Lesson 5/55 min
Acts, reforms and event timeline (1600–1947)
Important acts
| Act | Year | Subject |
|---|---|---|
| Regulating Act | 1773 | The British Parliament's first law on governing India |
| Pitt's India Act | 1784 | A law on governing India |
| Charter Act | 1813 | Rs 1 lakh a year for Indian education |
| Charter Act | 1833 | Company becomes a political body; Governor-General of India |
| Government of India Act | 2 August 1858 | End of Company rule; Secretary of State and council |
| Indian Councils Act, Police Act, Civil Services Act | 1861 | Acts of Canning's time |
| Indian Penal Code | 1860 | Drafted by the law commission under Macaulay |
| Vernacular Press Act | 1878 | Control of vernacular papers under Lytton |
| Universities Act | 1904 | Lord Curzon |
| Morley–Minto reforms | 1909 | Separate electorates for Muslims |
| Montagu–Chelmsford reforms (Government of India Act) | 1919 | Viceroy Chelmsford's time |
| Government of India Act | 1935 | Credited to Lord Willingdon in Zubair's |
| Indian Independence Act | 1947 | Pakistan on 14 August, India on 15 August |
Event timeline (Zubair's list, checked)
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1780 | The newspaper ‘Bengal Gazette’ in Bengal |
| 1815 | Ram Mohan Roy's ‘Atmiya Sabha’ |
| 1828 | The Brahmo Samaj |
| 1839 | Debendranath Tagore's ‘Tattwabodhini’ Sabha |
| 1855 | Hindu College renamed Presidency College |
| 1857–1858 | The sepoy revolt; end of Mughal rule; 1858: the Company ends, rule of the Crown |
| 1860 | ‘Nil Darpan’ published in Dhaka |
| 1863 | The Muslim Literary Society (Abdul Latif) |
| 1864 | Dhaka Municipality (Zubair's writes 1868) |
| 1872 | First census in the subcontinent (Lord Mayo) |
| 1877 | The Central Mohammedan Association, the Muslims' first political body |
| 1885 | The All-India National Congress |
| 1901 | First electric light, at Dhaka's Ahsan Manzil |
| 1905 | Partition of Bengal; Dhaka the first provincial capital |
| 1906 | The Muslim League formed at Shahbag, Dhaka, under Nawab Salimullah; the Swadeshi movement begins |
| 1908 | Khudiram is hanged |
| 1909 | Morley–Minto reforms |
| 1911 | Partition annulled |
| 1912 | The Nathan Commission for Dhaka University |
| 1913 | Rabindranath Tagore wins the Nobel Prize |
| 1915 | Hardinge Bridge opened at Paksey, Pabna (Zubair's writes 1914) |
| 1916 | The Lucknow Pact |
| 1919 | The Khilafat movement begins |
| 1921 | Dhaka University founded |
| 1930 | The Chittagong armoury raid led by Surya Sen |
| 1934 | Surya Sen is hanged |
| 1937 | A. K. Fazlul Huq becomes Chief Minister |
| 1940 | Sher-e-Bangla moves the Lahore Resolution |
Did you know?: Zubair's ‘effects of British rule’: dual rule, the famine of 1770, the five-year, decennial and Permanent settlements, and Western education. Bentinck laid the foundation of Western education in India; the famous women's college was Bethune College.
Check yourself
Where and in which year was the Muslim League formed?
At a glance
- 1
Regulating 1773, Pitt 1784, Charter 1813 and 1833, Government of India Act 1858.
- 2
Councils, Police and Civil Services acts 1861; Penal Code 1860.
- 3
Universities Act 1904; Morley–Minto 1909; Government of India Acts 1919 and 1935.
- 4
In Dhaka: municipality 1864, electricity 1901, Muslim League 1906, university 1921.
- 5
Indian Independence Act 1947: Pakistan 14 August, India 15 August.