📜 History · Constitutional history
From the Regulating Act to the Republic
How India came to be governed, step by step: the Acts of the British Parliament, the commissions, conferences and pacts, the Congress sessions that set the goals, the Governors-General and Viceroys — and the Constituent Assembly that gave India its own Constitution. Every entry is checked against NCERT and official texts.
📜 Act or reform🏛 Policy🤝 Commission, conference or pact✊ Congress session or movement⭐ Milestone
Company rule 1773–1857
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1773
Regulating Act
A new Supreme Court was set up at Calcutta, with a court of appeal, the Sadar Nizamat Adalat. Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General, held office from 1773 to 1785.
📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ -
1798
Subsidiary Alliance
A system devised by Lord Wellesley: states that joined accepted British protection on British terms.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Rebels and the Raj ↗ -
1813–1823
Policy of paramountcy
Under Lord Hastings (Governor-General 1813–1823) the Company claimed its authority was paramount, or supreme.
📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ -
1848–1856
Doctrine of Lapse
Lord Dalhousie (Governor-General 1848–1856) annexed states whose rulers died without a male heir: Satara (1848), Sambalpur (1850), Udaipur (1852), Nagpur (1853) and Jhansi (1854). Awadh was taken over in 1856.
📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ -
1854
Wood’s Despatch
An educational despatch sent by the Company’s Court of Directors, issued by Charles Wood, President of the Board of Control.
📘 NCERT Class 8, Civilising the ‘Native’, Educating the Nation ↗
Crown rule and the first councils 1858–1918
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1858
Act of 1858: rule by the Crown
The British Parliament transferred the Company’s powers to the Crown. A Secretary of State for India, advised by the India Council, became responsible for India, and the Governor-General was given the title of Viceroy.
📘 NCERT Class 8, When People Revolt: 1857 and After ↗ -
1861
Indian Councils Act, 1861
Provincial legislative councils followed: Bengal’s was set up on 18 January 1862, with the Lieutenant-Governor and nominated members — at most 12.
✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ -
1878
Arms Act and Vernacular Press Act
The Arms Act barred Indians from possessing arms; the Vernacular Press Act sought to silence critics of the government.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1883
Ilbert Bill controversy
The bill sought to let Indian judges try British or European persons; the furore over it deepened the wish for an all-India organisation.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
December 1885
Indian National Congress founded
72 delegates from all over the country met at Bombay.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1892
Indian Councils Act, 1892
In Bengal the council grew to at most 20 members, seven of them elected; members could now ask questions and discuss the annual financial statement.
✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ -
1905
Partition of Bengal
Viceroy Curzon partitioned Bengal, then the biggest province of British India, citing administrative convenience.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1907
The Congress splits
Moderates and radicals parted ways over the use of boycott; they reunited in December 1915.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1909
Indian Councils Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto)
Separate electorates: some council seats were reserved for Muslims elected by Muslim voters. Bengal’s council grew to 50, with a non-official majority.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1916
Lucknow Pact
The Congress and the Muslim League agreed to work together for representative government.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗
Reforms and mass politics 1919–1939
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1919
Rowlatt Act
Recommended by a committee under Sir Sidney Rowlatt, it continued wartime curbs on the press and detention without trial. Gandhiji’s Rowlatt Satyagraha was the first all-India struggle against British rule.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
1919
Government of India Act, 1919 (Montagu-Chelmsford)
The provincial executive became partly responsible to the legislature. The central legislature had two chambers: a Council of State of 60 and a Legislative Assembly of 145.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
December 1920
Nagpur session: Non-Cooperation adopted
After Gandhiji won leaders over at the Calcutta session (September 1920), the Nagpur session adopted the Non-Cooperation programme.
📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ -
1927–1928
Simon Commission
Sent to decide India’s political future without a single Indian member; it was met with ‘Go back Simon’ when it arrived in 1928.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
October 1929
Irwin’s offer of dominion status
Viceroy Irwin announced a vague offer of ‘dominion status’ in an unspecified future and a Round Table Conference.
📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ -
December 1929
Lahore session: Purna Swaraj
Under its president Jawaharlal Nehru the Congress adopted Purna Swaraj (complete independence); 26 January 1930 was observed as Independence Day.
📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ -
November 1930
First Round Table Conference
Held in London without Gandhiji; the Congress boycotted it.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
5 March 1931
Gandhi-Irwin Pact
Gandhiji agreed to attend a Round Table Conference and the government agreed to release political prisoners.
📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ -
December 1931
Second Round Table Conference
Gandhiji represented the Congress in London; the talks were inconclusive.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
September 1932
Poona Pact
After Gandhiji’s fast against separate electorates for dalits, the pact gave the Depressed Classes reserved seats in the legislative councils, voted for by the general electorate.
📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ -
1935
Government of India Act, 1935
It prescribed provincial autonomy: the provincial executive became almost entirely responsible to the legislature. The vote stayed limited to 10–15 per cent of adults, and the planned federation never came into operation.
📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ -
1937
Provincial elections
Held under the 1935 Act; the Congress came to power in eight of the eleven provinces.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
1939
Congress ministries resign
After talks with Viceroy Linlithgow on India’s part in the Second World War broke down.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗
Freedom and the Constitution 1940–1950
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1942
Cripps Mission
Sir Stafford Cripps came to forge a compromise; talks broke down when the Congress asked for an Indian Defence Member.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
August 1942
Quit India
Gandhiji’s third major movement, launched after the Cripps Mission failed.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
16 May 1946
Cabinet Mission plan
It failed to get the Congress and the League to agree on a federal system, but the Constituent Assembly was elected roughly along its lines — indirectly, by the provincial assemblies set up under the 1935 Act.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
9 December 1946
Constituent Assembly meets
The Assembly began its sessions; its drafts were debated clause by clause until November 1949.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
13 December 1946
Objectives Resolution
Moved by Jawaharlal Nehru, it set out the ideals of the Constitution: India an independent, sovereign republic.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
3 June 1947
Plan of 3 June: freedom with Partition
Lord Mountbatten, Viceroy from February 1947, announced that British India would be freed but also divided. Members from areas that went to Pakistan left the Constituent Assembly, which shrank to 299.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ -
15 August 1947
Independence
India became free — and was divided.
📘 NCERT Class 12, Framing the Constitution ↗ -
26 November 1949
Constitution adopted
The Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution; 284 members signed it on 24 January 1950.
📘 NCERT Class 11, Indian Constitution at Work, Ch. 1 ↗ -
26 January 1950
Constitution comes into force
India becomes a republic under its own Constitution.
📘 NCERT Class 11, Indian Constitution at Work, Ch. 1 ↗
🏛 How the legislatures grew
Bengal’s council is shown as an example of a provincial legislature, from the West Bengal Legislative Assembly’s own history.
| Year | Legislature | Size and powers | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1862 | Bengal Legislative Council (Act of 1861) | At most 12 members, all nominated | ✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ |
| 1892 | Bengal Legislative Council (Act of 1892) | Up to 20 members, 7 elected; questions and budget discussion | ✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ |
| 1909 | Bengal Legislative Council (Act of 1909) | Up to 50 members, non-official majority | ✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ |
| 1919 | Bengal Legislative Council (Act of 1919) | 125 members: at least 70% elected, at most 20% officials | ✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ |
| 1919 | Central Legislature (Act of 1919) | Two chambers: Council of State 60, Legislative Assembly 145 | ✓ Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Rajya Sabha at Work, Ch. 1 (official) ↗ |
| 1935 | Bengal Legislature (Act of 1935) | Two chambers: Legislative Assembly 250, Legislative Council 63–65 | ✓ West Bengal Legislative Assembly — history of the legislature (official) ↗ |
| 1935 | Federal Legislature planned by the Act of 1935 | Council of State 260 (156 British India, 104 Indian States) — never came into operation | ✓ Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Rajya Sabha at Work, Ch. 1 (official) ↗ |
| 1947 | Constituent Assembly after Partition | 299 members; 284 signed the Constitution on 24 January 1950 | 📘 NCERT Class 11, Indian Constitution at Work, Ch. 1 ↗ |
👑 Governors-General and Viceroys
Those your NCERT books discuss. A year range is a term of office where NCERT gives one; otherwise the year shown is when NCERT mentions them. From 1858 the Governor-General also carried the title of Viceroy.
| Name | Office | Years | What NCERT links them with | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warren Hastings | Governor-General | 1773–1785 term | The first Governor-General; reforms in justice, with two courts in each district. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ |
| Lord Wellesley | Governor-General | 1798 | Devised the Subsidiary Alliance. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Rebels and the Raj ↗ |
| Lord Hastings | Governor-General | 1813–1823 term | Began the policy of paramountcy. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ |
| Lord William Bentinck | Governor-General | late 1820s | “Reforming” policies: Western education, ideas and institutions. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Rebels and the Raj ↗ |
| Henry Hardinge | Governor-General | Tried to modernise the army’s equipment. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Rebels and the Raj ↗ | |
| Lord Dalhousie | Governor-General | 1848–1856 term | The Doctrine of Lapse; Awadh annexed in 1856. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, From Trade to Territory ↗ |
| Lord Canning | Governor-General | 1857 | Urged leniency towards the rebels in 1857 and was mocked for it in the British press. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Rebels and the Raj ↗ |
| Lord Curzon | Viceroy | 1905 | Partitioned Bengal. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
| Lord Irwin | Viceroy | 1929, 1931 | Offered ‘dominion status’ (1929); signed a pact with Gandhiji (1931). | 📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ |
| Lord Willingdon | Viceroy | after 1931 | The new Viceroy after the Second Round Table Conference; deeply unsympathetic to Gandhiji. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ |
| Lord Linlithgow | Viceroy | 1939 | Talks with him on India’s part in the Second World War broke down. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ |
| Lord Wavell | Viceroy | until February 1947 | Brought the Congress and the League together for talks. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ |
| Lord Mountbatten | Viceroy | from February 1947 | Announced that British India would be freed but divided. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ |
| C. Rajagopalachari | Governor-General | after 1947 | Free India’s first Indian Governor-General. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
✊ Congress sessions
| When | Where | President | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 1885 | Bombay | — | Founding session: 72 delegates. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
| 1907 | — | — | The Congress splits between Moderates and radicals. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
| December 1915 | — | — | The two groups reunite. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
| 1916 | Lucknow | — | Lucknow Pact with the Muslim League. | 📘 NCERT Class 8, The Making of the National Movement: 1870s–1947 ↗ |
| September 1920 | Calcutta | — | Gandhiji convinces leaders to start non-cooperation. | 📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ |
| December 1920 | Nagpur | — | Non-Cooperation programme adopted. | 📘 NCERT Class 10, Nationalism in India ↗ |
| December 1929 | Lahore | Jawaharlal Nehru | Purna Swaraj adopted as the goal. | 📘 NCERT Class 12, Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement ↗ |
How we check: every entry is written from NCERT (Classes 8, 10, 11 and 12) or an official source — the West Bengal Legislative Assembly’s history of its legislature and the Rajya Sabha’s “Rajya Sabha at Work” — and our build fails unless key phrases from each are found in the source’s own text. Pitt’s India Act (1784) and the Charter Acts (1793–1853) are not covered in these NCERT books, and we have not yet found an official text we can check their provisions against, so they are not listed yet.