Warren Hastings | |
|---|---|
 Portrait by Tilly Kettle | |
| Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William | |
| In office 20 October 1773 – 8 February 1785[1] | |
| Monarch | George III |
| Preceded by | Position created |
| Succeeded by | Sir John Macpherson, Bt As acting Governor-General |
| Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal) | |
| In office 28 April 1772 – 20 October 1773 | |
| Preceded by | John Cartier |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 December 1732 Churchill, Oxfordshire |
| Died | 22 August 1818 (aged 85) Daylesford, Gloucestershire |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse(s) |
Mary Buchanan
(m. 1756; died 1759) |
| Residence | Daylesford House |
| Alma mater | Westminster School |
| Signature |  |
Warren Hastings FRS (6 December 1732 – 22 August 1818) was a British colonial administrator, who served as the first governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal), the head of the Supreme Council of Bengal, and so the first governor-general of Bengal in 1772–1785. He and Robert Clive are credited with laying the foundation of the British Empire in India.[2][3] He was an energetic organizer and reformer. In 1779–1784 he led forces of the East India Company against a coalition of native states and the French. In the end, the well-organized British side held its own, while France lost influence in India. In 1787, he was accused of corruption and impeached, but he was eventually acquitted in 1795 after a long trial. He was made a privy councillor in 1814.
- ^ Bengal Public Consultations, 12 February 1785, No. 2. Letter from Warren Hastings, 8 February, formally declaring resignation of the office of Governor General.
- ^ "Warren Hastings". BBC. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "Warren Hastings, maker of British India". Journal of the Royal Central Asian Society. 22 (3): 476–480. 1935. doi:10.1080/03068373508725383.