Hastings spent much of his time in office marshalling his own supporters on the Council in an effort to avoid being outvoted. But the impeachment of Warren Hastings has more to teach us: Even when the defendant’s acquittal is a foregone conclusions, impeachment can tar misconduct and serve as a … Content Guidelines 2. Warren Hastings had to effect change in the civil jus­tice as it was a part of the responsibilities of the Diwani. On most charges he was unanimously found not guilty. Indeed, the impeachment and trial of Warren Hastings, the former governor-general of Bengal, one of the most famous impeachment cases in British history, began shortly before the Constitutional Convention assembled. s Speech On The Impeachment of Warren Hastings (15/2/1788) From Impeachment Of Hastings part of Prose Of Edmund Burke edited by Sir Philp Magnus (1948). Edmund Burke, the English Demosthenes, charged Hastings at the bar of the House of Lords on the tyranny and misdemeanour and also in the name of humanity, the English nation and the Indians and called him an enemy of humanity. 1787–1795 impeachment of the Governor-General of Bengal, Nothing in the History of Empire Is Stranger Than the Creation of British Rule in India (2000), Lec 9-Introduction to Governor Generals,Clive,Warren Hastings with Fantastic Fundas | Modern History. Justice had become a by­word. In the meantime, the preparations for the trial had proceeded rapidly; and on February 13, 1788, the sittings of the Court commenced. Other major events dominated the news particularly once the French Revolution began in 1789. The old structure of rule had come under strain as the Company's holdings had expanded in recent decades from isolated trading posts to large swathes of territory and population.[3]. [8] By now, Hastings wished to resign and return home unless the role of Governor General was given greater freedom to exercise power—which was unlikely to be granted him. Indian History, Governor-Generals, Warren Hastings. Hastings was financially ruined by the impeachment and was left with debts of £70,000. [10] Hastings anticipated he would face attacks in Parliament and the press but expected them to be short-lived and to fall away once he was there in person to defend himself. It was his timely help to the Madras and Bombay Government that led to the success of the English in the First Anglo-Maratha and Second Anglo-Mysore wars. Various other figures came forwards as character witnesses to support Hastings. This was a belief shared with some other members of the Council whom he was able to influence. [6] When Pitt introduced his Bill he failed to mention Hastings at all, seen as expressing a lack of confidence, and made wide-ranging criticisms of the Company. Even so, the British position in India had been severely threatened. The Commander in Chief Eyre Coote went south with reinforcements and defeated Hyder's army in a series of battles which helped to steady the position in the Carnatic. Warren Hastings, the first and most famous of the British governors-general of India, who dominated Indian affairs from 1772 to 1785 and was impeached (though acquitted) on his return to England. [24] Burke's reply to the defence lasted nine days from late May to mid-June 1794.[25]. 23 Footnote Constitutional Grounds, supra note 2, at 7; Hoffer & Hull, supra note 3, at 113–15. saw the inhuman and immoral conduct Of Hastings as an affront to the moral prestige of the British nation and made him stand trial at the bar of the House of Lords for long seven years, yet strictly from the national and imperial interests of Britain, there was a feeling that Hastings had been betrayed. [1], The trial did not sit continuously and the case dragged on for seven years. [20] His defence lawyer was Richard Shaw(e) who built his mansion Casino House in Herne Hill at least in part from the proceeds, employing John Nash and Humphry Repton as landscape designer (responsible for the water garden the remnants of which survive as Sunray Gardens in 2012). He was a versatile Hercules and per­formed tasks under most trying circumstances and left for the British nation the solidly laid foundations of the Indian empire. Warren Hastings FRS (6 December 1732 – 22 August 1818), an English statesman, was the first Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal), the head of the Supreme Council of Bengal, and thereby the first de facto Governor-General of Bengal from 1772 to 1785. Edmund Burke's impeachment of Warren Hastings for his conduct as governor-general in India represented the era's most serious internal challenge to British imperialism. I impeach him in name of the Commons’ House of Parliament whose trust he has betrayed. Not that all his work was success­ful or faultless but his failures in revenue matters were the failures of pioneers and partly due to inexperienced, corrupt officers of the Company. His minor reforms, but of great social consequences, were the prohibition of the tyranny of the Mahayans on the debtor ryots, realization of interest higher than at specified rate, realization of gratifica­tions by the Kazees and Muftis from the litigant public. In defining the scope of impeachment, they had in mind the alleged crimes of Warren Hastings. [20] As the trial progressed, public attitudes about Hastings also began to shift. While the Framers were aware of the British [9] During the voyage he wrote a defence of his conduct The State of Bengal and presented it to Henry Dundas. proceedings very seriously but, we have it from Macaulay, for many spectators the trial resembled a social event. The overwhelming failure to secure a conviction, and the stream of testimony that came out of India praising him, have led commentators to ask why Hastings, who appeared to many observers to have given dedicated service to the company and to have curbed its worst excesses, ended up being prosecuted in the first place. The name Warren Hastings may not be one that many Indians, bar those with a special interest in the nation' history, may be familiar with but the second impeachment trial of former US President Donald Trump, found prosecutors rolling back the years to invoke the 18th century trial of the former Governor-general of Bengal. But the British imperialism was greatly indebted to him, for he proved that it was possible for the British to establish their empire in lands far and far away from their home and over people different in race, colour and language. [16] Further speeches were made over the coming weeks by other leading Whigs such as Richard Brinsley Sheridan and Charles James Fox. On 23 April 1795 the Lord Chancellor Lord Loughborough oversaw the delivery of the verdict. Other major events dom­i­nated the news par­tic­u­larly once the French Rev­o­lu­tion began in 1789. Meet Warren Hastings, governor of India during the reign of King George III, whose impeachment (in England) filled America’s newspapers in 1787 … The great famine of 1770 had left the ryots who survived the scourge extremely impoverished. "Impeachment Of Warren Hastings." "III. In 1782 Lord Malville Dundas moved a resolution in the Parliament for the recall of Warren Hastings, Sir Elijah Impey, Lawrence Sullivan etc. The trial became a debate between two radically opposed visions of empire—one represented by Hastings, based on ideas of absolute power and conquest in pursuit of the exclusive national interests of the colonizer, versus one represented by Burke, of sovereignty based on a recognition of the rights of the colonized. Read this article to learn about the impeachment and estimate of Warren Hastings. Hyder was unable to secure victory and the war ended in a stalemate. The Pitt’s India Act of 1784 was a rude shock and bitter disappointment for Warren Hastings. It soon became clear that he was heading towards an impeachment. Previously, I wrote about Hastings in addressing the bribery theories being voiced by Democratic leaders and legal experts in the first Trump impeachment. The Hastings impeachment battle raged while the Framers wrote the Constitution, and it played a central role in their thinking. As the Kingdom of Oudh was too insecure against the Maratha attacks, the territories of the Company were also running the risk of being in­vaded by the Marathas. The situation quickly deteriorated for Hastings. In 1782 Lord Malville Dundas moved a resolution in the Parliament for the recall of Warren Hastings, Sir Elijah Impey, Lawrence Sullivan etc. The Fox–North Coalition fell from power after it attempted to bring in a radical East India Bill in 1783. True, Hastings had extorted money from Raja Chait Singh, Begums of Oudh, took bribes from Muni Begum, got Nanda Kumar hanged with the help of Sir Elijah Impey, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court which tainted his character as also of the British nation. Publication date 1890 Topics Hastings, Warren, 1732-1818 Publisher London : G. Bell Collection [12] Hastings even hoped to be awarded an Irish peerage. Our mission is to provide an online platform to help students to discuss anything and everything about history. he replied "never". But he fought against I hostile majority in his own Council, safeguarded the Company’s interests in Bengal, Madras and Bombay Presidencies and met the challenges of the Marathas and the Mysoreans with success. Of the British administrators in India none has been so contro­versial as Warren Hastings. Kalt and other proponents of late impeachment point out that the delegates referenced the ongoing English impeachment trial of Warren Hastings (a late impeachment… [19] Burke took the Would you like Wikipedia to always look as professional and up-to-date? The House of Commons, Late 1700s. It was War­ren Hastings who saved the Company’s rule in Bengal from collapse and the British possessions in India from the financial ruin and con­solidated the British Empire in India. By Thomas Babington Macaulay. Demands for financial support coming from the Bombay and the Madras Presidencies ad­ded to the already desperate financial condition of the Company. We have to examine the policy and achievements of Warren Hastings from two different points of view. It was due to his patronage that the Calcutta Madrasa and the Royal Asiatic Society had been founded. They had rested their hopes on his revealing widespread corruption but he denied that Hastings had amassed any illicit money and made a defence of his conduct. His realization of 40 lakh’s from the Nawab of Oudh by rendering military assistance to him against the Rohillas was dictated by the double purpose of finding money for the Company which was in dire need of it and making Oudh stronger as a buffer State. Hastings was personally attacked by Charles James Fox during the presentation of his India Bill. The impeachment trial of Warren Hastings in … [15], Encouraged by Pitt's failure to adequately support Hastings, his opponents pressed on with their campaign. Introduction. I use WIKI 2 every day and almost forgot how the original Wikipedia looks like. The attacks on Hastings were largely made by opposition Whigs hoping to embarrass the government of William Pitt. Pitt and other government ministers such as Dundas defended Hastings and suggested that he had saved the British Empire in Asia. That's it. Hastings had initially been overwhelmingly portrayed as guilty in the popular press, but doubts were increasingly raised. In December, Trump became the third US President to be impeached in the country’s history. But considered from the points of view of administra­tive morality and humanity the impeachment exemplified the high sense of morality and dignity of the leaders of Great Britain. I impeach the common enemy and oppressor of all.”, For long seven years the impeachment proceedings went on and eventually he was acquitted, but to meet the expenditure of defend­ing himself Hastings became almost a pauper. G. Bell, London), Mukherjee, Mithi. In foreign affairs he was guided by the imperative need of giv­ing protection to the Company’s territories to which end he followed the policy of subsidiary alliance with the Nawab of Oudh and by making him dependent on the English made Oudh a buffer state of the British dominion towards the north-west frontier of the time. Hastings was charged with high crimes and misdemeanors, which included corruption and abuse of power. On three questions five or six peers gave guilty verdicts, but Hastings was still comfortably cleared by majority vote. He in his inimitable style and rehetoric said in conclusion of his charge, “Therefore, hath it with all confidence being ordered, by the Commons of Great Britain, that I impeach Warren Hastings of high crimes and misdemeanours. Warren Hastings FRS (6 December 1732 – 22 August 1818), an English statesman, was the first Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal), the head of the Supreme Council of Bengal, and thereby the first de facto Governor-General of Bengal from 1772 to 1785. Pitt's India Act served to move much of the supervisory role for India away from the East India Company directors and officials in Leadenhall Street to a new political Board of Control based in London. The Company had already gone through scandals in the 1760s and 1770s and the wealthy nabobs who returned to Britain from India were widely unpopular. He found support from many leading opposition Whigs. [23], A further blow for the prosecution came with the evidence of William Larkins the former Accountant General of Bengal. Donald Trump’s impeachment trial started in the US Senate. It is possible that Pitt believed "he ran the very genuine risk of being accused by the opposition of shielding a notorious criminal from justice, for political reasons". Hastings was particularly upset by this, as he was an admirer of Pitt. Em­peror Shah Alam was then a puppet in the hands of the Marathas, the latter were about to pounce upon the Company’s territories. Against this backdrop the criticisms circulated by Francis and others provoked a general consensus that the 1773 India Act hadn't been sufficient to rein in the alleged excesses. Impeachment of Warren Hastings: Towards the end of Indian career of Warren Hastings, there began a good deal of criticism in England of his high-handedness in administration. I impeach him in the name of the people of India, their right he has trodden under foot, and whose country he has turned into a desert. Pitt broadly defended Hastings, but declared his punishment of the Rajah had been excessive. harv error: no target: CITEREFJames_L._Newell2006 (, harv error: no target: CITEREFMary_Wickwire1980 (, "Justice, War, and the Imperium: India and Britain in Edmund Burke's Prosecutorial Speeches in the Impeachment Trial of Warren Hastings", The World’s Famous Orations. [30] A number of factors may have played a part, including partisan politics, although Pitt joined the opposition in supporting the Impeachment. [11] Initially this proved to be the case as he enjoyed an audience with King George III and a unanimous vote of thanks by the directors of the East India Company. The impeachment prosecution was led by Edmund Burke and became a wider debate about the role of the East India Company and the expanding empire in India. A precedent being discussed is that of the Warren Hastings case — the famous failed attempt by the British Parliament to impeach India’s first governor-general. During the convention debates on impeachment, George Mason mentioned the impeachment of Warren Hastings, a former British official in India, which began during the summer of 1787. In total there were nineteen members of the Impeachment Committee. [2], In spite of the early excitement about the trial public interest in it began to wane as it dragged on over months and years. He also reformed the criminal justice which was strictly speaking not with­in the purview of the Company’s authority, criminal jurisdiction having been under the Nawab. He had to cut through the ambiguity and confusion of the Dual Government introduced by Clive. Abstract. Sheridan now complained he was "heartily tired of the Hastings trial" despite being one of its instigators. George Mason referred to Hastings … To install click the Add extension button. [4] Francis returned to Britain in 1781 and began raising questions about Hastings' conduct. It sometimes seems that every impeachment road leads back to Warren Hastings. Hastings recruited Edward Law, 1st Baron Ellenborough to act in his defence. It proved to be a catalyst for the growing campaign in London against Hastings which gathered strength during the ensuing years. Before sharing your knowledge on this site, please read the following pages: 1. A third of the Lords who had attended the trial's opening had since died[20] and only twenty-nine of the others had sat through enough of the evidence to be permitted to pronounce judgement. Lastly, his interest in education and literature, history and culture deserve special mention. From the point of view of the British interests, ‘the impeach­ment of Warren Hastings was nothing more or less than ingratitude on the part of the English nation towards Hastings’. But for a dispassionate consideration of Has­tings’ policy and work, it is imperative that we remember the internal disorder in the Company’s administration, financial straits of the Company as well as the undefined hence confused nature of the frontier policy of the Company when he had come as the Governor of Bengal. Welcome to HistoryDiscussion.net! Previous figures who had faced such trials included the Duke of Buckingham, a favourite of James I, and the Earl of Strafford, whose impeachment failed (but was followed up by a legislative bill of attainder that resulted in Strafford's execution). The son of a clergyman of the Church of England, Hastings was abandoned by his father at an early age. He and Robert Clive are credited with laying the foundation of the British Empire in India. Truly speaking, Warren Hastings was the real founder of the British Empire in India. At the Constitutional Convention, George Mason positively referenced the impeachment of Hastings. All these problems together made the task Herculean for any administrator and Hastings had to solve these prob­lems. [7] He suggested that recent wars in India had been ruinous and unnecessary. [2], Born in 1732, Warren Hastings spent much of his adult life in India after first travelling out as a clerk of the East India Company in 1750. "Justice, War, and the Imperium: India and Britain in Edmund Burke's Prosecutorial Speeches in the Impeachment Trial of Warren Hastings. Opinions vary as to Hastings’ policy and work in India. In the mean-time a series of letters under the caption Let­ters of Junius appeared in London, which contained scathing criticism of Warren Hastings’ administration in India. In fact, it was Warren Hastings’ success in laying solidly the foundations of the British empire in India that served as a model for future expansion of British rule in other non-European countries. [18] The proceedings began with a lengthy address by Edmund Burke, who took four days to cover all the charges against Hastings. Prosecutors seeking to impeach Donald Trump for a historic second time on Tuesday invoked the trial of Warren Hastings, the first British Governor-General of … In spite of the early ex­cite­ment about the trial pub­lic in­ter­est in it began to wane as it dragged on over months and years. Soon after, Pitt Earl of Chatham became the Prime Minister who was rather puritan in his views and did not approve of the activities of Hastings in India. He also sent Abdul Quadir Mission to Nepal to study the Company’s trade prospects in that country. Considered from the point of view of the British interests it has to be conceded that Has­tings consolidated the foundations of the British rule in India extri­cating Company’s administration from venality and tyrannical con­duct of the Company’s servants, from the internal disorder and finan­cial bankruptcy of the Company, as also of the intricate frontier problems. Realization of revenue was also not possible except through extortionate methods. Disclaimer Copyright, History Discussion - Discuss Anything About History, Role of Warren Hastings as the Governor of Bengal, Top 5 Wars during the Governance of Hastings, Complaints to the Council for High-Handedness of Hastings, Economic Impact of Early British Rule on Indian Trade, Forts in India: 5 Magnificent Ancient Forts in India, Mosques in India: 15 Ancient Mosques in India. Agriculture, industry, in fact, every productive activity received a great blow due to decimation of one-third of the population of Bengal. When Hastings assumed charge as the Governor of Bengal, the evils of Clive’s dual government manifested themselves in the adminis­trative confusion and corruption among the Company’s servants and near bankruptcy of the Company’s finances. Ultimately only Elijah Impey was recalled and the proposal for the recall of others was dropped. Towards the end of Indian career of Warren Hastings, there began a good deal of criticism in England of his high-handedness in administration. There is a sacred veil to be drawn over the beginning of all governments. Ours in India had an origin like … The impeachment of Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of Bengal, was attempted between 1787 and 1795 in the Parliament of Great Britain. Its decline coincided with the rise of another, more effective process by which high officials could be held accountable, writes Eliga Gould. [27] This overwhelming verdict had been expected for some time and caused little surprise. The source code for the WIKI 2 extension is being checked by specialists of the Mozilla Foundation, Google, and Apple. He himself had ac­quired good knowledge of Bengali and Persian languages, he had great interest, even respect for the Sanskrit literature. But, interest started to drop as figures once keyed up about Hastings retreated. It will enhance any encyclopedic page you visit with the magic of the WIKI 2 technology. Now Hastings is back as a historical precedent for the impeachment of former officials. ". "Edmund Burke, the Warren Hastings trial, and the moral dimension of corruption. Warren Hastings served as Britain’s first Governor General in India, from 1773 to 1784. Whatever might have been the legal objec­tion to the Company’s meddling in the criminal jurisdiction of the Nawab, his judicial reforms had laid the foundations of the Indian judicial system no doubt. Hastings held no further public office, but was regarded as an expert on Indian matters and was asked to give evidence to parliament on the subject in 1812. He handed over to an Acting Governor General, John MacPherson until a permanent replacement was appointed. The powers of the Governor General were balanced out by the establishment of a Calcutta Council which had the authority to veto his decisions. accords with the British impeachment of Warren Hastings two years after his resignation as the governor-general of Bengal. He is credited along with Robert Clive for laying the foundation of the British Empire in India. Increased support for Hastings may have been a result of declining perceptions of his accusers. This policy of subsidiary alliance was followed later by Lord Wellesley with greater success. The lower house of Parliament, the House of Commons, impeached Warren Hastings, who had retired as governor-general of British India and was back in England, for corruption and mismanagement. [14] Philip Francis made eleven specific charges against Hastings, and others later followed. Although high-minded leaders of the British opinion such as Burke, Dundas, Pitt, etc. Hastings' trial began on 13 February 1788 and took place in Westminster Hall with members of the House of Commons seated to his right and the Lords to his left and a large audience of spectators, including royalty, in the boxes and public galleries. Roads and highways were infested with marauders and robbers. The Prime Minister’s speech censuring the policy of the Government of Bengal was considered by Warren Hastings as a reflection on his personal character. At the Trial of Warren Hastings" Edmund Burke (1729–97), archive.org: "The speeches of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke on the impeachment of Warren Hastings : to which is added a selection of Burke's epistolary correspondence" (1890 ed. ", Brian Smith. He sent George Bogle to Tashi Lama in Tibet on a Commercial Mis­sion (1774). You could also do it yourself at any point in time. In 1780 Hyder Ali, the ruler of Mysore, went to war with the company after British forces captured the French-controlled port of Mahé. For he had trodden upon the interests, rights, dignity of the Indians, his tyranny over the Raja Chait Singh, Begums of Oudh, his immoral and illegal method of dealing with his adversary Nanda Kumar had not only blackened his own character but had turnished the name of the British nation. Meanwhile, Hastings appealed to the British government for financial assistance and was eventually compensated by the East India Company with a loan of £50,000 and a pension of £4,000 a year. The net result of the impeachment was that it breathed a sense of respon­sibility and justice in the Company’s administration in India. When disapproval of Warren Hastings’ work became almost general in his own country, he resigned his post as Governor Gene­ral and left for home in 1785. But from the Indian point of view the conduct of Warren Hastings as the Governor and later as Governor-General stands con­demned. The impeachment and trial of Warren Hastings, which began in 1787 and concluded with the acquittal of the former Governor-General in 1795, brought unprecedented attention to Indian affairs in Britain. Warren Hastings and the Historical Basis for Retroactive Impeachments [Updated] It sometimes seems that every impeachment road leads back to Warren Hastings. Sheri­dan now com­plained he was "heartily tired of the Hast­ings trial" de­spite being one of its in… The frontier policy had no direction. When the eventual verdict was given Hastings was overwhelmingly acquitted. Donald Trump’s impeachment trial started in the US Senate on Tuesday (January 21). They covered various subjects such as the Rohilla War, execution of Nanda-Kumar and Hastings' treatment of the Rajas of Benares Chait Singh. Hastings sailed for home on 6 February and reached Britain in June 1785. [5] The following year the new government of William Pitt passed an India Act of 1784 which established a Board of Control and which finally stabilised the governance of India. In a cartoon James Gillray portrayed Hastings as the "Saviour of India" being assaulted by bandits resembling Burke and Fox. He, however, saw to it that the questions of inheritance and property rights were decided in cases of the Hindus according to Hindu Sastras and by the Mohammedan laws in cases of the Muslims. The Impeachment of Warren Hastings. Yet it will be unfair not to praise what he had done to bring discipline in the Company’s administration, to lay down the founda­tion of the Indian judicial system, to expand the trade and com­merce, and to save the Company’s interests at a time when these were at the verge of ruin. And many share the pathos of Hastings’ exclamation: I gave you all and you have rewarded me with confiscation, disgrace and a life of im­peachment. Warren Hastings also did not hesitate to despoil the Chait Singh of Benares by illegal exactions and eventual dispossession of the Raja of this Kingdom and to tyrannise over the eunuchs of the Begums of Oudh to compel them to part with their treasures. Initially Hastings’ use of the Company’s troops as mercenaries against the Rohillas who did no harm to the Company was the major charge. Cornwallis rejected the accusations that Hastings' actions had damaged Britain's reputation and observed that Hastings was universally popular with the inhabitants. It was surely a stroke of statesmanship on the part of Hastings to stop payment of 26 lakhs annually to Emperor Shah Alam who was under the thumb of the Marathas, for the payment would mean so much money lost to the Company in strengthening the hands of the Company’s enemies, the Marathas. He saved the British interests in Madras and Bom­bay Presidencies. [22] When asked if he had "found any just cause to impeach the character of Mr Hastings?" With Company’s servants lacking the knowledge of intricate revenue system of Bengal, Hastings had to take certain experimen­tal measures like quinquennial revenue settlement with the highest bidders, appointment of a Board of revenue and substitution of for­mer supervisors by Collectors.