Question

“In my belief, Congress is to tottering to its fall and one of my great ambitions while in India is to assist it to a peaceful demise.” Who wrote it?
1. Lord Lytton
2. Lord Dufferin
3. Lord Curzon
4. Lord Minto
5. None of the above/More than one of the above

Answer 1

Correct Answer - Option 3 : Lord Curzon

The correct answer is Lord Curzon.

• Lord Curzon:
  • He was the Viceroy of India from 1899 to 1905.
  • Curzon stated during the formation of the Indian National Congress i.e., in 1885 that "In my belief, Congress is to tottering to its fall and one of my great ambitions while in India is to assist it to a peaceful demise".
  • Curzon was a British Conservative Statesman.
  • During his tenure as Viceroy, Lord Curzon created the territory of Eastern Bengal and Assam.
  • Lord Curzon fought with the British military commander Lord Kitchener.
  • He performed his duties as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at the Foreign Office from 1919 to 1924.
  • During his tenure, the Prime Minister of Britain was Stanley Baldwin.
  • His Biography was Curzon: Imperial Statesman.

• Lord Lytton:
  • Lord Lytton, who remained the Viceroy of India from 1876-1880 used to write poems with the Pen name of Owen Meredith.
  • During his tenure, a Royal Titles Act conferring on Queen Victoria the title of the Empress of India was passed and a magnificent Delhi Darbar was organized in 1877 in which queen Victoria was adorned with the title Qaiser-i-Hind.
  • Aligarh College was founded in 1877 and the Vernacular Press Act, Arms act were passed in 1878.
  • The age for eligibility in civil services was brought down from 21 to 18 years.
  • The second Anglo-Afghan war also fought during his tenure which proved to be very expensive.
• Lord Dufferin:
  • Lord Dufferin served as Governor-General of India and Viceroy from 1884 to 1888.
  • During his tenure, the Third Burmese war led to the annexation of the whole of Burma and the Burmese ruler was exiled to India.
  • In 1885, AO Hume laid the foundation of the Indian National Congress.
  • In 1885, the Panjdeh Incident happened in which the Russian forces seized Afghan territory south of Amu Darya around the site of Panjdeh {now located in Turkmenistan}.
  • This created a diplomatic crisis between Russia and Great Britain.
• Lord Minto:
  • Lord Minto served as Governor-General and Viceroy of India from 1905 to 1910.
  • He witnessed the outburst of the Indian National Movement.
  • Major events that happened during his regime included enactment of Newspapers (Incitement to Offences) Act, 1908, Explosive Substances Act,  Deportation of Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh to Mandalay Jail (1907), Surat Split (1907), Trial of Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1908), Foundation of the Indian Muslim League (1906), Indian Council Act of 1909 (Morley-Minto Reforms), the establishment of Indian Home Rule Society in England by Shyamji Verma, Murder of Col.
  • William Wyllie by Madan Lal Dhingra (1909), Assassination of Jackson, the Magistrate of Nasik and Ahmadabad Bomb case (1909).