Lord Dalhousie – Background
- Lord Dalhousie was son to George Ramsay who held the title of 9th Earl of Dalhousie. His wife’s name is James Andrew Broun-Ramsay. The family had Scottish ancestors.
- He studied at Harrow School and Christ Church College at Oxford.
- Once he got himself elected at the House of Commons, his activity in politics heightened.
- He was appointed as the Governor-General of India and Bengal on January 12, 1848.
- Dalhjson was mainly interested to reinforce the power of British Authority in India. There’s no doubt he was a hard worker, but his attitude to impose his own opinion on others and doing things all by himself made him build the reputation of being autocratic.
- His assigned task has been an active participant in initiating new discussion. He modernized India by making significant changes, such as building railways and telegraph services. The reign of the Nawab saw the opening up of 2 major multipurpose canals namely Lower Ganga canal and Upper Ganga canal.
- He is recognized primarily for his Doctrine of Lapse theory which is considered the main cause for Indian War in 1857.
- Lord Dalhjsonie is called the “Maker of Modern India” even if it’s against the Doctrine
- Under Lord Dalhjsonie’s rule in India, he established many vernacular Anglo schools. He brought about social changes and discouraged any act of female infanticide.
- He was eager to change the current Indian systems of administration with western ones as he truly believed that they were better.
- In order to bring those resources, he built new institutions of engineering in each province.
- He implemented strategic changes within the military. He restricted the criminal branding in this way. The size of India’s Legislative Council was increased by him. The open recruitment approach was added to the system in order to give it a much needed modern touch.
- Dalhjson tried to modify the traditional way of collecting land revenue. The landlords that had their land partially taken away were fewer as compared to those whose land was taken away completely. This social group was important because many of the soldiers belonged to this community.
- The Doctrine of Lapse caused much displeasure within the Indian soldiers where they witnessed the overtaking of feudal states by the British.
- During the times of Dalhjsonie, years lasted a fierce confrontation between British and Punjab. That was one of the major advantages for a long-term occupation plan implemented later. In the period of his rule, the Second Anglo-Sikh War took place.
Lord Dalhousie – Governor General of India
Dalhousie during its period in the middle of the 19th century has changed history. During his period, Lord Dalhousie worked largely on changing the infrastructure and building newly developed architectural designs. Lord Dalhousie’s unconventional ways of managing and some high-value strategies to be implemented like the Doctrine of Lapse have changed the face of British India. There is still a critical discussion on Lord Dalhousie’s before-mentioned dual ideologies and forms to project the world to take place, thus signifying how uncertain colonial rule was.
Table of Content
- Lord Dalhousie ( 1812 – 1860)
- Lord Dalhousie – Background
- Significant Events under Lord Dalhousie:
- Arrival in India
- Westernization of India
- Reforms under Lord Dalhousie
- Doctrine of Lapse
- Legacy of Lord Dalhousie
- Conclusion
- FAQs on Lord Dalhousie