Governor-Generals of India
The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India.
This office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William. This officer had direct control only over Fort William, but supervised other British East India Company officials in India. Complete authority over whole of British India was granted in 1833, and the official became known as the Governor-General of India.
To reflect the Governor-General’s role as the representative of the monarch to the feudal rulers of princely states, from 1858, the term Viceroy and Governor-General of India (known in short as the Viceroy of India) was applied to him.
The title of Viceroy was abandoned when India and Pakistan gained their independence in 1947, but the office of Governor-General continued to exist in both new dominions until they adopted republican constitutions in 1950 and 1956 respectively.
Governors-General of Fort William in Bengal (Regulating Act of 1773)
| Term | Name |
| 1773 – 1785 | Warren Hastings |
| 1786 – 1793 | Lord Charles Cornwallis |
| 1793 – 1798 | Sir John Shore |
| 1798 – 1805 | Lord Arthur Wellesley |
| 1805 – 1807 | Sir George Barlow |
| 1807 – 1813 | Lord Minto I |
| 1813 – 1823 | Lord Hastings |
| 1823 – 1828 | Lord Amherst |
| 1828 – 1833 | Lord Bentinck |
Governors-General of India, Charter Act of 1833
| Term | Name |
| 1833 – 1835 | Lord William Bentinck |
| 1835 – 1836 | Lord Metcalfe |
| 1836 – 1842 | Lord Auckland |
| 1842 – 1844 | Lord Ellenborough |
| 1844 – 1848 | Lord Hardinge I |
| 1848 – 1856 | Lord Dalhousie |
| 1856 – 1858 | Lord Canning (on Nov 1 1858 he became the first Viceroy of British India) |
Viceroys
From 1858 to 1947 India was informally known as the British Raj
| Term | Name |
| 1858 – 1862 | Lord Canning |
| 1862 – 1863 | Lord Elgin I |
| 1864 – 1869 | Lord Lawrence |
| 1869 – 1872 | Lord Mayo |
| 1872 – 1876 | Lord Northbrook |
| 1876 – 1880 | Lord Lytton |
| 1880 – 1884 | Lord Ripon |
| 1884 – 1888 | Lord Dufferin, |
| 1888 – 1894 | Lord Lansdowne |
| 1894 – 1899 | Lord Elgin II |
| 1899 – 1905 | Lord Curzon |
| 1905-1910 | Lord Minto II |
| 1910 – 1916 | Lord Hardinge II |
| 1916 – 1921 | Lord Chelmsford |
| 1921 – 1926 | Lord Reading |
| 1926 – 1931 | Lord Irwin |
| 1931 – 1936 | Lord Willingdon |
| 1936 – 1944 | Lord Linlithgow |
| 1944 – 1947 | Lord Wavell |
| 1947 – 1948 | Lord Mountbatten |