Lord Northbrook - Important Personalities - Modern India History Notes

The 1st Earl of Northbrook, Thomas George Baring was a British Liberal statesman. Gladstone made him Viceroy of India from 1872 to 1876. This article is a blend of his life and his time in India for the UPSC Exams.

Lord Northbrook

• Lord Northbrook was born on 22 January 1886.
• Northbrook was the eldest son of Francis Baring, 1st Baron Northbrook, and Jane Grey, daughter of Sir George Grey, 1st Baronet. He attended Twyford School and Christ Church, Oxford, from which he graduated with honors in 1846.
• Lord Northbrook served as Viceroy of India between 1872 and 1876.
• The deposition of Gaikwad of Baroda in 1875, the visit of the Prince of Wales, the Bihar Famine, and the Kuka Movement in Punjab were all significant events during his reign.

Deposition of Gaikwad of Baroda

• Baroda was ruled by the popular Raja Khanderao Gaekwad until 1870. He was supposed to be succeeded by Malharrao, his brother, after his death because he had no male heirs.
• But this man was a rash and extravagant spender, as well as a despicable tyrant.
• When the British Resident in Baroda died in mysterious circumstances, Northbrook deposed Malhar Rao Gaikawar from the throne of Baroda.
• As a result, the supreme British intervened, and he was deposed in 1875 and exiled to Madras on the orders of Lord Salisbury.
• Later, in 1882, he died in obscurity. This was one example of the use of supreme power to punish acts of excessive or criminal misconduct committed by a chief or his ministers.

Visit of Prince of Wales

• In 1876, the Prince of Wales, Queen Victoria's eldest son, traveled to India with a large suite. He arrived in Bombay, then went to Madras, Ceylon, and finally Calcutta.
• The purpose of this visit was to instill loyalty in the local princes to the British Empress and to affirm their central role in the empire's survival.
• The "loyal" Indian feudatories showered him with valuable gifts wherever he went. He amassed so much in 6 months that one of the ships was completely filled with jewels, paintings, antique weapons, live animals, embroideries, brocades, and various forms of contemporary art.
• He returned, and the gifts were displayed for six months in England.
• In exchange, the Prince of Wales presented Indian princes with a copy of the Rig-veda, as translated by Max Muller.

Kuka Movement

• The Namdhari or Kuka movement was founded on the basis of saying only God's name and foregoing all religious rituals in saying God's name by either Balak Singh or Bhagat Jawar Jawahar.
• They frequently developed emotions while reciting the name of God, screamed and shouted, took turbans in their hands and hair streaming in the air, and were thus known as 'Kukas,' or the shouters. This type of behavior has also been observed in Muslim Dervishes.
• Under Baba Ram Singh, this movement became politicized. He and his followers became zealous cattle protectors, resenting both the Muslims who killed cows and the British who allowed the cows to be slaughtered.
• In 1870, a group of his followers assassinated four Muslim butchers in Amritsar. As a result, four Kukas were executed and two others were exiled.
• In 1872, there was a larger uprising in which Kukas attacked a Muslim community and killed some of its members on his way back from the Maghi festival. The government reacted harshly. Of the 68 Kukas apprehended, 50 were blown up with guns the same day without any legal procedure, and 17 the next day.
• Baba Ram Singh was charged with aiding and abetting the crime and was transported to Rangoon, where he died in 1885.
• This movement received only a small amount of support from mainstream Sikhs who remained loyal to the British.

Bihar Famine

• During Lord Northbrook's reign, India was hit by two major famines. The Bihar famine of 1873–74 was one of them.
• Surprisingly, during this famine, the British Government resorted to a massive relief effort coordinated by the Bengal government, resulting in no casualties.
• However, during Lord Lytton's reign, another Great Famine struck Southern India in 1876–78. This famine struck Madras and Bombay, as well as Mysore and Hyderabad. A total of ten million people died, with no figures available for the princely states.

Other Important Events

• On January 15, 1875, IMD (Indian Meteorological Department) was founded in Kolkata. Following that, it was relocated to Shimla, then to Pune, and finally to New Delhi.
• The income tax, which had been in place since Lord Canning's time, had become unpopular and was repealed by Lord Northbrook.
• Inter-caste marriage was permitted.
• Civil marriage and Arya Samaj marriage were permitted under the Universal Marriage Act of 1872.

Conclusion

The greatest achievements of Lord Northbrook came as an energetic reformer dedicated to improving the quality of government in the British Raj. In an effort to reduce both starvation and widespread social unrest, he reduced taxes and overcame bureaucratic obstacles. From 1880 to 1885, he was First Lord of the Admiralty.

FAQs

MCQs

Question: Who was the Viceroy of India when the Prince of Wales visited?

(a) Lord Canning

(b) Lord Lytton

(c) Lord Ellenborough

(d) Lord Northbrook

Question: Which of the following did not occur during Lord Northbrook?

(a) Kuka Movement

(b) Bihar Famine

(c) Widow Remarriage Act

(d) IMD was set up in Kolkata