Charter Act 1853
Topic: Europeans in India and the Rise of Company Rule · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Charter Act of 1853 was the last of the charter acts passed for the East India Company. For the first time it separated the Governor-General's law-making work from his day-to-day governing work. It also opened the Company's higher civil service to open competitive examination. Unlike earlier acts, it renewed the charter without fixing a period, so Parliament could end Company rule at any time. It did so in 1858.
Example
Under the Act, extra members were added to the Governor-General's council only for making laws. This formed a separate legislative council that worked like a small parliament. In 1854 a committee headed by Macaulay set the rules for the new open examination, which ended the old system of Company directors choosing their favourites.
Don't confuse with
- Charter Act 1833: it made the Governor-General of Bengal the Governor-General of India and ended the Company's trading work. It did not separate law-making from governing or bring in open exams.
Related concepts
- Charles Metcalfe
- Warren Hastings
- Regulating Act 1773
- Supreme Court at Calcutta 1774
- Pitt's India Act 1784
- Impeachment of Warren Hastings
- Cornwallis Code 1793
- Charter Act 1793
- Covenanted civil service
- Fort William College