Warren Hastings and Early British Administration

Warren Hastings served as the first Governor-General of Bengal from 1772 to 1785, laying the structural, judicial, and financial foundations of British colonial administration in India. Assuming office during a period of economic ruin following the Great Bengal Famine of 1770, Hastings replaced the corrupt Dual System of government with direct Company rule. His tenure introduced centralized revenue collection, a dual court judicial framework, financial stabilization measures, and diplomatic alliances that consolidated British power across South Asia.

Abolition of the Dual System and Administrative Centralization

Upon taking charge as Governor of Bengal in 1772, Warren Hastings dismantled the administrative setup introduced by Robert Clive to centralize governance under the East India Company.

Termination of Diarchy

• Abolished the Dual System of Government (Diarchy) in 1772, removing Deputy Nawabs Reza Khan (Bengal) and Raja Shitab Rai (Bihar) from office.
• Brought the collection of land revenue and civil justice under the direct control of the East India Company.
• Transferred the royal treasury from Murshidabad to Calcutta, making Calcutta the administrative capital of British India.
• Reduced the personal annual pension of the Nawab of Bengal from ₹32 lakh to ₹16 lakh.
• Discontinued the annual tribute of ₹26 lakh previously paid to Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II after the emperor sought protection from the Marathas.

The Regulating Act of 1773

• Enacted by the British Parliament to oversee East India Company administration and prevent financial mismanagement.
• Elevated the Governor of Bengal to the post of Governor-General of Fort William in Bengal.
• Created an Executive Council of four members—Philip Francis, Clavering, Monson, and Richard Barwell—to assist the Governor-General, decisions being decided by majority vote.
• Subordinated the Presidencies of Madras and Bombay to Bengal in matters of war and diplomacy.
• Established a Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William, Calcutta, in 1774, comprising a Chief Justice and three puisne judges.

Revenue Administration and Financial Reforms

Hastings experimented with various land revenue systems to maximize Company income and curb extortion by intermediaries. | System / Policy | Year | Key Feature and Administrative Impact | | | | | | Five-Year Settlement (Quinquennial) | 1772 | Auctioned land revenue collection rights to the highest bidder for five years. | | Board of Revenue | 1772 | Formed at Calcutta to supervise revenue officers and replace corrupt local amils. | | Annual Settlement | 1777 | Reverted to one-year farming contracts after the Five-Year Settlement caused widespread defaults. | | Customs Reform | 1773 | Abolished internal customs checkpoints (dastaks); capped duties at 2.5% for all traders. |

Features of Revenue Experiments

• Appointed British Collectors in districts to oversee revenue assessment and collection alongside native diwans.
• Established a Board of Revenue at Calcutta to audit district accounts and control revenue administration.
• The Quinquennial Settlement failed as speculators overbid for land rights, leading to farmer exploitation, revenue arrears, and widespread rural distress.
• Returned to annual leasing in 1777 while preparing comprehensive land surveys for future settlements.

Judicial and Legal Reforms

Hastings organized the judicial system by separating civil and criminal courts and commissioning the codification of Hindu and Islamic laws.

Dual Court Framework (1772)

• Established a Mofussil Diwani Adalat (Civil Court) in every district, presided over by the British Collector assisted by native law officers.
• Established a Mofussil Nizamut Adalat (Criminal Court) in every district, headed by a Kazi and Mufti under the supervision of the Collector.
• Set up two appellate courts at Calcutta: the Sadar Diwani Adalat for civil appeals and the Sadar Nizamut Adalat for criminal appeals.
• Placed the Sadar Nizamut Adalat under a Daroga-i-Adalat appointed by the Nawab, operating under the Governor-General’s oversight.

Codification of Personal Laws

• Commissioned ten Brahmin scholars to compile Hindu legal codes, published in English as A Code of Gentoo Laws (1776) translated by Nathaniel Brassey Halhed.
• Standardized Islamic legal procedures through translations of the Hedaya (Islamic jurisprudence text).
• Founded the Calcutta Madrasa in 1781 to promote Arabic, Persian, and Islamic law studies for civil service recruitment.
• Supported William Jones in establishing the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1784 to study Indian history, languages, and scriptures.

Foreign Policy, Wars, and Diplomatic Treaties

Hastings expanded British influence through strategic military operations and diplomatic treaties with regional Indian powers.

First Anglo-Maratha War (1775–1782)

• Triggered when the Bombay Presidency signed the Treaty of Surat (1775) with Raghunath Rao without Calcutta’s approval.
• Hastings annulled the agreement and negotiated the Treaty of Purandar (1776), which was later rejected by the Company Directors.
• Ended the conflict by signing the Treaty of Salbai (1782), securing 20 years of peace with the Maratha Empire and guaranteeing the surrender of Salsette to the British.

Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780–1784)

• Hyder Ali of Mysore formed a grand alliance with the Nizam of Hyderabad and the Marathas against the British.
• Hastings dispatched Sir Eyre Coote, who defeated Hyder Ali at the Battle of Porto Novo in 1781.
• Concluded the conflict by signing the Treaty of Mangalore (1784) with Tipu Sultan on the basis of mutual restoration of conquered territories.

Rohilla War (1774) and Buffer State Policy

• Stationed British troops in Awadh under the Treaty of Benares (1773) to create a buffer state against Maratha incursions.
• Assisted Shuja-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Awadh, in conquering Rohilkhand during the Rohilla War (1774) in exchange for ₹40 lakh.

Controversies and Impeachment Trial

Hastings faced severe political criticism in Britain regarding extortion, high-handed methods, and judicial execution during his Indian tenure.

The Trial of Raja Nand Kumar (1775)

• Raja Nand Kumar accused Hastings of accepting bribes from the former Begum of Bengal.
• Shortly after making allegations, Nand Kumar was arrested on forgery charges, tried before Chief Justice Elijah Impey at the Supreme Court, and executed by hanging.
• Critics termed the execution a judicial murder orchestrated by Hastings and Impey.

Case of Raja Chait Singh of Benares (1781)

• Hastings demanded extra wartime financial contributions and military contingents from Raja Chait Singh of Benares.
• When Chait Singh delayed payment, Hastings marched to Benares, arrested the ruler, and deposed him, replacing him with a puppet nephew while doubling the annual tribute.

Spoliation of the Begums of Awadh (1782)

• To recover financial dues owed by Asaf-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Awadh, Hastings authorized troops to enter the royal palace at Fyzabad.
• Confiscated treasures and estates belonging to the mother and grandmother of the Nawab (Begums of Awadh) through military force.

Impeachment in British Parliament

• Resigned from the post of Governor-General in 1785 and returned to England.
• Edmund Burke, Charles James Fox, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan initiated impeachment proceedings against Hastings in Parliament in 1788.
• Charged with corruption, extortion, and high-handed governance in the cases of Nand Kumar, Chait Singh, and the Begums of Awadh.
• The House of Lords acquitted Hastings of all charges in 1795 after a seven-year trial.

Key Historical Facts and Trivia

• Warren Hastings entered the East India Company service as a writer at the age of 17 in 1750.
• Sir Elijah Impey served as the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court established at Calcutta in 1774.
• Charles Wilkins translated the Bhagavad Gita into English in 1784, for which Warren Hastings authored the introductory preface.
• James Augustus Hikey started The Bengal Gazette (India’s first printed newspaper) in 1780 at Calcutta during Hastings’ tenure.
• The Pitt’s India Act of 1784 was passed during his governorship, establishing the Board of Control to supervise the Company’s civil and military government.
• The Rohilla War of 1774 annexed Rohilkhand to the territory of the Nawab of Awadh, removing an independent Afghan enclave along Bengal’s frontier.
• Hastings established the salt monopoly and opium monopoly in Bengal to generate non-tax commercial revenues for the Company.