British Administration- Lord Dalhousie Top 100 MCQs With Answer and Explanation

1. Lord Dalhousie became the Governor-General of India in which year?
A) 1846
B) 1848
C) 1850
D) 1853

2. Lord Dalhousie is most remembered for which controversial policy?
A) Subsidiary Alliance
B) Doctrine of Lapse
C) Dual Government
D) Permanent Settlement

3. Under the Doctrine of Lapse, adopted heirs were?
A) Accepted as legal heirs
B) Not recognized without British approval
C) Recognized unconditionally
D) Allowed only in princely states

4. Which was the first state annexed under the Doctrine of Lapse?
A) Jhansi
B) Nagpur
C) Satara
D) Awadh

5. Which of the following states was not annexed under the Doctrine of Lapse?
A) Jhansi
B) Satara
C) Punjab
D) Nagpur

6. Jhansi was annexed in which year by Dalhousie?
A) 1852
B) 1853
C) 1854
D) 1855

7. Which state was annexed in 1854 under the Doctrine of Lapse?
A) Awadh
B) Nagpur
C) Satara
D) Sambalpur

8. Sambalpur was annexed by Dalhousie in?
A) 1849
B) 1850
C) 1853
D) 1854

9. The state of Awadh was annexed by Dalhousie on what ground?
A) Doctrine of Lapse
B) Misgovernment
C) Lack of heir
D) Treaty violation

10. Which ruler of Awadh was deposed by Dalhousie?
A) Asaf-ud-Daula
B) Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar
C) Nasir-ud-Din Haidar
D) Wajid Ali Shah

11. Which annexation by Dalhousie caused widespread resentment and contributed to the Revolt of 1857?
A) Nagpur
B) Awadh
C) Jhansi
D) Satara

12. Which of the following was annexed by Dalhousie under Doctrine of Lapse?
A) Punjab
B) Mysore
C) Udaipur
D) Satara

13. How many states in total were annexed under Doctrine of Lapse by Dalhousie?
A) 4
B) 5
C) 7
D) 8

14. Punjab was annexed in 1849 after?
A) First Anglo-Sikh War
B) Second Anglo-Sikh War
C) Treaty of Lahore
D) Doctrine of Lapse

15. Dalhousie’s annexation of Punjab marked the end of?
A) Mughal rule
B) Maratha rule
C) Sikh rule
D) Rajput rule

16. Who was the last ruler of Punjab annexed by Dalhousie?
A) Maharaja Ranjit Singh
B) Sher Singh
C) Dalip Singh
D) Hira Singh

17. Which of the following annexations was NOT done during Dalhousie’s tenure?
A) Satara
B) Punjab
C) Sindh
D) Jhansi

18. Who famously said, “Dalhousie never completed a journey without annexing a territory”?
A) Macaulay
B) Lord Canning
C) Sir Charles Metcalfe
D) Henry Lawrence

19. Which annexation was described as the “death blow to the Nawabi system”?
A) Jhansi
B) Nagpur
C) Awadh
D) Satara

20. Dalhousie justified the annexation of Awadh by calling it?
A) “Political necessity”
B) “A measure of administrative reform”
C) “Moral duty of Britain”
D) “An act of kindness”

21. Who among the following Indian leaders opposed annexation of Jhansi?
A) Rani Lakshmibai
B) Tatya Tope
C) Nana Sahib
D) Kunwar Singh

22. The annexation of Awadh in 1856 was strongly resented by?
A) Zamindars
B) Soldiers of Bengal Army
C) Peasants
D) All of the above

23. Which annexation by Dalhousie created a large pool of unemployed soldiers, later fueling the Revolt of 1857?
A) Jhansi
B) Satara
C) Awadh
D) Punjab

24. Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse was criticized as being?
A) A reformist policy
B) An immoral act of aggression
C) A benevolent policy
D) An Indian initiative

25. Which Governor-General’s annexation policy most directly provoked the Revolt of 1857?
A) Wellesley
B) Dalhousie
C) Cornwallis
D) Bentinck

26. Lord Dalhousie is often called the “father” of which modern facility in India?
A) Railways
B) Agriculture
C) Irrigation
D) Industries

27. The first railway line in India (1853) was between?
A) Calcutta – Howrah
B) Bombay – Thane
C) Madras – Arakkonam
D) Delhi – Agra

28. The first passenger train in India ran in?
A) 1850
B) 1853
C) 1855
D) 1857

29. Dalhousie’s railway policy aimed mainly at?
A) Cheap passenger movement
B) Military mobility and commercial exploitation
C) Tourism promotion
D) Industrialization of India

30. The first railway company established in India was?
A) Madras Railway Company
B) East Indian Railway Company
C) Great Indian Peninsula Railway Company
D) Indian Railways Company

31. Which modern communication system was introduced by Dalhousie?
A) Telephone
B) Telegraph
C) Radio
D) Wireless

32. Who is known as the “Father of Indian Telegraph”?
A) Lord Dalhousie
B) Dr. W. O’Shaughnessy
C) Macaulay
D) Charles Metcalfe

33. The telegraph line from Calcutta to Agra covered approximately?
A) 500 miles
B) 700 miles
C) 800 miles
D) 1,000 miles

34. Dalhousie introduced which reform in the postal system?
A) Post office privatization
B) Uniform postage (postal stamp system)
C) Free telegrams for officials
D) Subsidized parcels for traders

35. The Indian Postal Act, which modernized postal services under Dalhousie, came in?
A) 1850
B) 1851
C) 1852
D) 1854

36. Which irrigation work was completed under Dalhousie?
A) Upper Bari Doab Canal
B) Ganga Canal
C) Krishna Canal
D) Godavari Canal

37. The Ganga Canal, opened in 1854, was inaugurated by?
A) Lord Dalhousie
B) Lord Canning
C) Lord Hardinge
D) Sir Proby Cautley

38. Dalhousie’s social reforms included prohibition of?
A) Slavery
B) Female infanticide
C) Widow remarriage
D) Caste system

39. Dalhousie took strong measures against which tribal custom?
A) Caste panchayats
B) Human sacrifice among Khonds
C) Polyandry in Himalayas
D) Matriliny in Kerala

40. Which law was passed in 1856, just after Dalhousie, but inspired by his reforms?
A) Sati Abolition Act
B) Widow Remarriage Act
C) Infanticide Prohibition Act
D) Press Act

41. Which educational institution was established in 1854 during Dalhousie’s rule?
A) Calcutta University
B) Thomason Engineering College, Roorkee
C) Banaras Hindu University
D) Aligarh College

42. The famous Wood’s Dispatch (1854) was implemented during Dalhousie’s time. Who authored it?
A) Charles Wood
B) Lord Dalhousie
C) Thomas Macaulay
D) James Mill

43. Wood’s Dispatch (1854) recommended the establishment of?
A) Primary schools only
B) Universities in Presidency towns
C) Technical colleges
D) Private missionary schools

44. Which three universities were founded in 1857 under Wood’s Dispatch?
A) Calcutta, Madras, Bombay
B) Delhi, Allahabad, Madras
C) Banaras, Bombay, Madras
D) Calcutta, Allahabad, Delhi

45. Wood’s Dispatch (1854) emphasized which principle in education?
A) Vernacular education at primary level
B) English at all levels
C) Exclusive missionary education
D) Free higher education

46. Dalhousie promoted technical education mainly for?
A) Indian independence
B) Railway and engineering works
C) Military training
D) Clerical training

47. Dalhousie supported which survey to improve scientific knowledge of India?
A) Geological Survey of India
B) Agricultural Survey
C) Census Survey
D) Linguistic Survey of India

48. Dalhousie encouraged introduction of which modern means of transport besides railways?
A) Steamships
B) Motor cars
C) Airplanes
D) Tramways

49. Which canal was considered a major public work and one of the longest in the world during Dalhousie’s time?
A) Ganga Canal
B) Krishna Canal
C) Buckingham Canal
D) Sutlej Canal

50. Dalhousie’s social, educational, and infrastructure reforms are often described as?
A) Humanitarian and modernizing
B) Reactionary
C) Religious and conservative
D) Expansionist only

51. The major administrative principle of Lord Dalhousie was?
A) Non-interference in Indian states
B) Centralization of power
C) Provincial autonomy
D) Self-government for Indians

52. Which act during Dalhousie’s tenure created legislative councils for the first time?
A) Charter Act of 1833
B) Charter Act of 1853
C) Indian Councils Act 1861
D) Regulating Act 1773

53. What was the major change introduced by the Charter Act of 1853?
A) End of East India Company’s trading monopoly completely
B) First step towards competitive examinations for civil services
C) Creation of the Indian Penal Code
D) Indian representation in Governor-General’s Council

54. The first competitive civil service examination for Indians (in London) was held in?
A) 1853
B) 1855
C) 1858
D) 1859

55. Dalhousie appointed which commission to improve the condition of army recruitment and training?
A) Peel Commission
B) Macaulay Commission
C) Dalhousie Commission
D) Southborough Commission

56. The military reforms of Dalhousie aimed at?
A) Reducing Indian sepoy recruitment
B) Balancing European and Indian troops
C) Abolishing cavalry units
D) Promoting Indian officers

57. Which military training institution was reorganized under Dalhousie?
A) Fort William College
B) Addiscombe Military Seminary
C) Banaras Sanskrit College
D) Aligarh Military Academy

58. Dalhousie introduced postal reforms mainly for?
A) Promoting trade
B) Military communication
C) Administrative efficiency and public benefit
D) Missionary propaganda

59. The Indian Penal Code was drafted during Dalhousie’s tenure by?
A) James Mill
B) Lord Macaulay
C) Charles Wood
D) Raja Ram Mohan Roy

60. Dalhousie’s legal reforms were inspired by?
A) English common law
B) French civil code
C) Mughal law
D) Hindu Dharmashastras

61. The establishment of High Courts in India came after Dalhousie, but his groundwork was?
A) Unifying civil and criminal codes
B) Abolishing Supreme Courts
C) Introducing jury system
D) Creating provincial assemblies

62. Dalhousie merged the Sadar Diwani Adalat and Sadar Nizamat Adalat into?
A) Supreme Court of Calcutta
B) High Court of Calcutta
C) Centralized Sadar Courts
D) Governor-General’s Council

63. Dalhousie reformed policing by establishing?
A) Rural chowkidari system
B) Indian Imperial Police Service
C) Armed militias
D) Volunteer police

64. Which province’s administration was reorganized after its annexation by Dalhousie?
A) Sindh
B) Punjab
C) Mysore
D) Bengal

65. Who headed the Board of Administration in Punjab initially?
A) John Lawrence
B) Henry Lawrence
C) Dalip Singh
D) Robert Bird

66. Later, who replaced Henry Lawrence in the Punjab administration?
A) John Lawrence
B) Charles Metcalfe
C) James Outram
D) William Sleeman

67. Dalhousie’s reforms in Punjab included?
A) Land settlement
B) Canal irrigation
C) Revenue reforms
D) All of the above

68. Dalhousie reorganized the army by increasing the proportion of?
A) Indian sepoys
B) Cavalry regiments
C) European soldiers
D) Naval recruits

69. Which was the first hill station developed as a military and administrative center by Dalhousie?
A) Simla
B) Dalhousie (in Himachal)
C) Darjeeling
D) Mussoorie

70. Dalhousie introduced reforms in the army to ensure?
A) No single community dominated
B) Exclusive European control
C) Exclusive Hindu recruitment
D) Reduction of Sikh soldiers

71. Dalhousie’s railway and telegraph reforms also served a military purpose because?
A) They helped rapid troop movement
B) They allowed soldiers to send messages home
C) They reduced cost of weapons
D) They connected only cantonments

72. Dalhousie’s financial administration focused on?
A) Retrenchment of military
B) Expansion of trade revenues
C) Introduction of budget system
D) Land settlement only

73. Dalhousie’s reforms in civil services aimed to?
A) Indianize services fully
B) Make services merit-based
C) Limit Indian entry
D) Abolish civil services

74. Which historian called Dalhousie’s administrative reforms “the prelude to a modern state in India”?
A) R.C. Dutt
B) K.M. Panikkar
C) Bipin Chandra
D) Jadunath Sarkar

75. The overall nature of Dalhousie’s administrative and military reforms can be summed up as?
A) Expansionist only
B) Centralizing and modernizing
C) Conservative and orthodox
D) Liberal and democratic

76. Lord Dalhousie is often described as?
A) The “Great Reformer”
B) The “Great Annexer”
C) The “Economist”
D) The “Liberal Viceroy”

77. Which of the following reforms is NOT associated with Dalhousie?
A) Introduction of railways
B) Widow Remarriage Act 1856
C) Introduction of telegraph
D) Postal reforms

78. Dalhousie’s annexation of which state created the greatest discontent among sepoys of the Bengal Army?
A) Jhansi
B) Punjab
C) Awadh
D) Satara

79. Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse violated which Indian tradition?
A) Widow remarriage
B) Adoption rights of rulers
C) Caste-based laws
D) Religious pilgrimages

80. Which modern infrastructure introduced by Dalhousie had the most long-lasting impact?
A) Railways
B) Telegraphs
C) Postal system
D) Irrigation canals

81. Which of the following annexations by Dalhousie most directly pushed Rani Lakshmibai into rebellion?
A) Satara
B) Jhansi
C) Nagpur
D) Sambalpur

82. Dalhousie’s educational reforms are closely associated with?
A) Charter Act of 1833
B) Hunter Commission
C) Wood’s Dispatch 1854
D) Indian Universities Act 1904

83. The universities of Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras were founded in?
A) 1854
B) 1857
C) 1861
D) 1882

84. Dalhousie believed that railways in India would?
A) Strengthen Indian economy
B) Encourage industrialization
C) Strengthen British control (military + commerce)
D) Help peasants directly

85. Dalhousie’s legacy in irrigation is tied to?
A) Buckingham Canal
B) Ganga Canal
C) Sutlej Canal
D) Krishna Canal

86. Who called Dalhousie’s annexation of Awadh “a grave political blunder”?
A) R.C. Dutt
B) Lord Canning
C) Charles Metcalfe
D) Sir Syed Ahmad Khan

87. Which of Dalhousie’s reforms was hailed as a “boon to common people”?
A) Railways
B) Telegraph
C) Uniform postal system
D) Doctrine of Lapse

88. Dalhousie’s modernization programme is often compared to?
A) Akbar’s reforms
B) Cornwallis Code
C) Bentinck’s humanitarian reforms
D) Industrial Revolution in Britain

89. The annexation of Awadh in 1856 was justified by Dalhousie as?
A) “Doctrine of Lapse”
B) “Act of justice for people’s welfare”
C) “Treaty violation”
D) “Punishment for rebellion”

90. Which of Dalhousie’s policies sowed seeds of Indian nationalism indirectly?
A) Railways and telegraph
B) Doctrine of Lapse
C) Annexation of Awadh
D) Wood’s Dispatch

91. Who called Dalhousie’s educational reforms “a decisive step in the making of modern India”?
A) R.C. Dutt
B) Dadabhai Naoroji
C) Gopal Krishna Gokhale
D) Bipin Chandra

92. Dalhousie’s administrative reforms aimed primarily at?
A) Decentralization
B) Strengthening British central control
C) Giving Indians representation
D) Reducing army expenses

93. Why is Dalhousie sometimes criticized as a short-sighted administrator?
A) He ignored British trade
B) His aggressive annexations caused resentment leading to 1857 revolt
C) He neglected infrastructure
D) He did not promote education

94. Who described Dalhousie as “the founder of modern India”?
A) Charles Metcalfe
B) Lord Curzon
C) Sir John Kaye
D) R.C. Dutt

95. Dalhousie’s reforms in Punjab made it known as?
A) A backward province
B) A model province
C) A rebellious province
D) A poor province

96. Dalhousie’s annexations were opposed even in Britain because?
A) They reduced trade
B) They were seen as immoral and unjust
C) They drained treasury
D) They weakened the army

97. Dalhousie’s introduction of modern postal services in 1854 was modeled on?
A) French system
B) British uniform penny postage system
C) American system
D) Mughal postal system

98. Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse was abolished by?
A) Lord Canning
B) Queen Victoria’s Proclamation 1858
C) Lord Mayo
D) Indian Councils Act 1861

99. Dalhousie’s overall legacy can be summarized as?
A) Purely expansionist and destructive
B) Reformist, modernizing but politically short-sighted
C) Conservative and orthodox
D) Liberal and democratic

100. Which of the following best explains Dalhousie’s role in Indian history?
A) He was a conqueror without reforms
B) He was a reformer without vision
C) He was both a modernizer and an annexationist
D) He was only interested in trade