Who was the First Governor General of Independent India?
By BYJU'S Exam Prep
Updated on: November 9th, 2023
Lord Mountbatten was the first Governor General of free India. After the Independence of India, Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten became the first governor-general of India. He was appointed by George VI. He served as the first Governor General of Independent India from 15 August 1947 to 21 June 1948. He played a major role in the partition of Pakistan from British India.
As governor-general of India, he helped the Indian princes or rulers merge their princely states into India or Pakistan. His duties included directing the transfer of power in India and preventing the division of the Indian subcontinent.
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First Governor General of Free India
Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten served as a colonial governor, a member of the British royal family, and a naval commander for his country. German-born Mountbatten was born to the renowned Battenberg family in the United Kingdom.
He joined the Royal Navy during World War I and during World War II he was named Supreme Allied Commander, South East Asia Command. Later, he held the positions of first Governor General of the Dominion of India for a brief period of time and the last Viceroy of British India. In 1952, Mountbatten was named NATO Commander of Allied Forces in the Mediterranean and supreme commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet.
Fact about First Governor General of Free India
Important information about the first governor-general of free India is provided below:
- Lord Mountbatten was born on June 25, 1900, in Mullaghmore, Ireland.
- His original name is Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas, Prince of Battenberg.
- Lord Mountbatten was a Naval Commander and British Statesman.
- He became the fleet admiral in 1956 and head of the chief of staff committee in 1959.
- He was appointed the British government’s ruler of British India in March 1947.
- He introduced the Mountbatten Plan on June 3, 1947, to partition British India.
- Mountbatten’s plan was also known as Dickie Bird Plan or June 3rd Plan.
- After the Independence of India, he became the first governor-general of free India (August 1947–June 1948).
- Mountbatten was appointed commander-in-chief of the British Mediterranean Fleet and NATO Commander of Allied Forces Mediterranean in 1952.
- He was assassinated by a bomb planted aboard his fishing boat in Mullaghmore, County Sligo, Ireland, by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army.
Summary:
Who was the First Governor General of Independent India?
Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten was the first Governor General of a free India. He was the central brain behind the proposal that the provinces be declared independent princely states and then be allowed to pick whether to join the Indian constituent assembly. This plan initiated the enactment of the Indian Independence Act of 1947.
He supervised the partition of India after being named viceroy of India in March 1947. After that, he presided over India’s first governor-general until June 1948.
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