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Government of India Act of 1858

 Government of India Act of 1858: Simple Notes

  • What is it? A very important law passed by the British government for ruling India.

  • Why was it made? Because of the Revolt of 1857 (also called First War of Independence or Sepoy Mutiny). The British realized they needed to change how they ruled India after this big revolt.

  • What did it do?

    • Officially called "Act for the Good Government of India".

    • Got rid of the East India Company. The Company had been ruling India, but now its power was taken away.

    • Gave power to the British Crown (the King/Queen of England). India would now be ruled directly by the British government.

    • Transferred power, land, and money (revenues) to the British Crown.

  • Key Features of the Act:

    • India ruled in the name of the Monarch:

      • India would be governed by and in the name of "Her Majesty" (Queen Victoria at that time).

    • Governor-General becomes Viceroy:

      • The top British official in India was previously called Governor-General.

      • The Act changed the title to Viceroy of India.

      • Viceroy meant the direct representative of the British Crown in India.

      • Lord Canning became the first Viceroy of India.

    • End of "Double Government":

      • Before, there was a complicated "double government" system with the Board of Control and Court of Directors (of the East India Company) both involved in ruling India.

      • This Act abolished (ended) both the Board of Control and Court of Directors. This simplified things.

    • New Job: Secretary of State for India:

      • Created a brand new job in the British government: Secretary of State for India.

      • This person was in charge of everything related to the Indian administration.

      • Had complete authority and control over Indian affairs.

      • The Secretary of State was a member of the British Cabinet (like a government minister).

      • And was responsible to the British Parliament (meaning they had to answer to the British Parliament for what happened in India).

    • Council of India (to help Secretary of State):

      • Set up a 15-member Council of India to assist the Secretary of State.

      • The Council was advisory - they gave advice, but the Secretary of State made the final decisions.

      • The Secretary of State was the Chairman (leader) of this Council.

    • Secretary of State-in-Council as a legal body:

      • Made the "Secretary of State-in-Council" (which is the Secretary of State and the Council together) into a "body corporate".

      • This meant it could act like a legal person.

      • Could sue and be sued in courts in both India and England.

  • Important Point: Limited Change in India itself:

    • The Act mainly changed the system of control in England.

    • It was mostly about improving the administration in England that supervised India.

    • It didn't really change the way the government worked inside India in a big way. The basic system of government in India stayed pretty much the same.

In Simple Words: The 1858 Act was Britain's response to the 1857 Revolt. It took power away from the East India Company and gave it directly to the British Queen. It created a new system in England to control India, with a Secretary of State in charge, helped by an advisory council. While it was a big change in how Britain controlled India from London, it didn't immediately change much about the actual government and administration within India itself.

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