Warren Hastings was the first Governor-General of Bengal, serving from 1772 to 1785. Warren Hastings was an English statesman who served as the head of the Bengal Supreme Council. By executing the Regulating Act of 1773, he put a stop to the Dual Government system. In 1781 and 1784, he and William Jones founded the Calcutta Madrasa for the promotion of Islamic studies and the Asiatic Society of Bengal, respectively. In 1801 Hastings was elected a fellow of the Royal Society.
The Governor-General of Bengal was appointed Governor-General of British India by the Charter Act of 1833. And the first Governor-General of British India was William Bentick.
List of Governors-General of Bengal
| Year | Governor-General of Bengal | Major Reforms & Events |
| 1772-1785 | Warren Hastings | First Governor-General of Bengal
End to the dual system of administration Regulating Act of 1773 Supreme Court at Calcutta Asiatic Society of Bengal First Anglo-Maratha War and Treaty of Salbai First English translation of Bhagavad Gita Pitt’s India Act-1784 |
| 1786-1793 | Lord Cornwallis | Establishment of Appellate courts and lower grade courts
Establishment of Sanskrit college Third Anglo-Mysore War and Treaty of Seringapatam Introduction of Permanent Settlement and civil services |
| 1793-1798 | Sir John Shore | Charter act of 1793
Policy of Non-intervention Battle of Kharda |
| 1798-1805 | Lord Wellesley | Introduction of Subsidiary Alliance System
Fourth Anglo- Mysore war and the Treaty of Bassein Second Anglo – Maratha war Establishment of Madras presidency Establishing Fort William College at Calcutta |
| 1805-1807 | Sir George Barlow | The Acting Governor-General of India until the arrival of Lord Minto,
Diminished the area of British territory because of his passion for economy and retrenchment, The Mutiny of Vellore took place in 1806 |
| 1807-1813 | Lord Minto I | Concluded the treaty of Amritsar with Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1809,
Introduced the Charter Act of 1813 |
| 1813-1823 | Lord Hastings | The policy of Non-intervention came to an end
third Anglo-Maratha war Abolition of Peshwaship Establishment of the Ryotwari System in Madras (By Thomas Munroe) and Bombay Mahalwari system in north-western Provinces and Bombay |
| 1823-1828 | Lord Amherst | The annexation of Assam leading to the first Burmese war of 1824,
The mutiny of Barrackpore in 1824 |
Governors-General of India
| Year | Governors-General of India | Major Reforms |
| 1828-1835 | Lord William Bentinck | First Governor-General of India (Charter Act of 1833 made Governor-General of Bengal as Governor-General of India.)
Abolition of Sati Suppression of Thugee, infanticide and child sacrifices. English Education Act of 1835 Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata |
| 1835-1836 | Lord Charles Metcalfe | ‘Liberator of the Indian press
detached all restraints on an open press |
| 1836-1842 | Lord Auckland | Dedicated himself to the improvement of native schools and the expansion of the commercial industry of India
The first Anglo-Afghan war |
| 1842-1844 | Lord Ellenborough | Sindh was annexed |
| 1844-1848 | Lord Hardinge I | First Anglo Sikh War (1845-46) |
| Lord Dalhousie (Governors-General of India) | introduced ‘Doctrine of Lapse‘
Doctrine of Good Charles Wood Dispatch Post Office Act, 1854 1st Railway line connecting Bombay and Thane Established engineering college in Roorkee Second Anglo-Sikh War First telegraph line Establishment of the Public Works Department Abolition of titles and pensions. Started Competitive examination for Indian Civil Services Widow Remarriage Act |
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| 1856-1857 | Lord Canning | Three universities at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay in 1857 were established
Revolt of 1857 took place Note – Post-1857 Revolt, Governor-General of India was made Viceroy of British India and Canning became the first Viceroy of India/British India. |
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Source: safalta.com
Who was Bengal's first Governor-General?
Ans. Warren Hastings was the first Governor-General of Bengal, serving from 1772 to 1785.Who was British India's first Governor-General?
Who was the last governor-general in India?
The answer is Chakravarti Rajagopalachari. After independence, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (1878-1972) became the only Indian and last governor-general of India. Rajagopalachari was appointed Governor-General of India's Interim Government in June 1948 and served until January 1950.
