Warren Hastings: Model Short Answers with Video Display

 For video display, watch the following YouTube videos.

The URL of YouTube is: https://youtu.be/YAVtf0vJY04

Warren Hastings 15 Model Short Answers

Question. Enlist four internal difficulties Warren Hastings faced on his elevation as the Governor-General in 1774.

Answer: The four internal difficulties faced by Warren Hastings as Governor-General in 1774 were

1. The company was in a state of financial bankruptcy.

2. Rampant corruption among the company’s servants.

3. The dual government in Bengal caused confusion and disorder

4. A complete breakdown of the judicial system.

2. Mention four administrative reforms introduced by Warren Hastings.

Answer: the four administrative reforms introduced by Warren Hastings were

1. End of the double government in Bengal

2. Dismissal of Deputy Nawabs of Bengal Raza Khan and Raja Shitab Rai

3. The transfer treasury from Murshidabad to Calcutta

4. Crushing of the robbers and the dacoits.

3. Outline four revenue reforms introduced by Warren Hastings

Answer: The four revenue reforms introduced by Warren Hastings were

1. Introduced five-year and annual settlement in 1772.

2. The appointment of the new board of revenue at Calcutta.

3. Appointment of an accountant general

4. Appointment of British land revenue collectors

4. Point out four judicial reforms introduced by Warren Hastings

Answer: The four judicial reforms introduced by Warren Hastings were

1. Setup a civil and criminal court in each district of Bengal

2. Abolishing the judicial function of the Zamindars

3. Fixing a definite time limit for giving judgments

4. Made justice cheap and free from corruption

5. Spell out four financial or economic reforms and measures taken by Warren Hastings to replenish the company’s Treasury

Answer: The four financial and economic reforms and measures taken by Warren Hastings to replenish the company’s treasury were

1. The annual allowance of 26,00,000 of Shah Alam 1st, the Mughal Emperor, was stopped.

2. Reduction in allowance of the Nawab of Bengal to one-half, from 32 lakhs to 16 lakhs rupees.

3. Substantial reduction in the pension of the company’s servants.

4. Improving currency, which was in a hopeless condition and confusion.

6. Mention four new trade regulations for commercial reforms introduced by Warren Hastings

Answer: the four new trade regulations for commercial reforms introduced by Hastings were

1. Abolition of Chowkies or custom houses.

2. Forbidding the use of Dastakhat by the servants of the company.

3. Steps to check the exploitations of the weavers.

4. Sending commercial missions to Bhutan, Tibet, and Egypt. 

7. In which year did Warren Hastings establish the Kolkata Madrasa?

Answer: Warren Hastings established the Kolkata Madrasah in 1781

8. Give two causes that led to the passing of the Regulating Act of 1773 during the administration of Warren Hastings

Answer: The two causes that led to the passing of the Regulating Act of 1773 were: 

1. The company was no longer merely a trading company but had become a ruling company. Therefore, the Parliament of England deemed it proper to supervise its affairs.

2. The second reason was that the servants of the company were engaged in private raids and had become rich, creating a very unsound financial condition for the company in 1772. The Directors asked the British government for a loan of£1,00,000, or they would have to wind up their trading operations in India. So, Lord North’s government in England passed the Regulating Act in 1773 to improve the affairs of the company.

9. By whom, when and why was the Pitts India Act passed?

Answer: In 1784, Pitts the Younger, the prime minister of England, passed a new bill to improve the British administration in India. It was known as the Pitts India Act.

10. How many members were there in the Board of Control according to the Indian Act of 1784? What was their function? Who nominated them?

Answer: 1. There were six members in the Board of Control according to the Pitts India Act of 1784.

2. The function of the Board of Control was to supervise the administration of affairs of the British East India Company.

3. Its members were to be nominated by the crown.

11. Who were the Rohillas? What was the name of their chief?

Answer: The Rohillas were a warlike Afghan tribe. They inhabited the fertile territory northwest of Awadh, called Rohilkhand after them. Their chief was Hafiz Rehman Khan.

12. When and between whom was the Treaty of Surat signed? Why did Raghuba (Raghunath Rao) agree to cede the islands of Salsette and Bassin to the English?

Answer: 1. The Treaty of Surat was concluded between the leaders of Marathas, Raghuba and the British East India Company in 1775.

2. According to the treaty, Raghuba agreed to cede the islands of Salsette and Bassin to the English in return for their help.

13. Write the year and mention the parties between whom the Treaty of Purandhar was signed.

Answer: In 1776, The Treaty of Purandhar was signed between the English and Nana Padnavis. The English agreed not to help Raghoba if the island of Salsa was allowed to remain with the English.

14. Write two results of the Treaty of Salbai in 1782.

Answer: By the Treaty of Salbai in 1782,

1. Madhurao, son of  Narayanrao, was recognised as the Peshwa

2. A pension of rupees 3 lakhs A year was settled on Raghoba.

15. Outlined the significance of the Treaty of Salbai 1782.

Answer: The Treaty of Salbai, signed in 1782, secured peace for the English with the Marathas for twenty years and enabled the English to breach the power of Haider Ali and the Nizam of Hyderabad. Thus, this treaty was a significant landmark in the history of India.

16. When was the executive council of four members, with Warren Hasting as the first Governor-General in Council to run the English East India Company administration, constituted?

Answer: In 1774, an executive council headed by Warren Hastings, the first governor-general in the council to run the administration of the English East India Company, was constituted. It comprised Philip Francis, Clavering, Monsoon, and Barwell, who assisted Warren Hastings. The governor-general headed to the executive meetings, which took majority decision, though the Governor-General was given a casting vote whenever there was an equal division of opinion. The government nominated the first four members for 5 years.

16 A. Who were the executive council members in the Bengal Council of Warren Hastings established by the Regulating Act of 1773? 

Answer: Philip Francis, Clavering, Monsoon, and Barwell were the members of the executive council of Warren Hastings in Bengal Council established by the Regulating Act of 1773.