Question
Q14. Wellesley established the Fort William College at Calcutta because
a. He was asked by the Board of Directors at London to do so
b. He wanted to revive interest in oriental learning in India
c. He wanted to provide William Carey and his associates with employment
d. He wanted to train British Civilians for administrative purpose in India
Answer: D
Detailed Explanation
· Fort William College was established on 18 August 1800 by Lord Richard Wellesley (d. 1837), Governor General of Bengal, in order to provide instruction in the vernacular languages of India to the civil and military officials of the East India Company.
· It was named after King William III of England. The purposes were multi folded: fostering of Indian languages and making the British officials to be familiar with the local languages, etc. so that their administrative work would become easier as it involved interaction with the Indian natives.
· The college, however, could not continue for long due to fear among the members of the Court of Directors that such a training programme might shift the loyalties of the civil servants from London to Calcutta and ultimately resulted into its closure in 1802.
Development of Education in British India
| Year | Event | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1781 | Calcutta Madrasa | Established by Warren Hastings to promote Islamic studies. |
| 1791 | Sanskrit College | Established by Jonathan Duncan at Benaras to promote Sanskrit learning. |
| 1800 | Fort William College | Established by Lord Richard Wellesley for training civil servants. |
| 1813 | Charter Act of 1813 | Directed the East India Company to spend one lakh rupees annually to promote modern sciences and encourage learned Indians. |
| 1835 | Macaulay Minute | Settled the row in favour of Anglicists, promoting Western sciences and literature through English medium while neglecting mass education (proposed downward filtration theory). |
| 1854 | Woods Despatch | Known as the ‘Magna Carta of English Education in India.’ Recommended government responsibility for education, English as the medium for higher studies, and vernaculars for school-level education. |
| 1857 | Universities Established | Universities were set up at Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras. |
