Essay, Biography or Paragraph on “Lord William Bentinck” complete biography for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

Lord William Bentinck

England : A remarkable Governor-General

Born : 1774   Died : 1839

William Bentinck (Lord William Cavendish Bentinck), who came to India as Governor-General in 1828, will always be remembered as a man of enlightened vision and liberal bent of mind. Though some people may doubt his motives, this country shall for ever be grateful for his efforts to eradicate social evils from the Indian society.

William Bentinck was born in an aristocratic family of England in 1774. His father, the Duke of Portland, was Prime Minister of England. He started his life as a soldier, and took part in the wars against Napoleon. In 1803, he was sent to India, as Governor of Madras. He came under a cloud of suspicion whereupon he was recalled.

He again came to India as Governor-General in 1828. His tenure was remarkable because he was the first Governor-General to introduce some administrative and social reforms in his seven-year rule. He desired to eradicate many social evils prevalent amongst Indians and instill in them modern concepts. The custom of Sati – self-immolation — was practised in some parts of Indian villages wherein the Hindu widow was forced to burn alive on the funeral pyre of her husband. Raja Ram Mohan Roy of Bengal had already been fighting to abandon this abhorrent practice. In 1829, Bentinck outlawed this practice paving the way for a reformatory movement in the Hindu society. Female infanticide and human sacrifice practised amongst Rajputs were also outlawed under Bengal Regulation Act . In association with an able officer, Col Sleem an, Bentinck finished off the pindaris’ , a band of highway robbers across the country roads responsible for looting and killing of travellers. English, the language of upper class, was made compulsory in Indian schools by the then Education Secretary Lord Macaulay. This enlightened the Indian mass and paved the way for renaissance and subsequently the freedom movement. Those who imbibed English education and thought later on led the Indian freedom struggle.