Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How did Pitt’s India Act of 1784 divide control between the British government and the East India Company?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
India
The Indian flag is also called the tricolor. The top band is saffron in color (signifying courage), the middle band is white (signifying peace and truth), and the bottom band is green (signifying fertility and growth). The wheel in the middle depicts the wheel of the law in the lion capital in Sarnath that Mauryan emperor Ashoka created.
Pitt’s India Act of 1784 established a system of dual control that fundamentally altered the relationship between the British government and the East India Company.12
Under this arrangement, the division of authority functioned as follows:
- The East India Company: The company’s directors retained control over commercial activities and day-to-day administration in India. They continued to act as political executants, though their operations were now subject to government oversight.12
- The British Government: A new Board of Control was established to provide political superintendence over the company. The board’s president effectively became the minister for India, and the board held the power to alter, veto, or dictate the company’s dispatches. Furthermore, the British crown gained the authority to recall the governor-general.13
This legislation ensured that the British government held ultimate control over policy while leaving the company to manage trade and local administration, a structure that persisted until 1858.12