Lord Linlithgow
Topic: The National Movement: Gandhian Era · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 3 "Mahatma Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement"
Meaning
Lord Linlithgow was Viceroy of India from 1936 to 1943, the longest such term in the national movement period. A viceroy was the British king's chief representative and the head of the government in India. In 1939 Linlithgow declared India a party to the Second World War without consulting Indian leaders. In protest, the Congress ministries resigned in October 1939. His term also saw the August Offer of 1940, the failure of the Cripps Mission in 1942, and the crushing of Quit India.
Example
In August 1942 the Congress passed the Quit India resolution. Linlithgow's government jailed the leaders at once and used heavy force. It took more than a year to suppress what had become a genuine mass movement.
Don't confuse with
- Lord Wavell: he came after Linlithgow, from 1943 to 1947. Wavell tried to bring the Congress and the League together, while Linlithgow's term is linked with wartime repression.
Related concepts
- Provincial elections of 1937
- Congress ministries 1937-39
- Wardha scheme of basic education
- Congress Socialist Party
- Haripura session 1938
- Tripuri crisis 1939
- Forward Bloc
- Second World War
- Resignation of Congress ministries
- Day of Deliverance 1939