British Indian Possessions and Protectorates 1837

The East India Company’s policy was to maintain direct and indirect control through agreements with local rulers. However, the situation relating to control was always subject to review; for instance Mysore came under direct British rule in 1836, which continued until 1881 when it reverted to the control of a local ruler. In 1833, the St Helena Act extended the royal charter granted to the East India Company for 20 years. The British parliament ended the commercial activities of the Company, which became a purely administrative body, the agent for the British administration of India; the Company’s monopoly on the China trade was terminated. The Governor-General of Bengal was designated the Governor-General of India and his executive council was granted exclusive legislative power for the whole of India. In 1836 the North-Western Provinces were established, made up of ceded and conquered provinces now under direct British rule. In 1837 the Post Office Act gave the government the exclusive right to convey letters within the territories of the East India Company.