governor of Fort William, in Bengal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Portrait | Took Office | Left Office | Remarks |
| Sir Charles Eyre | 20 December 1699 | 7 January 1701 | Left on account of health issues | |
| John Beard | 7 January 1701 | 7 July 1705 | Died in Office | |
President in the Bay, and Governor and Commander-in-Chief for Fort William, in Bengal (1705-1774)
[edit]On 30 December 1709, Anthony Weldon was appointed as the "President in the Bay, and Governor and Commander-in-Chief for Fort William, in Bengal" for the United East India Company. His appointment was later revoked and was supposed to be succeeded by Sheldon. Since Sheldon had died by the time dispatch arrived in Bengal, John Russell was ordered to succeed as the Governor. By a letter of 8 May 1771, the Court appointed Warren Hastings to be Governor of Bengal. By Act of Parliament 13 Geo. III., cap. 63, the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal will headed by a Governor-General, and Hastings was appointed as the first Governor-General. He assumed the office on 20 October 1774.
| President in the Bay, and Governor and Commander-in-Chief for Fort William, in Bengal | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Portrait | Took Office | Left Office | Remarks | Appointee |
| 1 | Anthony Weldon | 30 December 1709 | 4 March 1711 | Appointment revoked by the Court of Directors
Resigned on March 1711 |
East India Company 
| |
| 2 | John Rusell | 4 March 1711 | 3 December 1713 | Dismissed by the Court | ||
| 3 | Robert Hedges | 3 December 1713 | 28 December 1717 | died in office | ||
| 4 | Samuel Feake | 12 January 1718 | 17 January 1723 | Left for England due to illness | ||
| 5 | John Deane | 17 January 1723 | 30 January 1726 | Returned to England | ||
| 6 | Henry Frankland | 30 January 1726 | 25 February 1732 | Returned to Europe | ||
| 7 | John Stackhouse | 25 February 1732 | 29 January 1739 | Resigned | ||
| 8 | Thomas Broddyll | 29 January 1739 | 4 Feb 1746 | Left for England | ||
| 9 | John Forster | 4 Feb 1746 | March 1748 | Died in office | ||
| 10 | William Barwell | 18 April 1748 | 1749 | Dismissed by the Court | ||
| 11 | Adam Dawson | 17 July 1749 | 1752 | Dismissed by the Court | ||
| 12 | William Fytche | _-_Portrait_of_William_Fytche_of_Bengal_1752.jpg)
|
5 July 1752 | 8 August 1752 | Died in Office | |
| 13 | Roger Drake | 8 August 1752 | 20 June 1758 | Deposed by the Court | ||
| 14 | Colonel Robert Clive | .jpg)
|
27 June 1758 | 23 January 1760 | Resigned | |
| 15 | John Zephaniah Holwell | 
|
28 January 1760 | 27 July 1760 | Handed over to Vansittart who was appointed on
23 November 1759 to the office | |
| 16 | Henry Vansittart | 
|
27 July 1760 | 26 November 1764 | Returned to England | |
| 17 | John Spencer | 3 December 1764 | 3 May 1765 | |||
| 18 | Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive |
|
3 May 1765 | 20 January 1767 | Returned to England | |
| 19 | Harry Verelst | 29 January 1767 | 24 December 1769 | Retired from the service | ||
| 20 | John Cartier | 26 December 1769 | 13 April 1772 | |||
| 21 | Warren Hastings | 
|
13 April 1772 | 20 October 1773
(office superseded) |
Appointed as the Governor-General of Fort William
in Bengal in 1773 | |
List
[edit]| Portrait | Name | Term | Appointer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before 1773 the Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William was named as Governor of Bengal (1757–1772). | ||||
| Governors General of the Presidency of Fort William (1773–1833) | ||||
|
Warren Hastings[nb 1] | 20 October 1773 |
8 February 1785 |
East India Company (1773–1858) |
_by_anonymous_(circa_1772-1792).jpg)
|
John Macpherson (acting) |
8 February 1785 |
12 September 1786 | |
|
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis[nb 2] | 12 September 1786 |
28 October 1793 | |
|
John Shore | 28 October 1793 |
18 March 1798 | |
|
Alured Clarke (acting) |
18 March 1798 |
18 May 1798 | |
|
Richard Wellesley, 2nd Earl of Mornington[nb 3] | 18 May 1798 |
30 July 1805 | |
|
|
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis | 30 July 1805 |
5 October 1805 | |
|
Sir George Barlow, 1st Baronet (acting) |
10 October 1805 |
31 July 1807 | |
|
Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 1st Baron Minto | 31 July 1807 |
4 October 1813 | |
.jpg)
|
Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings[nb 4] | 4 October 1813 |
9 January 1823 | |
| John Adam (acting) |
9 January 1823 |
1 August 1823 | ||
|
William Amherst, 2nd Baron Amherst[nb 5] | 1 August 1823 |
13 March 1828 | |
| William Butterworth Bayley (acting) |
13 March 1828 |
4 July 1828 | ||
| Governors-General of India (1834[5]–1858) | ||||
|
Lord William Bentinck | 4 July 1828 |
20 March 1835 |
East India Company (1773–1858) |
|
Sir Charles Metcalfe, 3rd Baronet (acting) |
20 March 1835 |
4 March 1836 | |
|
George Eden, 2nd Baron Auckland[nb 6] | 4 March 1836 |
28 February 1842 | |
|
Edward Law, 2nd Baron Ellenborough | 28 February 1842 |
June 1844 | |
| William Wilberforce Bird (acting) |
June 1844 |
23 July 1844 | ||
|
Henry Hardinge[nb 7] | 23 July 1844 |
12 January 1848 | |
|
James Broun-Ramsay, 10th Earl of Dalhousie[nb 8] | 12 January 1848 |
28 February 1856 | |
|
Charles Canning, 2nd Viscount Canning[nb 9] | 28 February 1856 |
31 October 1858 | |
| Viceroys and Governors-General of India (1858–1947) | ||||
|
|
Charles Canning, 2nd Viscount Canning[nb 10] | 1 November 1858 |
21 March 1862 |
Victoria.svg) (1837–1901) |
|
James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin | 21 March 1862 |
20 November 1863 | |
|
Robert Napier (acting) |
21 November 1863 |
2 December 1863 | |
|
William Denison (acting) |
2 December 1863 |
12 January 1864 | |
|
Sir John Lawrence, 1st Baronet | 12 January 1864 |
12 January 1869 | |
|
Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo | 12 January 1869 |
8 February 1872 | |
_(cropped).jpg)
|
Sir John Strachey (acting) |
9 February 1872 |
23 February 1872 | |
|
Francis Napier, 10th Lord Napier (acting) |
24 February 1872 |
3 May 1872 | |
|
Thomas Baring, 2nd Baron Northbrook | 3 May 1872 |
12 April 1876 | |
|
Robert Bulwer-ytton, 2nd Baron Lytton | 12 April 1876 |
8 June 1880 | |
|
George Robinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon | 8 June 1880 |
13 December 1884 | |
|
Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Earl of Dufferin | 13 December 1884 |
10 December 1888 | |
|
Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne | 10 December 1888 |
11 October 1894 | |
|
Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin | 11 October 1894 |
6 January 1899 | |
|
The Lord Curzon of Kedleston[nb 11] | 6 January 1899 |
18 November 1905 | |
|
Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto | 18 November 1905 |
23 November 1910 |
Edward VII (1901–1910) |
|
Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst | 23 November 1910 |
4 April 1916 |
George V (1910–1936) |
|
Frederic Thesiger, 3rd Baron Chelmsford | 4 April 1916 |
2 April 1921 | |
|
Rufus Isaacs, 1st Earl of Reading | 2 April 1921 |
3 April 1926 | |
|
E. F. L. Wood, 1st Baron Irwin | 3 April 1926 |
18 April 1931 | |
|
Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Earl of Willingdon | 18 April 1931 |
18 April 1936 | |
|
Victor Hope, 2nd Marquess of Linlithgow | 18 April 1936 |
1 October 1943 |
Edward VIII (1936) |
|
Archibald Wavell, 1st Viscount Wavell | 1 October 1943 |
21 February 1947 |
George VI (1936–1947) (As Emperor of India) |
|
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Viscount Mountbatten of Burma | 21 February 1947 |
15 August 1947 | |
| Governors-General of the Dominion of India (1947–1950) | ||||
|
|
The Viscount Mountbatten of Burma[nb 12] | 15 August 1947 |
21 June 1948 |
George VI (1947–1950) (As King of India) |
|
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari | 21 June 1948 |
26 January 1950 | |
Governors of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal (1834-1854)
[edit]By an Act of 1833 (3 & 4 William IV. , cap. lxxxv., Section lvi . ), it was enacted " that the Executive Government of each of the several Presidencies of Fort William in Bengal, Fort St. George, Bombay, and Agra shall be administered by a Governor and three Councilors, to be styled the Governor-in-Council of the said Presidencies of Fort William in Bengal , Fort St. George, Bombay, and Agra respectively, and that the Governor General of India for the time being shall be Governor of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal. From this time the Governors General of India held also the separate office of Governor of Bengal, until the year 1854.[2] Under the Charter Act 1853 the Governor General of India was relieved of his concurrent duties as Governor of Bengal and empowered to appoint a lieutenant-governor from 1854.
| Governors of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal
(ex-officio Governor-General of India, 1833-1857) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name
(birth–death) |
Portrait | Took office | Left office | Appointee |
| 1 | Lord William Bentick
(1774–1839) |
|
15 November 1834
(1833) |
20 March 1835 | East India Company
|
| - | Sir Charles Metcalfe, 3rd Baronet, ICS[6]
(acting) (1785–1846) |
|
20 March 1835 | 4 March 1836 | |
| 2 | George Eden, 2nd Baron Auckland (1784–1849) |
|
4 March 1836 | 28 February 1842 | |
| 3 | Edward Law, 2nd Baron Ellenborough (1790–1871) |
|
28 February 1842 | June 1844 | |
| - | William Wilberforce Bird, ICS[6]
(acting) (1784–1857) |
June 1844 | 23 July 1844 | ||
| 4 | Sir Henry Hardinge (1785–1856) |
|
23 July 1844 | 12 January 1848 | |
| 5 | James Broun-Ramsay, 10th Earl of Dalhousie (1812–1860) |
|
12 January 1848 | 1 May 1854
(28 February 1856) | |
Lieutenant Governors of the Bengal Presidency (1854-1912)
[edit]Lieutenant Governors of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal (1854-1912)
[edit]Under the Charter Act 1853 the Governor General of India was relieved of his concurrent duties as Governor of Bengal and a separate Governor of Bengal shall be appointed. Until then a Lieutenant Governor will be appointed. F. J. Halliday became the first lieutenant governor of the Bengal presidency. William Duke served as the last lieutenant governor after which the office was superseded by the Governor of Bengal province in 1912.
Lieutenant Governors of the Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam (1905-1912)
[edit]Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India, proposed the Partition of Bengal on religious lines into hindu-majority Bengal and muslim-majority Eastern Bengal and Assam and put it into effect on 16 October 1905. Dacca became the capital. The partition stoked controversy among Indian nationalists, who described it as an attempt to "divide and rule" the Bengali homeland.[7] Sir Bampfylde Fuller was the province's first Lieutenant Governor. However, at the Delhi Durbar in 1911, King George V announced that the British government had decided to annul the partition. Eastern Bengal was reunited with western Bengali districts, and Assam was made a Chief-Commissionership.
| Lieutenant Governors of the Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Portrait | Took office | Left office | Appointee |
| 1 | Sir Bampfylde Fuller | 16 October 1905 | 20 August 1906 | George Curzon, 1st Baron Curzon of Kedleston | |
| 2 | Lancelot Hare | 
|
20 August 1906 | 1911 | Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto |
| 3 | Sir Charles Stuart Bayley | 1911 | 21 March 1912 | Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst | |
Governors of Bengal (1912–1947)
[edit]On 12 December 1911 at the Delhi Durbar, King George V announced the transfer of the seat of the Government of India from Calcutta to Delhi and the reunification of the five predominantly Bengali-speaking divisions into a Presidency (or province) of Bengal under a Governor. On 1 April 1912 Thomas Gibson-Carmichael was appointed the Governor of Bengal. Sir Frederick Burrows became the last Governor of the Bengal province following the Independence of India.
| Governors of Bengal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Portrait | Took office | Left office | Appointee |
| Thomas Gibson-Carmichael, 1st Baron Carmichael | 
|
1 April 1912 | 26 March 1917 | Charles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst |
| Lawrence Dundas, Earl of Ronaldshay | 
|
26 March 1917 | 28 March 1922 | Frederic Thesiger, 3rd Baron Chelmsford |
| Victor Bulwer-Lytton, 2nd Earl of Lytton | 
|
28 March 1922 | 28 March 1927 | Rufus Isaacs, 1st Earl of Reading |
| Sir Francis Stanley Jackson | 
|
28 March 1927 | 28 March 1932 | E. F. L. Wood, 1st Baron Irwin |
| Sir John Anderson | 
|
29 March 1932 | 30 May 1937 | Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Earl of Willingdon |
| Michael Knatchbull, 5th Baron Brabourne | 30 May 1937 | 23 February 1939 | Victor Hope, 2nd Marquess of Linlithgow | |
| Sir John Arthur Herbert | 1 July 1939 | 1 December 1943 | ||
| Richard Casey, Baron Casey | 
|
14 January 1944 | 19 February 1946 | Archibald Wavell, 1st Viscount Wavell |
| Sir Frederick Burrows | 19 February 1946 | 15 August 1947 | ||
See also
[edit]- List of governors of Bombay
- List of colonial Governors and Presidents of Madras
- list of Governors of West Bengal
- list of Presidents of Bangladesh.
Notes
[edit]- ^ Originally joined on 28 April 1772
- ^ Earl Cornwallis from 1762; created Marquess Cornwallis in 1792.
- ^ Created Marquess Wellesley in 1799.
- ^ Earl of Moira prior to being created Marquess of Hastings in 1816
- ^ Created Earl Amherst in 1826.
- ^ Created Earl of Auckland in 1839.
- ^ Created Viscount Hardinge in 1846.
- ^ Created Marquess of Dalhousie in 1849.
- ^ Created Earl Canning in 1859.
- ^ Created Earl Canning in 1859.
- ^ Oliver Russell, 2nd Baron Ampthill was acting Governor-General in 1904
- ^ Created Earl Mountbatten of Burma on 28 October 1947.
References
[edit]- ^ Danvers, F.C. (22 June 2016). Bengal: Its Chiefs, Agents, and Governors. Forgotten Books. pp. –6. ISBN 978-1332869954.
- ^ a b Danvers, F.C. (22 June 2016). Bengal: Its Chiefs, Agents, and Governors. Forgotten Books. p. 21. ISBN 978-1332869954.
- ^ Danvers, F.C. (22 June 2016). Bengal: Its Chiefs, Agents, and Governors. Forgotten Books. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-1332869954.
- ^ Ilbert, Sir Courtenay Peregrine (1922). The Government of India, Third Edition, revised and updated. Clarendon Press. pp. 117–118.
- ^ Government of India Act 1833, Keith, Arthur Berriedale, Speeches & Documents on Indian Policy, 1750-1921, see section 41 of the Act
- ^ a b "Raj Bhavan Kolkata" (PDF).
- ^ "Eastern Bengal and Assam - Banglapedia". En.banglapedia.org. 5 May 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Governors of Bengal at Wikimedia Commons
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