The partition of Bengal of 1905 was carried out by which Viceroy?
- A.Lord Curzon
- B.Lord Minto II
- C.Lord Hardinge II
- D.Lord Lansdowne
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, Lord Curzon. He announced the partition of the Bengal Presidency in July 1905 and it came into force on 16 October 1905, creating the province of Eastern Bengal and Assam; the official reason was administrative convenience, but the real purpose was to divide the Hindu and Muslim population and weaken the nationalist leadership of Bengal. The Swadeshi and Boycott Movement began in protest. Option B, Lord Minto II, was Viceroy when the Morley-Minto Reforms of 1909 introduced separate electorates. Option C, Lord Hardinge II, annulled the partition in 1911 at the Delhi Durbar, when the capital was also shifted from Calcutta to Delhi. Option D, Lord Lansdowne, held office in the 1890s, long before the partition. The Swadeshi Movement, the boycott of foreign cloth and the founding of the Muslim League in 1906 all belong to the years that followed this order, which is why the date 16 October 1905 is worth memorising.
Read the full article: Viceroys of India 1858 to 1947: List and Major Events
Practice Questions
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- A.Lord Dalhousie
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The Government of India Act of 1858 transferred the administration of India from the East India Company to the Crown and renamed the Governor-General of India as the Viceroy; Canning, who was already Governor-General when the Revolt of 1857 broke out, became the first Viceroy in 1858 and held the…
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- D.Lord Lansdowne
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Read the full explanation →The Vernacular Press Act of 1878 was passed during the Viceroyalty of
- A.Lord Ripon
- B.Lord Lytton
- C.Lord Dufferin
- D.Lord Curzon
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Read the full explanation →Who is called the father of local self-government in India?
- A.Lord Canning
- B.Lord Mayo
- C.Lord Ripon
- D.Lord Minto
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His Resolution on Local Self-Government of 1882 proposed boards for rural and urban areas with a majority of elected non-official members and a non-official chairman, and asked that they be given control over local funds, which is why he is remembered as the father of local self-government in India.
Read the full explanation →During whose Viceroyalty was the capital of British India shifted from Calcutta to Delhi?
- A.Lord Curzon
- B.Lord Minto II
- C.Lord Hardinge II
- D.Lord Chelmsford
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The transfer of the capital from Calcutta to Delhi was announced by King George V at the Delhi Durbar of December 1911, during Hardinge's term, and the same Durbar annulled the partition of Bengal.
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