List of Governor General of India

Term

Name

Events

1773-85

Highest tenure of all

Warren Hastings

Regulating Act of 1773

Act of 1781

Pitt’s India Act of 1784

Supreme Council Of Bengal

Asiatic Society of Bengal by him and William Jones

Stopped Mughal pension to Shah Alam II

Abolished the Dual System in Bengal

Moved Treasury from Murshidabad to Calcutta

Bengal Gazette- First Indian newspaper published

1st Anglo-Maratha War (1775–82)

2nd Anglo–Mysore war (1780–84)

1st Rohilla War of 1773–1774

“Ring fence policy”

2nd Rohilla War 1779

Naba Kumar episode 1775

Experimentation on land settlements. (1772-five years’ settlement, changed to 1 year in 1776)

English Translation of Bhagwat Gita

1785-86

John Macpherson

1786-93

Lord Cornwallis

Established lower courts and appellate courts

Permanent Settlement in Bihar and Bengal in 1793

3rd Mysore war

Introduction of Cornwallis Code

Introduce Covenanted Civil Services in India

Sanskrit Vidyalaya at Benares established by Johnathan Duncan(Governor of Bombay)

1793-98

John Shore

Policy of Non–intervention

Charter Act of 1793

Battle of Kharda between Nizam and Marathas (1795)

1798-1805

Richard Wellesley

Introduction of Subsidiary Alliance

Subsidiary treaty with Nizam 1798

4th Anglo Mysore War 1799

Subsidiary treaty of Bassein 1802

2nd Anglo–Maratha War (1803–05)

Fort William College at Calcutta

Formation of Madras Presidency after annexation of Tanjore and Carnatic

1805-07

George Barlow

Sepoy mutiny at Vellore 1806

Bank of Calcutta established(later Imperial Bank of India, now SBI)

1807-1813

Lord Minto I

Charter Act of 1813

Treaty of Amritsar 1809 with Ranjit Singh

1813-23

Lord Hastings

Ended the policy of Non-intervention

Doctrine of Paramountcy

Gorkha war at Nepal 1814-16

• Treaty of Sugauli

3rd Anglo–Maratha War (1816-1818)

• abolition of Peshwaship

Creation of Bombay Presidency in 1818

Ryotwari System in Madras by governor Thomas Munro

Mahalwari System in Central India, Punjab and Western UP

Hindu College at Calcutta in 1817

Pindari War (1817-1818)

General Committee of Public Instruction was formed in 1823

1823

John Adam

Licensing Regulations

Calcutta Unitarian Committee established by Raja Ram Mohan Roy

1823-28

Lord Amherst

1st Anglo–Burmese War (1824–26)

• Annexes Assam, Manipur, Arakan
• Treaty of Yandabo, 1826

1828-35

William Bentinck

1st Governor General of India

Bengal Sati Regulation, 1829

Suppression of thuggee (Henry Sleeman was superintendent)

Charter Act, 1833

Saint Helena Act 1833

Law Commission 1834

Annexation of

• Cachar 1832
• Jaintia 1832
• Coorg 1834

Formation of Agra province

Macaulay’s Minutes 1835

• English Education Act 1835
• English as medium of instructions

Medical College, Kolkata

1835-36

Charles Metcalfe

Repealed 1823 Licensing Regulations

Known as Liberator of India Press

1836-42

Lord Auckland

Tripartite Treaty between British, Shah Shuja (Afghan traitor) and Ranjit Singh against Dost Muhammad Khan

1st Anglo Afghan War(1840-42)

Bank of Bombay established(later Imperial Bank of India, now SBI)

1842-44

Lord Ellenborough

Gwalior War (1843) (British Crush Marathas once and for all)

Annexation of Sindh 1843

Bank of Madras established

1844-48

Henry Hardinge I

1st Anglo-Sikh War (1845–46)

• Treaty of Lahore(1846)
• British confiscate Kashmir from the Sikhs and sell it to Raja of Jammu

1848-56

Highest tenure as Governor General of India

Dalhousie

Doctrine of Lapse

Charles Wood Dispatch 1854

2nd Anglo-Sikh War (1848-1849)

2nd Anglo-Burmese War (1852)

1st train between Bombay and Thane

1st telegraph Line Diamond Harbour to Calcutta

Post Office Act, 1854

Santhal Rebellion (1855)

Widow Remarriage Act 1856 – drafted

Established Public Works Department

Engineering College was established at Roorkee

1856-62

Canning

Widow Remarriage Act 1856 – passed

Revolt of 1857

Queen Victoria’s proclamation and Government of India Act, 1858

University of Bombay, Calcutta and Madras were set up in 1858

White Mutiny 1859

System of Budget introduced, 1860

Formation of Imperial Civil Services

Indian Police Act 1861, creation of the Imperial Police Service

1864-69

John Lawrence

Bhutan War (1864-65)

Shimla as India’s summer capital in 1863

High Court in Calcutta 1862, Bombay and Madras 1865

Imperial Forestry Service in 1867

Creation of Department of Irrigation

Nicobar Islands incorporated into India 1869

1869-72

Mayo

Started the Census 1871

Rajkumar college in Rajkot and Mayo College at Ajmer for political training of Indian Princes

Started Financial decentralization

Statistical Survey of India

Department of Agriculture and Commerce

Assassinated by Sher Ali Afridi in Andaman

1872-76

Northbrook

Visit of Prince of Wales to India, 1875

Jyotiba Phule launches Satyashodhak Samaj

Dramatic Performances Act 1876

1876-80

Lytton

Great Famine of 1876–78

• Appointment of 1st Famine Commission

1st Delhi Durbar out of 3, 1877

• Queen Victoria assuming the title of ‘Empress of India’

2nd Anglo-Afghan War 1878-80

Vernacular Press Act, 1878

Indians Arms Act, 1878

Indian Forest Act of 1878

Deccan Agricultural Relief Act, 1879

1880-84

Ripon

1st Factory Act 1881

Census of 1881

Repeal of Vernacular Press Act 1882

Ilbert Bill – 9 Feb 1883

Resolution on local self–government 1882

Education Commission under William Hunter 1882

Famine Code 1883

1884-88

Dufferin

Indian National Congress

Denounced INC as “microscopic minority of India”

Cross was Secretary of State

3rd Anglo-Burmese War 1885-86

1888-94

Lansdowne

Factory Act 1891

Indian Council Act 1892

Setting up of Durand Commission  1893

1894-99

Elgin

1899-1905

Curzon

Partition of Bengal 1905

2nd Delhi Durbar out of 3, 1903

Raleigh University Commission (1902)

• Thomas Raleigh
• Indian Universities Act 1904

Swadeshi Movement (1905-1911)

Younghusband’s expedition to Tibet 1904

Ancient Monument Preservation Act 1904

Agriculture Research Institute in Pusa

1905-10

Minto II

Morley-Minto Reforms 1909

Split in Congress in 1907

Establishment of Muslim League by Aga Khan (1906)

1910-16

Hardinge II

3rd Delhi Durbar, King George V, 1911

Transfer of capital from Calcutta to Delhi 1911

Annulment of Bengal partition 1911

Ghadar Mutiny 1915

Foundation of Hindu Mahasabha 1915

Return of Gandhiji in India 1915

1916-21

Chelmsford

Indian Home Rule Movement 1916

Lucknow reunion of Congress 1916

• Lucknow Pact 1916

Indian Liberal Federation 1918

Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms 1919

• August Declaration 1917

Rowlatt Act march 1919

Jallianwalla Bagh Massacre April,1919

Imperial Bank of India

Foundation of Sabarmati Ashram 2016

• Champaran Satyagraha 1917

• Ahmedabad Mill Strike 1918
• Kheda Satyagraha 1918
• Non-Cooperation 1920

Khilafat movement 1920

Women University at Poona 1916

S.P Sinha as Lieutenant Governor of Bihar (1st Indian)

1921-26

Reading

Malabar rebellion 1921

Chauri Chaura incident 1922

Foundation of Swaraj Party 1922

Foundation of RSS 1925

Foundation of Communist Party 1925

Repeal of Rowlatt Act

ICS exam in England and India 1923

Army Officer cadre to Indian people

1926-31

Irwin

Simon Commission  Nov 1927

Butler Commission 1927

Death of Lala Lajpat Rai 1928

1st meeting of All India Youth Congress 1928

Nehru Report 1928

Fourteen Points of Jinnah 1929

Deepavali Declaration by Irwin 1929

Purna Swaraj declaration Dec,1929

Salt March 1930

1st Round Table Conferences Nov,1930

Allahabad Address by Muhammad Iqbal, 1930

Civil Disobedience Movement

Gandhi–Irwin Pact 1931

Execution of Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru, and Sukhdev Thapar 1931

1931-36

Willingdon

2nd Round Table Conferences sep,1931

3rd Round Table Conferences Nov,1932

Communal Award 1932

Poona Pact Sep,1932

Pakistan Declaration by Choudhary Rahmat Ali Jan,1933

Reserve Bank of India Act 1934

Congress Socialist Party 1934

Government of India Act 1935

Separation of Burma from India 1935

All India Kisan Sabha 1936

1936-43

Highest tenure as Viceroy

Linlithgow

Indian provincial elections 1937

Resignation of Netaji from INC 1939

Resignation of INC ministries 1939

• Deliverance Day by Muslim League

Lahore Resolution 1940

• 2-Nations Theory by Jinna

August offer 1940

• Individual Satyagraha

Escape of Netaji Jan,1941

Cripps Mission March,1942

Formation of Indian Legion in Germany 1942

Quit India resolution at Bombay 8th Aug, 1942

Formation of Indian National Army 1942

Bengal famine 1943

1943-47

Wavell

C. R. formula 1944

Wavell Plan and Simla Conference 1945

INA trials Nov,1945

Naval Mutiny 18th Feb,1946

Cabinet Mission March, 1946

Direct Action Day 16th Aug,1946

Feb, 1947 to 

Jun, 1948

Mountbatten

Last Viceroy of India

1st Governor General of India after Independence.

1948-50

Rajagopalachari

Only Indian and last Governor General of India.